I want to take a Miata and "add Lotus", what would you recommend?

I've had and tracked a Lotus Exige for awhile. I love everything about the experience - handles fantastic, easy on consumables, hasn't required much attention mechanically, it IS pretty quick around track (HPDE champion right here), and my 6' 1" 185 lb self fits in it just fine. The problem I'm solving for is that (Lotus) parts are getting harder to find and inevitably I'll need something that isn't readily available. I am mechanically competent and do all my own work on the lotus including things like alignment.

I'm wondering what the hive thinks ticks all the same boxes minus parts concern. I don't want to spend more than it would cost to buy another relatively stock Lotus  and get it track ready (~$50k ish). I want something that I can put a roof on, I like to drive rain or shine.

Option 1: NC

Seems like a good option in that should come in under budget (albeit also slower) and is probably the easiest miata for me to fit in. Would plan for coilovers, rollbar, hardtop, harnesses, etc.

Option 2: NC, spec Mx-5-ish

Since its going to be a track car, just buy everything I could possibly put into it up front. I say spec MX-5 ish b/c buying an actual competitive race car starts to push the budget. Some concern that lots of racecar parts starts meaning more maintenance than I'm used to.

Option 3: NC w/2.5 FZR swap

Should be closer to Lotus with increased HP and the swap seems straight forward, but I wonder what sort of hit I'd take in the maintenance department.

Option 4: ND2

I like the idea of this being the newest car (implies fewer issues) and that some weight came off. If (when?) the trans goes I can either swap with OEM, an NC trans, or bite the bullet and go SADEV since thats what keeps the big boys wheels rolling. I'm unaware of the maintenance a sequential requires. I believe it would require a little more work to fit a rollbar, but since it would primarily be a track car I'd be ok with losing soft top operation.

If you want a Lotus feel (light, nimble, surprisingly quick) you're likely to appreciate the ND more than the NC. You can get drop brackets for the seats that will help with Tall People Problems.

NC and ND have very similar tops and very similar roll bar installation constraints.

For about the same $$$ you can build quite the hoard of Exige parts to see you way into the future and enjoy a car that will be unique.  Just a thought.

Mr-s with a swap. 2zz/2ar/K swap, choose your own adventure.

I also think the aftermarket has been reasonably quick to plug the holes left by OEM unavailability wrt to Lotus. You might have to order from Elise Shop or Elise Parts, but that stuff usually shows up in 3-5 days.

I'm with Keith... an ND is probably the 'easy button' for just run it and enjoy it, but the NC offers several paths to increasing power down the road and will likely get you ND lap times with a lower initial investment.  For a track car that will see little or no street time, I'd probably go with the NC.  You can find an NC Spec MX5 in your budget, but if you're not W2W racing, you'll be spending a lot on things you don't really 'need' for HPDE and will be living with the restraints of a spec class car.  For less money you could build a really nice (and faster) HPDE NC, IMHO.

https://specmx-5.com/spec-mx-5-race-cars-for-sale/

I'm assuming there's more to this request than just "most speed for the money". The ND is fundamentally a better sports car than the NC IMO.

At 6'1" you will be a very tight fit in the ND2, even with seat lowering brackets. I'm 6'0" and with the Aurora seat lowering kit, my helmet still hit the RF roof. You will have more clearance with the softtop for sure, but it's also about the ergonomics, visibility, the rearview mirror becomes a forward blindspot, etc. It's an amazing car though, so it's worth sitting in some seats. 

FYI, the soft top has about 3/4" more clearance than the RF.

ND2 or just put the money toward an Exige parts hoard. I think the only really expensive and hard-to-get stuff on an Exige that it's hard to get substitutes for would be body and suspension-related.

Over the years I have been collecting parts for the Exige and the number of things coming up no longer available is what sent me down this line of thinking. I have a fairly extensive list of vendors (including all the ones mentioned above). But for example, if I needed some of the OEM supercharger fitting stuff, I'd either have to wait to find it or if possible have a machine shop replicate. An alternative would be to go aftermarket but aftermarket vendors dry up too, thats part of why I never went with a custom blower+ tune. I've pondered if two Lotus cars is twice the parts concern or half and thus far I'm leaning toward "twice the parts concern."

The sentiment above about wanting to a special driving experience is accurate. I expect the lotus has spoiled me in this department so I'm trying to see whats close. I don't need to do 160 down the front straight or want to spend $900 per tire to make that happen. I don't expect much of anything to replicate what I have save for buying another one or to go full on racecar, but so many racecars are only open top such that it leads me back to Miata.

I'm in a similar boat for dissimilar reasons. My wife just doesn't want me to hurt the Elise since she's very attached to it. Having driven a spec miata, that at least left me disappointed from a 'fun factor' perspective. It was great for what it was, but it lacked the fizz of the Elise. Everything felt mushy and sluggish. I totally get the allure, but the Elise/Exige platform is just really special when it comes to the intangibles. If you track an Exige because you like tracking an Exige, an Elise is about the only non-Exige replacement for less-than-Exige money. Feel-wise, they are the same once you put decent suspension on them. 

My answer would be to buy a beater Elise. Fred Zust recently sold one for $17k (asking price with lots of spares) that would have been a phenomenal starting point for a track beater. My wife wanted me to go for it, but it would ironically kill my trailer budget. Getting a trailer instead is priority then I'll revisit the second Lotus plan. 

I'd run NA and strip it out, so you get OEM SC performance without the heat soak (and cheaper). There are a couple for sale now around $20k that have questionable chassis repairs, and copart occasionally has good ones. Heck, even if you start at $30k, you can recoup significant cost by selling the unneeded parts. Plus, once you strip it and go NA, there isn't much that you can't replace. Body parts are available from aftermarket suppliers for reasonable prices, especially if it has a trackworthy paint job or wrap. Drivetrain can be found all over eBay, suspension is covered well by the aftermarket, and the interior is bare. 

Another option is to go "full Lotus", or rather, "Locost", taking an older/cheap Miata and using all the parts to build your own "Lotus 7."

In reply to cyow5 :

Yea, i haven't driven a spec miata but its not on the list because I'm not going racing and I assumed the handling was quite good but the true value is in how cheap replacement everything is.  Since I'm not racing I was thinking I don't have to send the proverbial slider all the way over into the value column.

Having another lotus in many ways could be easier since I'm so familiar with the platform already... ironically we end right back where we started this adventure: waiting for parts (or in this case the right car) to show up - I don't want to buy a mint one and turn it into a track rat, but I also don't really want to buy one that has mangled front suspension pickups and trust THAT car running full tilt for hours on end. A cup car around $40k is compelling...

Of the options in the OP, it sounds like from a pure value perspective it would be the NC, but if I'm chasing after a more special driving experience the ND could have the edge AND it would be preferable not to have to get into or take on someone elses engine swap. Maybe I can find someone stock-ish plus coilovers to bribe for a ride and maybe a street drive.

S2000? Z3Ms54? 

I have a caged 400whp e36 if you REALLY want to win your next HPDE. Low cost consumables and all the parts availability you could ever dream of. Lexan has weight down to NC miata levels too, and half your budget :-)

The Elige does quite ruin you when it comes to other cars and involvement and feel. Plenty of faster cars, cars that will put down quicker laps, but not much else resonates. Current S1 owner, ex S2 and NA Miatas and Caterham owner. I'd possibly look at a Caterham and ilk, they're quite a bit cheaper if you import one. A relatively stock Duratec in that chassis is FAST. 

Very left field suggestion: 818 coupe? Anything that isn't Subaru based should be easy to source from FF and they're light and mid-engine like the Lotus. Of course, it's a kit car, so...

AMiataCalledSteve said:

Of course, it's a kit car, so...

...It should feel familiar?

Driven5 said:

AMiataCalledSteve said:

Of course, it's a kit car, so...

...It should feel familiar?

Is that supposed to be a burn? LOL. Gotta love hand assembled. I tend to think of the Lotus as a simple car, but jobs DO tend to take longer than you think.

With the 818, i bet there are less of those than lotus. Is there good community support for tracked copies?

I'm starting to see NDs down around $10K, usually with a rebuilt title. I'll throw an odd one out. How about the Fiat version of the ND? I have no idea how robust those Fiat 1.4s are, or how much one could tweak the boost, but the rest of it is ND in a different suit.

I was withholding from commenting since you specified a Miata drivetrain, but since the thread is straying away from that, how about this, a mid-engine "Lotus Seven", Midlana. It uses Miata steering and uprights.

To me a Lotus is stripped down to only the important components and super lightweight.

Keith Tanner said:

FYI, the soft top has about 3/4" more clearance than the RF.

How is the RF for rollover protection?

Will the seat drop brackets work in the RF?

Woody (Forum Supportum) said:

Keith Tanner said:

FYI, the soft top has about 3/4" more clearance than the RF.

How is the RF for rollover protection?

Will the seat drop brackets work in the RF?

The RF top is not really structural. I wouldn't rate it much higher than the soft top.

Seat drop brackets should work exactly the same, I think machinbeau (sp) installed a set. To read more and get a feel for the 124 Spider reliability, see here!

In reply to Keith Tanner :

I guess I think of the RF more in terms of the Targa bar, for lack of a better descriptor. 

In reply to Woody (Forum Supportum) :

It does kinda look like it. But the "targa bar" detaches and is just bolted on to some mechanisms :) Those two fixed vertical bits are just window seals. I looked into the structure in the previously linked thread.