Elise. When most of us hear that term, we see:
In a few years, if Lotus has their way, it will mean this:
Other than being uglier and heavier - it's bound to be much more expensive. Sort of a Thunderbird moment. So, does anyone have any idea how a non self-destructing Lotus depreciates? I am genuinely curious to see 'how low they will go', and then buy one, of course. Not for the value increase, but because I want a freakin' Elise.
What say the masses?
I've been watching the market fairly closely for the past couple of years. Good cars rarely get down to $26k or so. There are cheaper ones, but they almost all have salvage titles.
I have seen a few for around 28k here in NC. I cant recall the year or model, but they are available here. One of my neighbors just bought one used. I never talk to the guy, but I might now... Right now the cheapest ones are still 27.5k out of my budget!
like so many things.. there are some designs you cannot improve upon. I think the only car company that has managed to continually update their cars has been Porsche.
I do not see the elise being able to trasform into something newer and better looking. Better to go clean sheet and name
A couple of years ago, the local dealer was selling used early ones for around $25K and they were snapped up pretty quickly. Now when they do have them (rare), they tend to ask in the mid 30's.
http://lawton.craigslist.org/cto/2348460606.html
$23,500 with some clamshell damage - curb scuff sez owner.
I've been casually watching the market for a couple years on behalf of my girlfriend - it's her dream car.
Seems a lot of salvage title are due to bodywork claims, as the clam damage is pretty damned tricky to fix and very expensive to replace as it's a one-piece part. For something we'd plan to keep just about forever, I don't think I'm worried about a salvage title on an otherwise good car, especially if it's only from cosmetic damage.
Now, there are frame tweaks to keep in mind, and the frame is pretty much irreparable, from what I understand. This seems to be one of those cars worthy of a professional PPI.
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