[quote=TheRoadWarrior]I guess the other question is that for 20k you could get either;
Exige S
S1
S1 Honda
[/quote]
You’ll be lucky to get a good S for 20k. More like 24k plus.
HaHa nice… So what made the S2 a better buy for you Damon? [/quote]
I bought my S2 for business reasons rather than an out and out comparison with the S1. Buying a Lotus again I would opt for a Honda’d S1 but I want a track only car, not a road car.
The main reason for getting an S2 if you are going to do road and track is this…
If you want a reliable solution at the cost of a little performance then the S2 is the best choice.
Edited for accuracy 
Is it me or do most Rice Cookers…er what are they called Honda S1’s always end up in a workshop most months in a year! This chap wants a road car so as much as we all have Lots Of Trouble…ish an S2 SC has to be his thing doesn’t it???
S1 Honda does not get hot at all as the engine is reversed and the exhaust manifold exits towards rear of car so it does not heat up the bulkhead and car like the rover k does.
Try all if you can, im sure if youre close to anyone they will be more than happy to take you out.
Okay, the reasons I couldn’t live with my S1 as a daily driver:
- It’s hot in there (always). The daily grind, sat in traffic jams in the summer sweating - this just isn’t what an S1 Exige is all about.
- It’s VERY noisy. If using every day you would need earplugs to avoid long term hearing damage I think.
- Luggage space. The S1 doesn’t have a boot, it has a shelf behind the engine with a small lip to (theoretically) stop stuff dropping into the engine. In fact, it has less usable luggage space than my Caterham had! The gap to get stuff into this space is also restricted by the airbox (on a VHPD car).
- The VHPD does not have a great reputation for reliability or longevity,I wouldn’t want to have to rely on it to get me to work.
Don’t get me wrong, I love my S1 Exige. I smile every time I open the garage door and think how lucky I am. Every journey feels like a special event. It’s a bit to special to be used as a day in day out commuting tool.
I previously owned an S2 Elise for six years, which had a Honda conversion. If necessary I would have been happy to run it as an only car. It was faster than the Exige, you could take the roof off when the weather was sunny, the engine was bullet proof and it had a proper boot. Would I swap back? Never (unless it had to be a daily driver 
)
Neal.
[quote=NealH]Okay, the reasons I couldn’t live with my S1 as a daily driver:
SNIP
- Luggage space. The S1 doesn’t have a boot, it has a shelf behind the engine with a small lip to (theoretically) stop stuff dropping into the
engine. In fact, it has less usable luggage space than my Caterham had! The gap to get stuff into this space is also restricted by the airbox (on a VHPD car).
SNIP
Neal. [/quote]
Ok, some great info here- thanks everyone, just the sort of owner specific info i was looking for. Neal, i think for me the luggage space would probably be the S1 killer for me. I dont need to lug huge amounts of stuff around but i do normally have a large holdall bag and a (Pretty big) camera bag to transport- and sometimes a passenger too.
If you were going to put a camera in the boot of an S1 it would get nicely roasted if you were driving in a spirited fashion, I never put anything more than a crash helmet and an overnight bag in my Sport190 (same boot as the Exige) and everything always came out nicely cooked 
I had the same dilema 3 years ago and the decision I made based on needing a reasonably practical road and track car which was going to be my only transport was the S2 S, knowing that I was going to pile on the miles a bit.
I discounted the S1 due to the boot and the K series engine (especially in VHPD form) which needs a fair bit of TLC given my mileage.
I discounted the NA S2 as it felt a bit gutless until you hit the magic 5750 rpm which was a bit impractical given where I live and the sort of daily journeys it would do.
I settled on the S2 S and have (almost) no regrets. The cockpit is a very nice place to be as I have all the options with air con, electric windows and Probax seats etc, and on track it’s still a far more capable car than the bloke who sits behind the wheel. Servicing doesn’t cost an arm and a leg and in three years and almost 26k miles it’s cost me a new front fog due to a stone and new rear toe links. For what it is it’s a ridiculously cheap car to own.
My only regret (or the nearest thing to it) is that having bought a daily shed for running around in I could now justify an S1 and keep the miles down. On balance though I’m sure I’d miss those little creature comforts that I’ve got used to, especially as other committments now severely limit the number of track days I can do.
Owning an S1 Exige is what I imagine dating a supermodel must be like � Great fun and a fabulous experience when the circumstances are right, but if you had to live with her day in day out, then she would just become demanding, high maintenance and generally annoying
Neal.
[quote=NealH]Owning an S1 Exige is what I imagine dating a supermodel must be like Great fun and a fabulous experience when the circumstances are right, but if you had to live with her day in day out, then she would just become demanding, high maintenance and generally annoying
Neal.[/quote]
LOL!
So true, one of my friends said to me one day about a girl like that over normal girls
“somebody, somewhere, is having to put up with her sh!t” they are just as annoying just more expensive in the long run…
Boot is an interesting issue. I have taken my wife away once in the S1. The boot does work and the bags came out not smelling which rather surprised me. We also managed to get all the xmas shopping in as well on the way home. However, the telling point here is that we have used it twice since to go away for the weekend and I have to use up many brownie points to achieve it. The boot will fit a bag but it really is impractical, it will get hot and I would not leave a camera in there for a long journey. Space in the cabin is poor. With two people in there you can just about fit a lap top and a wallet in!!
I still think it can be used as an every day car, just depends what you are used to driving. I would suggest a trip to a Lotus dealer that has both a S1 and a S2 you can drive. I think the boot may be the deciding factor here.
HaHa nice… So what made the S2 a better buy for you Damon? [/quote]
I bought my S2 for business reasons rather than an out and out comparison with the S1. Buying a Lotus again I would opt for a Honda’d S1 but I want a track only car, not a road car.
The main reason for getting an S2 if you are going to do road and track is this…
If you want a reliable solution at the cost of a little performance then the S2 is the best choice. [/quote]
If you remember correctly, you asked me to try and find where you were losing all your time on track…
It was in the boot
PMSL @ you 2
HaHa nice… So what made the S2 a better buy for you Damon? [/quote]
I bought my S2 for business reasons rather than an out and out comparison with the S1. Buying a Lotus again I would opt for a Honda’d S1 but I want a track only car, not a road car.
The main reason for getting an S2 if you are going to do road and track is this…
If you want a reliable solution at the cost of a little performance then the S2 is the best choice. [/quote]
If you remember correctly, you asked me to try and find where you were losing all your time on track…
[/quote]
Then why are you looking for it in the S1 
Because that’s where all the fast stuff lives…
HAHAHAHA
[quote=DaveP]
Because that’s where all the fast stuff lives… [/quote]
For the first 10 minutes
[quote=Damon][quote=DaveP]
Because that’s where all the fast stuff lives… [/quote]
For the first 10 minutes [/quote]
I only come in to the pits so you can catch up…