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Well I am happy that my wife talked me into getting the C5 over the Lotus. Today on the way to the Beach I see an Orange Lotus. My wife hates the way they look, although I must tell you the truth I still love them. We both end up exiting at the same exit off I-75. We come to a red light we started talking. He was just an easy going guy… second time he did not want any of the corvette, so we drove off both heading to the beach.
About a mile away from the beach my fuel gauge went from half a tank to empty. The red check gauge came on and low fuel. We made it to the beach but I was worried about the car now. We are about 1hour and 20 minutes south of where we live. We started to drive back home after spending half the day at the beach. I am No longer worried about the broken fuel gauge. We make it back to I-75 get on the interstate heading north and about 3 minutes I see the guy with the Lotus!!! He pulls up we both honk wave and kept going… All in all I made the right choice by buy a C5 over the Lotus.
I'm agree with your wife, I hate those little cartoon cars. Your wife might look sexy Jessica but you would not want to look like Roger Rabbit in one of those, would you?
From: If opportunity doesn't knock, build a door. South West Florida / Livin' The Dream
St. Jude Donor '12
Congrats on your vette purchase.
As said above get some techron from the auto parts store and dump it in the tank to get the gage working again. As fast as our cars are they are fussy about fuel. Make sure whenever possable you are filling with top tier fuels
BTW there are 2 types of Techron you can buy by the bottle. One is a Fuel System Cleaner (that's what you want) and the other is a Fuel Injector Cleaner. The bottles look pretty much the same so be careful. I do use both - system cleaner about 4x per year; the injector cleaner annually. Also try not to let your vette sit for more than a week at
1/3rd tank or less; this seems to bring on the dreaded fuel sensor/gauge problem.
I love the way those lotus look but they just don't have that much power. A friend of mine drives an orange exige s and he has some stuff done to it but it still doesn't come close to my vette. But even though my vette will destroy the lotus if you are riding next to the lotus no one looks at the vette and everyone is looking at the lotus.
From: In a parallel universe. Currently own 2014 Stingray Coupe.
C7 of the Year - Modified Finalist 2021
MO Events Coordinator
St. Jude Co-Organizer
St. Jude Donor '03 thru '26
NCM Sinkhole Donor
CI 5, 8 & 11 Veteran
Nice story. And yes, for the fuel gauge try some Techron in the tank. Sulfur deposits accumulate on the sending units and causes them to read innacurately.
But even though my vette will destroy the lotus if you are riding next to the lotus no one looks at the vette and everyone is looking at the lotus.
LOl that is true - When I had the Lotus out recently, a couple asked if it was ok to take pictures - I said of course, and the woman proceeded to take her top off and pose next to the car as her friend snapped pics
Funny that I see just this thread now. I had the exact same dilemma last year. Was driving myself crazy on which car to get '02-'03 Z or '06 Elise. Loved the torque, comfort and smooth styling and practicality of the Z. Couldn't get over the outrageous looks of the Lotus coupled with the awesome handling and steering feel. The Lotus is quick, 4.7 sec 0-60mph, but not in the same league as Corvette, let alone a Z06.
My solution to anyone on the fence about which one to get: Just get them both and pick one to drive depending on what mood you're in . I can't think of two cars that complement each other better.
Last edited by LotusVette4040; Jun 23, 2010 at 11:25 PM.
From: In a parallel universe. Currently own 2014 Stingray Coupe.
C7 of the Year - Modified Finalist 2021
MO Events Coordinator
St. Jude Co-Organizer
St. Jude Donor '03 thru '26
NCM Sinkhole Donor
CI 5, 8 & 11 Veteran
Around here the Elise would be a unique car - I've only seen one on a regular basis. But, I'd still much rather have my C5. Besides, the closest dealer for repairs on an Elise is 120-150 miles away.
For those of you who have never driven a super-light car - try it. It is an incredible experience. Even an MX5 can be a blast to drive on tight, curvy roads, especially with the top down.
Funny that I see just this thread now. I had the exact same dilemma last year. Was driving myself crazy on which car to get '02-'03 Z or '06 Elise. Loved the torque, comfort and smooth styling and practicality of the Z. Couldn't get over the outrageous looks of the Lotus coupled with the awesome handling and steering feel. The Lotus is quick, 4.7 sec 0-60mph, but not in the same league as Corvette, let alone a Z06.
My solution to anyone on the fence about which one to get: Just get them both and pick one to drive depending on what mood you're in . I can't think of two cars that complement each other better.
Designer Imagines A Corvette That Looks More Like a Corvette Than the Corvette
Slideshow: A Jaguar designer's personal project imagines what a modern front-engined Corvette might look like if Chevrolet revisited the golden age of the Stingray.