I had my M100 for 7 years until the head gasket went at 115000 miles and I needed to sell it. I loved that car and felt special driving it as it was a Lotus. My car was chipped and it would see off anything up to 60 and many cars beyond that. I love Lotus content and especially M100. Thank you for sharing this video
Ah, your vid brings back good memories! I had a blue US-spec 1991 Elan (the S2 did’t ever make it here to the USA) that I drove for over 23,000 miles between my purchasing it in 2004 and trading it in on a Tesla in 2016. One winter I fitted Blizzack snow tires and had way too much fun driving in snow. The Elan was not as nimble as my 1996 Caterham SuperSprint, nor as comfortable as my 1999 SL500, but on some roads in rural Pennsylvania it was epic to drive, a true sports car. Fun story: I bought it in November 2004 in Iowa, so ended up driving over 1,000 miles to get home to Pennsylvania, including through a snowstorm (and the car had summer tires!) I was talking on the phone with a friend when the trip odometer flipped 1,000 miles, and I said out loud, “well, a thousand miles and no problems!” I should not have temped the car gods, on literally the next bump the climate control knob fell off. Easily reattached, no consequence, but don’t ever tell anyone that your Lotus is reliable, at least not if the car is in earshot 😉 (I first saw the Elan at the 1991 Philadelphia car show, I was still in college so it was out of the question, but I did buy a 1991 Isuzu Stylus XS with the “handling by Lotus” suspension that summer after I graduated. The Isuzu was a great car, Lotus did a fantastic job with the suspension on that car, and with the badging, clueless people sometimes thought I was driving a Lotus)
Great video, always like seeing how owners are getting on keeping theirs on the road and still looking great. I believe Lotus at the time made a conscious decision to go FWD as they wanted to tempt hot hatch owners who already owned FWD Golfs and Peugeots into a sports car. It was also an opportunity to showcase how Lotus Engineering could make FWD work really well in what was then quite a powerful car. When launched it was widely accepted as being brilliantly executed. They are incredibly reliable if looked after, yes some of the trim and seals are fragile but the important bits last really well. I think many at Lotus had a soft spot for the M100 and were proud of what they achieved. Certainly when a whole bunch of us turned up at the factory in our M100s many years ago for a factory tour, we were warmly greeted. Lotus even surprised us by assembling some of the original design team including Roger Becker in the board room for a question and answer session! It was a day to remember. Like you I shall not be parting with mine anytime soon.
Great update, thanks. Yours is identical to mine. I've only recently bought it and love it so far. Your experience has been really valuable. Tip on the hood duly noted too ! Look forward to hearing more in future.
The M100 is indeed an astonishing little gem ! Love to drive and own it. Like you said in your video, it's a really reliable thing, with a great road feeling and lots of thumbs up. I love it even more then my Exige, which is indeed more driver focused but also often too noisy and cramped. The M100 on the other hand has a really relaxing drive and is up with traffic when it needs to. Love to see your videos about it again, it deserves some positive attention. Thx
No problem, glad you enjoy the videos. Love my M100. I’ve had an Elise S2, a great car also, just a different brief. The Elan is so versatile though, and the front wheel drive is a non issue. If it had a hatchback it would be regarded as one of the best drivers cars of the 90’s.
Thanks so much for the video. Absolutely beautiful car, and highly under appreciated. They're also really rare now - I might see one a year out and about. I had a test drive in a 1992 SE turbo recently and it went off like a scalded cat, extremely rapid over B roads. Once I've converted the workshop in my garden into a garage, I'm getting one!
Thanks Craig 🙏. Glad you enjoyed the video. Yes they are great on a B-road. They are slowly starting to be appreciated now, but people in the automotive world do love to patriot standard narratives when it comes to some models, i.e “not a real Lotus because it’s front wheel drive’ and ‘Lots of trouble, usually serious”. But as you said, if you try it for yourself you can make your own mind up. 👍
I love my M100, it's a forgotten car from a mostly unknown car company outside of automotive enthusiasts here in the states. I originally got mine when the Elise was first being sold in the states because I'd drive by the dealership to look at them and I saw a couple M100s in the lot and loved the design of them. The $13k price was more within my budget than the $45k of the Elise.
Thanks for the video, this is the first time I've watched any content from your channel and will be now subscribing to watch more. To answer your question, yes - please create more content on the Lotus :-)
Youre A post seals have crumbled in the same spot as mine. Ive yet to fit it, but i have bought a new A post and header rail seal off a guy called Jamie on the LEC forum. It will look and seal perfect when on. I believe he is manufacturing them to order and its not even expensive.
I have had mine for over 20 years the car has been shunned more by lotus enthusiasts then anyone else i stopped bothering to take it to shows because of it
Sorry to hear that. It doesn’t surprise me though, even Schmee150 said that die hard Lotus fans were not very nice about his Emira. They are a strange bunch it seems. It’s very short sighted. I take comfort in the fact though that even Rod Emory with his amazing Porsche 356 Outlaws was shunned by Porsche die hard’s at one point, how mad is that! 👍
@@karlhurn Hi happy to help fellow Elan M100 owner Corner caps for your M100 where can I send then, they are 3D printed and are mat finnish I bought 2 spare ones when I had my screen replaced, I don't think I will be needing them
Would you recommend to buy a S2 M100? I would have the chance to get to one with a factory kit for 200bhp and about 45k miles on it and propper serviced. Many thanks, cheers
@@karlhurn In situations like that, always sand the surface before using glue. That's where the grip comes fSims. Decades ago, I used super glue stick a passenger-side rear mirror back in place. You couldn't even see the sims. By the way, l have a question about the Elan. Does the engine bay have enough room for a V8 engine swap?
@@richardike2342 A V8 might be a bit of a push, but possibly a V6. Front wheel drive though so torque steer might be an issue. The Isuzu engine is a good strong engine though and tunes well if it is chipped apparently.
@@karlhurn When this car was launched, it was (and still is) awesome to look at. However, the complaint was that it didn't feel like a real Lotus, with good reason. That's because it was front-wheel-drive (obviously an American influence), and it had an Isuzu engine, not a Lotus engine. I hated both ideas, but admired everything else about the car. My ideal modification would be to swap the engine with a small block V8 (in case you are not aware V8 is an American tradition), and install an electric motor for the rear wheels, making it an AWD hybrid.
@@richardike2342 Wow! That sounds like a big job 💪🏻. I don’t find the Isuzu connection a problem, as Lotus used a lot of other manufacturers engines. They changed quite a bit too, I just think they were daft to put the Isuzu name on top of the engine! Why do that? I also struggle with the idea of people thinking it’s not a real Lotus. What is a real Lotus? Colin Chapman would sell any old crap to go racing, just like Enzo Ferrari! 😂
People will always tell you that you can tell the difference because they want you to think they are an amazing driver. I own a Mk1 MX-5 and the Elan M100, I would say unless you are really pushing it and power sliding (who does that on public roads?), then the Elan hides its front wheel drive really well, the Lotus engineers really did an amazing job with the ‘raft’ design of the front drivetrain. The Isuzu engine has more punch as well.
@karlhurn I have a mk 2.5 mx5, and I agree unless you have the power witch mine doesn't being a 1.6 😕 ha, then you really can't tell on public roads, to be honest it was a bit disappointing
Can you please get back to me! I have a kia spectra that has the same engine and drive train, where do you buy the rear disk breaks/whole system for rear disk breaks. Do miatas work?
I’m pretty sure the Kia Spectra doesn’t have an Isuzu engine like my Lotus Elan. You might be thinking of the Kia Elan which did have a Kia engine, which might be the same one as the Spectra. Not sure what brakes your car would have, but again they won’t be the same as my car which are a GM part. I would stick with Kia parts if I were you.
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I had my M100 for 7 years until the head gasket went at 115000 miles and I needed to sell it. I loved that car and felt special driving it as it was a Lotus. My car was chipped and it would see off anything up to 60 and many cars beyond that. I love Lotus content and especially M100. Thank you for sharing this video
Thanks 🙏. Glad you liked it 👍
Such a fun little car and any trouble hasn't been serious...so far
Ah, your vid brings back good memories! I had a blue US-spec 1991 Elan (the S2 did’t ever make it here to the USA) that I drove for over 23,000 miles between my purchasing it in 2004 and trading it in on a Tesla in 2016. One winter I fitted Blizzack snow tires and had way too much fun driving in snow. The Elan was not as nimble as my 1996 Caterham SuperSprint, nor as comfortable as my 1999 SL500, but on some roads in rural Pennsylvania it was epic to drive, a true sports car.
Fun story: I bought it in November 2004 in Iowa, so ended up driving over 1,000 miles to get home to Pennsylvania, including through a snowstorm (and the car had summer tires!)
I was talking on the phone with a friend when the trip odometer flipped 1,000 miles, and I said out loud, “well, a thousand miles and no problems!” I should not have temped the car gods, on literally the next bump the climate control knob fell off. Easily reattached, no consequence, but don’t ever tell anyone that your Lotus is reliable, at least not if the car is in earshot 😉
(I first saw the Elan at the 1991 Philadelphia car show, I was still in college so it was out of the question, but I did buy a 1991 Isuzu Stylus XS with the “handling by Lotus” suspension that summer after I graduated. The Isuzu was a great car, Lotus did a fantastic job with the suspension on that car, and with the badging, clueless people sometimes thought I was driving a Lotus)
Great video, always like seeing how owners are getting on keeping theirs on the road and still looking great. I believe Lotus at the time made a conscious decision to go FWD as they wanted to tempt hot hatch owners who already owned FWD Golfs and Peugeots into a sports car. It was also an opportunity to showcase how Lotus Engineering could make FWD work really well in what was then quite a powerful car. When launched it was widely accepted as being brilliantly executed. They are incredibly reliable if looked after, yes some of the trim and seals are fragile but the important bits last really well. I think many at Lotus had a soft spot for the M100 and were proud of what they achieved. Certainly when a whole bunch of us turned up at the factory in our M100s many years ago for a factory tour, we were warmly greeted. Lotus even surprised us by assembling some of the original design team including Roger Becker in the board room for a question and answer session! It was a day to remember. Like you I shall not be parting with mine anytime soon.
Great video. More m100 content please.
More to come! Glad you liked it 👍
Great update, thanks. Yours is identical to mine. I've only recently bought it and love it so far. Your experience has been really valuable. Tip on the hood duly noted too ! Look forward to hearing more in future.
Glad you enjoyed it! And I’m glad to hear you’re enjoying your M100 too 👍
A NICE HONEST review Beautiful car and colour
The M100 is indeed an astonishing little gem ! Love to drive and own it. Like you said in your video, it's a really reliable thing, with a great road feeling and lots of thumbs up. I love it even more then my Exige, which is indeed more driver focused but also often too noisy and cramped. The M100 on the other hand has a really relaxing drive and is up with traffic when it needs to. Love to see your videos about it again, it deserves some positive attention. Thx
No problem, glad you enjoy the videos. Love my M100. I’ve had an Elise S2, a great car also, just a different brief. The Elan is so versatile though, and the front wheel drive is a non issue. If it had a hatchback it would be regarded as one of the best drivers cars of the 90’s.
thanks for the video, Ive had my m100 for a round a year, bought it as a bit of a project but love it.
Lovely lotus Central are fans ,it's a great lotus.
Thanks so much for the video. Absolutely beautiful car, and highly under appreciated. They're also really rare now - I might see one a year out and about. I had a test drive in a 1992 SE turbo recently and it went off like a scalded cat, extremely rapid over B roads. Once I've converted the workshop in my garden into a garage, I'm getting one!
Thanks Craig 🙏. Glad you enjoyed the video. Yes they are great on a B-road. They are slowly starting to be appreciated now, but people in the automotive world do love to patriot standard narratives when it comes to some models, i.e “not a real Lotus because it’s front wheel drive’ and ‘Lots of trouble, usually serious”. But as you said, if you try it for yourself you can make your own mind up. 👍
I love my M100, it's a forgotten car from a mostly unknown car company outside of automotive enthusiasts here in the states. I originally got mine when the Elise was first being sold in the states because I'd drive by the dealership to look at them and I saw a couple M100s in the lot and loved the design of them. The $13k price was more within my budget than the $45k of the Elise.
Cool 😎. How long have you had it then?
Thanks for the video, this is the first time I've watched any content from your channel and will be now subscribing to watch more. To answer your question, yes - please create more content on the Lotus :-)
Thanks Oliver 🙏. Glad you liked the video. More Lotus content coming soon. Thanks for subscribing. 👍
Im currently on my second m100 and i love it
Great video and car.
Thanks 🙏
Youre A post seals have crumbled in the same spot as mine. Ive yet to fit it, but i have bought a new A post and header rail seal off a guy called Jamie on the LEC forum. It will look and seal perfect when on. I believe he is manufacturing them to order and its not even expensive.
Sounds good. I’ll look into it. Many thanks 🙏
I have had mine for over 20 years the car has been shunned more by lotus enthusiasts then anyone else i stopped bothering to take it to shows because of it
Sorry to hear that. It doesn’t surprise me though, even Schmee150 said that die hard Lotus fans were not very nice about his Emira. They are a strange bunch it seems. It’s very short sighted. I take comfort in the fact though that even Rod Emory with his amazing Porsche 356 Outlaws was shunned by Porsche die hard’s at one point, how mad is that! 👍
More M100 please
Put 100,000 miles on mine. Change the brake fluid! When driven hard it takes a pounding, also it absorbs water just sitting.
Yes the brakes seem the weakest part of the design. Seems like a lot of people put AP Racing ones on.
Alot of the interior bits and bobs are the same as used in my Holden Commodore.
Yes that’s the GM parts bin at work. They’re from Vauxhall’s in the UK.
Miss more Elan videos
Does that mean don’t do them as in miss them out or you miss them so do more?
i want see that lotus with modern wheels
I have 2 spare corner caps for your windscreen if you want them
Hi Marcus, that would be great if you can spare them?
@@karlhurn Hi happy to help fellow Elan M100 owner
Corner caps for your M100 where can I send then, they are 3D printed and are mat finnish
I bought 2 spare ones when I had my screen replaced, I don't think I will be needing them
Hi, how can I get these corner caps to you, need an address and I can post them to you
Would you recommend to buy a S2 M100? I would have the chance to get to one with a factory kit for 200bhp and about 45k miles on it and propper serviced. Many thanks, cheers
Yes I would definitely recommend 👍 they are great cars and still a relative bargain.
Use super glue to stick the rear mirror. But first, sand the surface of the rear mirror's stick side.
The screen fitting company did try superglue, but I don’t think they sanded the surface. I’ll give it a go 👍
@@karlhurn In situations like that, always sand the surface before using glue. That's where the grip comes fSims.
Decades ago, I used super glue stick a passenger-side rear mirror back in place. You couldn't even see the sims.
By the way, l have a question about the Elan. Does the engine bay have enough room for a V8 engine swap?
@@richardike2342 A V8 might be a bit of a push, but possibly a V6. Front wheel drive though so torque steer might be an issue. The Isuzu engine is a good strong engine though and tunes well if it is chipped apparently.
@@karlhurn When this car was launched, it was (and still is) awesome to look at. However, the complaint was that it didn't feel like a real Lotus, with good reason. That's because it was front-wheel-drive (obviously an American influence), and it had an Isuzu engine, not a Lotus engine. I hated both ideas, but admired everything else about the car.
My ideal modification would be to swap the engine with a small block V8 (in case you are not aware V8 is an American tradition), and install an electric motor for the rear wheels, making it an AWD hybrid.
@@richardike2342 Wow! That sounds like a big job 💪🏻. I don’t find the Isuzu connection a problem, as Lotus used a lot of other manufacturers engines. They changed quite a bit too, I just think they were daft to put the Isuzu name on top of the engine! Why do that? I also struggle with the idea of people thinking it’s not a real Lotus. What is a real Lotus? Colin Chapman would sell any old crap to go racing, just like Enzo Ferrari! 😂
What are they like to drive considering that they are front wheel drive dose that make a difference compered to say a mx5?
People will always tell you that you can tell the difference because they want you to think they are an amazing driver. I own a Mk1 MX-5 and the Elan M100, I would say unless you are really pushing it and power sliding (who does that on public roads?), then the Elan hides its front wheel drive really well, the Lotus engineers really did an amazing job with the ‘raft’ design of the front drivetrain. The Isuzu engine has more punch as well.
@karlhurn I have a mk 2.5 mx5, and I agree unless you have the power witch mine doesn't being a 1.6 😕 ha, then you really can't tell on public roads, to be honest it was a bit disappointing
Can you please get back to me! I have a kia spectra that has the same engine and drive train, where do you buy the rear disk breaks/whole system for rear disk breaks. Do miatas work?
I’m pretty sure the Kia Spectra doesn’t have an Isuzu engine like my Lotus Elan. You might be thinking of the Kia Elan which did have a Kia engine, which might be the same one as the Spectra. Not sure what brakes your car would have, but again they won’t be the same as my car which are a GM part. I would stick with Kia parts if I were you.
Kia had Honda engine