Lotus elise engine info help.

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Young_Warrior

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Can anyone inform me about all the different engines the elise has had in it. I know it had a rover engine and it also uses the 1.8 vvti but has it ever used a honda engine or something made or partly developed by honda?
 
heres a lil info i found

The Lotus Elise started with the Rover K Series engine. Lotus eventually started modifying the engine to suit their specific applications, eventually supplying the engine in 120, 135, 156, and 190 horse power variations.

In 2004, Lotus modified the Elise for the American market and installed the Toyota 2ZZ-GE, 1.8 liter, variable lift and timing engine.
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There's a Honda conversion kit and info on the swap somewhere online (don't know where, might need to dig it up) on swapping B-Series Honda engines into Elises. This was started at a time when Elises were only using Rover K-series engines. There's also a company in the US working on a Honda K-Series (new RSX engine) conversion, but I don't know the status of that.

But the Elise doesn't come with Honda engines stock.
 
Yes, the Honda unit fits, as proved. There is actually a street-legal Honda powered S1 Elise moving around the US (can't remember where). Audi 2-litre conversions have also been shoe-horned in, along with larger units (check Esthi for big numbers). You can extract a ton of hp from the Rover, so I don't see a point in dropping in anything else if you're pre-111R in Europe. The easiest post-111R hp upgrade is easily trading in the 111R for an S2 Exige and sitting around 'til Lotus can give you the supercharger; and it's still a convertible (removing the Exige's roof only voids the waranty on the roof itself, not the whole car).

Everything's been covered, but if you need anything else about the Elise, I'm always around :)

The last thing that I might mention about the Toyota motor is that it was tuned by Yamaha for Lotus, hence the 10hp advantage over the Matrix/Celica versions.
 
Slightly off-topic but everyone is posting examples of Elise transplants. There is a S2000 engined S1 Elise somewhere in Auckland. That'd be a hoon of car, 250hp + 9000rpm + Lotus Elise.
 
Adrian Newey (McLaren designer) has got a 300+hp turbo Elise. It runs 1.6 bar on the original engine (strengthened, of course). Also, as eliseracer mentioned, Esthi do some big engine transplants, including this.. evo magazine tested it on the Autobahn in 2003 and got it up to 182mph. They also said it was quite easy to live with.
 
eliseracer
Yes, the Honda unit fits, as proved. There is actually a street-legal Honda powered S1 Elise moving around the US (can't remember where). Audi 2-litre conversions have also been shoe-horned in, along with larger units (check Esthi for big numbers). You can extract a ton of hp from the Rover, so I don't see a point in dropping in anything else if you're pre-111R in Europe. The easiest post-111R hp upgrade is easily trading in the 111R for an S2 Exige and sitting around 'til Lotus can give you the supercharger
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.....A bit like my step-bro's Exige 240R - seen here at Cadwell Park last week.



eliseracer
and it's still a convertible (removing the Exige's roof only voids the waranty on the roof itself, not the whole car).
Click to expand...

Although with the Lotus Supercharger option (to be available some time after they've made all the 240Rs) the air intake on the roof is used for the intercooler. The standard S2 Exige has a dummy intake.
 
All models of Lotus Elise have used the Rover K-Series except the Lotus 111R, which uses the mentioned Toyota 2ZZ-GE.

I'm not sure by what you mean 200 series, but if that car uses the K-Seires, then yes, it's the same lump. Many UK cars use the K.
 
stumpydino
noob question, it says lotus used the rover k series, so basically the same as what is in the 200 series? :odd:
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You've got to remember that the Rover K-series is a series of engines not just one engine of one spec.

Rover produced it as a 1.1, 1.4, 1.6 and a 1.8ltr also a 1.8VVC. They used it in all their cars from the Metro to the Rover 75 including all the MG varients.

http://www.austin-rover.co.uk/index.htm?enginekseriesf.htm
 
stumpydino
i meant 200 series as in the rover 214, 216, 218 etc...i get it now, i see caterham use the same engine too :dopey:
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A lot of small-volume sports car makers have used the K-series because its such a light engine. Adding the Toyota engine has also added a big chunk of weight. If i remember rightly, the S2 Elise with the K-series weighed around 800kgs, the S2 with the Toyota engine is about 860kgs.
 
Isn't part of that weight due to federalization? I thought Toyota's 1.8 was light?
 
Yes.

Bumper has to be stregthened and certain other parts.

The engine however stayed the same. Chosen because it had already passed teh US federal tests.
 
I don't think that the European 111R cars have the same US fedarlisation parts added on. If those weights are from the 111R, then I think that the 60kg difference is from the motor. The US Elise weighs 900 kgs.
 
eliseracer
I don't think that the European 111R cars have the same US fedarlisation parts added on. If those weights are from the 111R, then I think that the 60kg difference is from the motor. The US Elise weighs 900 kgs.
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In a way I think it would be easier to just build all the model the same, rather than sub divide it.
 
ExigeExcel
In a way I think it would be easier to just build all the model the same, rather than sub divide it.
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The Fed Elise is a sub-division of the 111R as it is. The Euro/Asia/Australia 111R had an entire model year of production before the US models were delivered.

Elise (including 111R)
-US Elise

It would make sense just modifying the US versions off of 111Rs (which there are more of). I assume this is the stage where the US's LSS cars get their job done as well. I could be wrong though. Good question, it's all a matter of how many different produciton "lines" they're using.
 
eliseracer
It would make sense just modifying the US versions off of 111Rs (which there are more of). I assume this is the stage where the US's LSS cars get their job done as well. I could be wrong though. Good question, it's all a matter of how many different produciton "lines" they're using.
Click to expand...

I know that when my step-bro has been down the Hethal to pick up his cars, he's told me that all the Elises, Exiges and VX220's are built on the same line. I'm pretty sure the US 111R's are almost exactly the same as all the others (localisation excepted, lights etc)
 
They're all on the same line, but they all seperate at some point, for the engines and the body work. I'm fairly sure at this stage the Feds switch from the 111Rs, the 40kg difference comes from somewhere, now doesn't it.
 
eliseracer
They're all on the same line, but they all seperate at some point, for the engines and the body work. I'm fairly sure at this stage the Feds switch from the 111Rs, the 40kg difference comes from somewhere, now doesn't it.
Click to expand...

It must be all the cup holders and shiny 'plastic' wooden trim the add for the US market :sly:
 
My car got about 15 extra kg in US trim... same airbags and safety equipment, and all that's different are the slightly larger mags and a subwoofer out back.
 

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