2001 Lotus Elise KEL Sport GT 200

With just one owner from new, this 2001 Lotus Elise has the highest specification of any example we’ve ever seen because the seller racked up almost £50,000 of modifications before he drove the car for the first time – and he’s only ever covered 6,000 miles in it since…

Finished in Pacific Blue to match his Esprit, Kelsport said they could build him a better track day car than Lotus were selling at the time, a challenge he was only too happy to accept.

Lotus provided Kelsport with all brand new parts, not a complete car & Kelsport then built it from the ground up with an upgraded engine, full race suspension and brakes, and a myriad of other details, most of which were sourced from the factory. “If there was a choice”, Mark, the seller, told us, “we took the better route.”

The result is a beautifully balanced, very fast example of a car that wasn’t exactly lacking in those attributes as standard. Still wonderfully tractable – he wanted a car he could drive to the track as well as on it – this is your chance to buy what might be the ultimate dual-purpose Elise

The Pacific Blue bodywork is excellent. With good panel alignment and an absence of damage and wear ‘n’ tear, this is an Elise that looks every bit as good as it goes.

The eagle-eyed among you will have noticed the one-piece Kelsport clamshell, which differs from the factory item and is optimized for track and high-speed use. It looks terrific and has proved to be highly effective, making it a win/win for the new owner.

The black soft-top is as rudimentary as they all are but it’s there and doesn’t look like it’s been fitted very often.

The lightweight, seven-spoke alloy wheels are in good shape. Not pristine but while there are some stonechips, there’s no kerbing or other serious damage. They’re fitted with matching Dunlop Formula-R tyres too, in 195/55R15 on the front axle, and 225/45ZR16 on the rear.

Work to do is minor. The rear tyres are cracked with age and low on tread, something the last MoT tester picked up on. Given the high-performance nature of the Lotus, we’d be tempted to fit new ones for peace of mind.

There are a few stonechips here and there too, but none are deep or serious and they could be left as they are without guilt. You might want to take a look at the crack we spotted in slide #204, though. It looks cosmetic, but we do like to be thorough in pointing out even minor blemishes.

The Lotus Elise’s interior is a masterclass in minimalism and industrial design – and it also serves to show you how little you really need in your sportscar’s cockpit.

This means you get figure-hugging seats plus a nifty little storage net behind them to pop a map or two in.

The driver also gets adjustable lumber support, a tiny steering wheel and a nicely tactile gear-lever, while the passenger has to make do with a foot brace to steady themselves against.

Door cards are bolted in place, and the Stack instrument cluster tells you everything you need to know and nothing you don’t.

The whole thing is brilliant and funky and works superbly. This one is in pretty good shape, too.

Faults? Well, the open-air nature of the cockpit has led to some surface rust forming on some of the fasteners. Please see slides # 115, #116, and #119 for examples of what we are referring to.

However, replacing these would be a lovely winter project and one that would lift the cockpit out of all proportion to the cost incurred.

The two seats are a little patinated (#53, #60, #77, and #99), and while most would be happy to leave them as there are, given the Elise’s high specification, we can see the new owner might want to get them replaced or retrimmed.

MoT’d until May 2023, Max500 Ltd serviced the Elise in May 2022, flushing out and cleaning the fuel system while they were at it. They replaced the camshaft drive belt too, and fitted a new battery. All-in-all, the work set the owner back £2,676 but has left the car fighting fit.

As you can see, the Lotus starts well and revs beautifully, provieing an incredible induction sound. While you might find the aural stimulation a bit lacking there’s no denying the difference the changes Kelsport made when you drive it; 200bhp is a ridiculous amount in a car this light and the Elise fairly dances along, faithfully obeying your every command.

The engine bay is beautifully engineered but it is a bit grubby; chalk up another job for this coming winter, one that would be just as satisfying as tidying up the cockpit.

The underside does show some light surface corrosion. Again, there are some rusty screws (i.e. #189) and nuts and bolts (i.e. #200).

The Elise comes with the usual selection of old MoT certificates and a couple of old tax discs.

Despite the Elise’s ultra-low mileage - the odometer might read 17,000 miles but it’s a replacement unit and the true mileage is around 6,000 - there are plenty of invoices for servicing over the years.

There are also pages and pages of invoices for the modifications that were carried out by Kelsport when the Elise was new. They’ve faded now, and are hard to read but they tell a compelling story, so why not make an appointment to pop along and read them for yourself?

The recent Vehicle History Check is clear.

It’s not an exaggeration to say that the Elise is revered like few others, flattering a mediocre driver and rewarding the talented in a way that only it can.

And yet, there are an awful lot of dogs out there, cars that limp from MOT to MOT and are being run on a shoestring by folk who neither appreciate nor understand them.

This is not one of those cars. Incredibly well specified and well maintained over the years, it’s had the right money spent on the right products and been worked on by the right people. Used as intended, Mark has found himself using it less and less over the years, and feels now is the time to let someone else enjoy his long-term companion.

In need of light cosmetic refreshing in a few places, the need for this small amount of work is reflected in our guide price of between £16,000 and £22,000. If you’re looking for a very fast Elise to use on the track and the road, then you’ve just stumbled across your dream car.

Viewing is always encouraged, and this particular car is located with us at The Market HQ near Abingdon; we are open weekdays 9am-5pm, to arrange an appointment please use the Contact Seller button at the top of the listing. Feel free to ask any questions or make observations in the comments section below, or try our ‘Frequently Asked Questions’.