Lotus EliseYears to avoid, problems & recalls

NHTSA has 72 owner complaints and 6 safety recalls on record for the Lotus Elise.

Years to avoidNoneBased on weighted complaints Best years—Fewest complaints for their age Owner complaints72Top: Engine and engine cooling Safety recalls62005–2011 model years

Source: NHTSA complaints, recalls, investigations and manufacturer recall reports. Updated daily. How we score years.

Best & worst years

Lotus Elise years to avoid

Complaints by model year, colored by the CarFlaw verdict: complaints weighted for crashes, fires and injuries, adjusted for years on the road and compared with the Elise median. Tap a year for its full report.

46 17 8 0 1 0 0

'05'06'07'08'09'10'11

Avoid
Caution
Solid
Best
Not rated

2011Not rated–/1000 complaints · 2 recalls 2010Not rated–/1000 complaints · 1 recall 2009Not rated–/1001 complaint · 2 recalls 2008Not rated–/1000 complaints · 2 recalls 2007Not rated–/1008 complaints · 2 recalls 2006Not rated–/10017 complaints · 1 recall 2005Not rated–/10046 complaints · 2 recalls

Complaints by system

Most common Lotus Elise problems

All model years combined: 72 complaints grouped by the system owners reported.

43Engine and engine cooling3 crash/fire/injury

8Engine

7Power train

4Visibility

4Electrical system

4Suspension

2Fuel/propulsion system

1Wheels

1Latches/locks/linkages

33 other systems

Box size = number of complaints naming that system. Darker = larger share. One complaint can name more than one system.

Complaints by system
System	Complaints	Crash, fire or injury
Engine and engine cooling	43	3
Engine	8	0
Power train	7	0
Visibility	4	1
Electrical system	4	0
Suspension	4	0
Fuel/propulsion system	2	0
Wheels	1	0
Latches/locks/linkages	1	0
3 other systems	3	1

6 recalls

Lotus Elise recalls

Newest first. The ring shows the share of affected vehicles repaired, from the manufacturer's latest report to NHTSA.

Engine and engine cooling: engine14V-280 · 2008–2011 · May 27, 2014 · 860 vehicles Engine and engine cooling13V-041 · 2007–2008 · Feb 5, 2013 · 451 vehicles Turn signal: flasher unit11V-541 · 2011 · Nov 3, 2011 · 78 vehicles Engine and engine cooling11V-510 · 2005–2007 · Oct 14, 2011 · 5,041 vehicles Wheels: hub09V-179 · 2009 · May 26, 2009 · 87 vehicles Power train: manual transmission05V-571 · 2005 · Dec 29, 2005 · 1,740 vehicles

1 investigation

NHTSA investigations of the Elise

Jul 18, 2011
Engine Oil Cooler Line DetachmentPE11022 · 2005–2006 · closed Nov 3, 2011
Led to recall 11V-510