Justin's Lotus Elise Lotus Elise Pictures Pictures of My Elise Lotus 340R Pictures Life with an Elise Lotus Elise Specs Lotus Elise Links Justin's Clio Sport Track and Airfield Days Great Driving Roads Evo Meets	POINT and SQUIRT - High Performance Small Cars Living with a Lotus Elise There are myths and truths about Elise ownership that people will tell you as a summary of the owning experience... it'll break down all the time! ... you'll never get in it with the roof on! ... you'll get pulled over by the plod every five minutes! From my experience, I find the Lotus a joy to live with. At 6ft / 1.82m tall, I can get in and out with the roof on easily, and I haven't been pulled over once in 15,000 miles. I also find the car very cheap to run, with an easy 35mpg available in daily use. This is less than my girlfriend's Corsa in fuel costs, which makes it very easy for me to justify using the Elise for trips, inlcuding picking up six bags of shopping from the local supermarket! In terms of negatives, I have been to Williams Lotus a bit too often, spent a lot of money on tyres and spent time hunting down my Tizz. On the whole though, the costs of running the car are miniscule when you balance them against the fun, performance and kudos. Yep, everybody stares as you drive by. Small children cheer and teenagers gawp. Almost every day, someone will shout "Nice car mate!" and other drivers even make space for you and let you pass. Other Lotus owners too are always friendly and, as with other specialist marques, you'll get a wave and flash of lights whenever you pass another. This general public reaction to the car is a buzz of course, but it is the fun I have when driving the car that is the most rewarding. Urban driving is a breeze with a point and squirt approach making short work of traffic light queues and getting into space to change lanes, etc. Thankfully, urban environments are full of tight corners and mini roundabouts, which always get me grinning as the car digs in at 25mph and turns like it's on rails. Out in open country and it is empty A and B-roads that are the best of all. I live where the M5 is the easiest way to get everywhere, but I'll most often be found taking the scenic route through the Mendips or nipping off to Wales on the way home for no better reason than it's there! Every corner, camber and gradient beckons as a challenge to 'get just right' and the satisfaction of a road well driven makes me feel on top of the world.