This car has the highest driving to spannering ratio of any sportscar I've owned, but nevertheless I couldn't resist the temptation to fiddle with a few bits. Below are a few tips you may find useful if you are also an Elise owner.

Follow link for picture	Still work in progress, but I suspect my steering rack is worn. I've done 22,000 miles, some on track but I've heard of other owners having problems even with just road use. Steering Rack Problems
Follow link for picture	My Elise has the original MMC ("aluminium") brake disks, which have been fine. However, friend and Lotus owner Vivian Meazza has had problems with serious overheating and at Snetterton in March one fractured! MMC Disk Failure
	Why, on a fibreglass and aluminium car, do Lotus make the towing eye mount out of painted mild steel and then put it at the front where it gets stonechipped and goes rusty? Worse still, you have to take the whole front clam off to get at it. Fortunately this isn't too hard - Front Clam Removal
	This shot highlights the rectangular metal plate which holds the door when open. On some early Elises this fractured and dropped into the door hinge.
No picture yet	Droopy exhaust. The exhaust pipe outlets on my car started to droop such that they weren't central in the rear clam aperture. There is some adjustment by means of a captive bolt between the twin pipes, but I also found I needed to pad the two rearmost rubber mounts which had deformed slightly.
Follow link for picture	Ooops. Some over exhuberant driving meant repairs where required to my car's suspension. Suspension Damage
	Unused connector - what's it for? The shot is taken from passenger (LH) side looking down and between seats with centre tunnel cover removed. The blue connector is tied back out of the way and has never been connected to anything.
	View into passenger footwell showing mounting for fire extinguisher. An extinguisher is mandatory for many track events, and this is the minimum solution. It is secured by two bolts holding a metal bracket to the top of the footrest. (Footnotes on extingushers)
	View into driver footwell showing enlarged clutch footrest. I found the standard one uncomfortable when wearing thin soled race boots. It fits on top of the original for added strength and uses the existing mounting holes. The yellow arrow points to a screw in the accelerator pedal linkage which worked loose somehow.
	View of LH side door mechanism with interior trim removed. The window is wound fully open and the red arrow points to the eccentric adjuster for closed window height. I think this is what needs adjusting when you fit a hard top. Another bit that managed to loosen itself.
No picture yet	String and elastic design to lift boot cover along with engine cover so you can put stuff on in the boot one handed. A bit 'Heath Robinson' but very light!
No picture yet	One of the best Elise tips is to replace the screws that secure the wheelarch liners and undertrays with stainless steel ones. The originals are very poor quality and rust quickly, making them impossible to undo. For cosmetic reasons, you might also like to do the self tappers that hold the rear number plate lamps. Full list.
No picture yet	Some say that difficulty engaging reverse when the car is warm is caused by expansion of the red plastic clutch hose and that you should replace it with a stainless steel braided teflon item. I've done this, but I'm not convinced in makes much difference.