For two cars that ostensibly serve the same purpose -- an immersive, analog driving experience ideal for clearing one's head — the Elise and Caterham feel quite different in their delivery. Ignoring the obvious, such as the fact one has power windows and one doesn't even have doors, it's the way they both go about the analog aspect that differs.
The Elise is significantly heavier — about 45% when loaded with half a tank of fuel and a driver — and feels it. Sure, it drives significantly lighter than normal cars, but it's not being compared to anything remotely normal here. The steering is a little lighter, but just as communicative. The brakes take significantly less effort and work better until the Caterham's have generated a lot of heat. Chalk that up to power assistance, and better stock pad compound for my use case. Looking at the other driving touch points, the Caterham's Tillet B6 seats lock you into the chassis, whereas the Elise's only offer half-hearted grip. This makes a difference as the tighter fitting seat more quickly communicates feedback from the chassis. The shifting experiences are polar opposites. The Elise is generally ok. There's no hiding it's a cable design and located several feet from the gearbox. Throws are longish and a bit vague. The Caterham's gear lever sprouts directly from the gearbox and feels it; short, crisp, precise shifts that are a joy to experience. Thanks to the CORE dampers with digressive valving up front, the Caterham has significantly better damping, which is immediately noticeable over broken tarmac, but the Elise fights back with a significantly stiffer chassis; steel tubing brazed together in a space frame vs. aluminum extrusions glued together with advanced adhesive to form a solid tub.
But the biggest difference is the cornering. The Elise has very quick turn in, but the Caterham is comparatively instant; there is no hiding the fact the Elise is nearly 700 lb heavier. At similar speeds the Elise feels locked in. It just goes around the corner, and the weight balance is such that you feel the rotation slightly below mid-thigh. The Caterham feels quite different. Ultimately, it can generate similar grip levels, but because you are sitting nearly over the rear axle, any movement by the rear end is felt immediately, and the rotation occurs closer to your ankles. It's very easy to rotate the car on the throttle, and as a result it feels more alive, especially at lower speeds. It's more of an experience. Conversely, the Elise feels more polished. Although they are both part of the same coin, they clearly occupy different sides.
The Elise is significantly heavier — about 45% when loaded with half a tank of fuel and a driver — and feels it. Sure, it drives significantly lighter than normal cars, but it's not being compared to anything remotely normal here. The steering is a little lighter, but just as communicative. The brakes take significantly less effort and work better until the Caterham's have generated a lot of heat. Chalk that up to power assistance, and better stock pad compound for my use case. Looking at the other driving touch points, the Caterham's Tillet B6 seats lock you into the chassis, whereas the Elise's only offer half-hearted grip. This makes a difference as the tighter fitting seat more quickly communicates feedback from the chassis. The shifting experiences are polar opposites. The Elise is generally ok. There's no hiding it's a cable design and located several feet from the gearbox. Throws are longish and a bit vague. The Caterham's gear lever sprouts directly from the gearbox and feels it; short, crisp, precise shifts that are a joy to experience. Thanks to the CORE dampers with digressive valving up front, the Caterham has significantly better damping, which is immediately noticeable over broken tarmac, but the Elise fights back with a significantly stiffer chassis; steel tubing brazed together in a space frame vs. aluminum extrusions glued together with advanced adhesive to form a solid tub.
But the biggest difference is the cornering. The Elise has very quick turn in, but the Caterham is comparatively instant; there is no hiding the fact the Elise is nearly 700 lb heavier. At similar speeds the Elise feels locked in. It just goes around the corner, and the weight balance is such that you feel the rotation slightly below mid-thigh. The Caterham feels quite different. Ultimately, it can generate similar grip levels, but because you are sitting nearly over the rear axle, any movement by the rear end is felt immediately, and the rotation occurs closer to your ankles. It's very easy to rotate the car on the throttle, and as a result it feels more alive, especially at lower speeds. It's more of an experience. Conversely, the Elise feels more polished. Although they are both part of the same coin, they clearly occupy different sides.
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