Lotus Elise Sport 240 Final Edition review

Still related to the Series 1 model with a bonded and riveted aluminium chassis that has evolved through the generations but endured for the better part of three decades, this Elise Sport 240 Final Edition is no wider than the original and only 10cm longer. But it has put on some weight – almost 200kg, in fact. This test car’s lavishly trimmed interior with lashings of carpet, leather and Alcantara make it feel altogether more hospitable than a bare-bones Series 1. 

But for all that’s changed over the years, the Elise’s basic character is still now as it was back then. The little steering wheel chatters and chirrups in your fingertips, so you feel precisely how hard the front tyres are clawing into the tarmac. Grip bleeds away rather than falling off a cliff, meaning you drive the car on the edge, never feeling there’s a whole world of excitement that’s tantalisingly out of reach on the road no matter what you try. 

It is the way the car rides, though, that confirms it really is an Elise. The suppleness, the fluidity, the sense that no matter the state of the road, this thing will glide serenely over the top of it… That’s what makes the Elise so wonderful to drive. There’s also the engine, so subtly supercharged that you’d never guess with a level of performance you can use freely on the highway. For driving in the real world, this joyous little machine trumps any supercar. 

Lotus Elise Sport 240 Final Edition
Engine: 1898cc, 4-cyls, supercharged
Transmission: 6-speed manual, RWD
Power: 240bhp @ 7200rpm
Torque: 181lb ft @ 3000rpm
Weight: 931kg
Power-to-weight: 258bhp/tonne
0-62mph: 4.5 seconds
Top speed: 147mph
Price: £45,500
Ti rating 9/10