Check a vehicle VIN check Latest recalls Latest complaints Common problems Rankings Compare vehicles Recall roundups All makes Guides Share your experience
Theme

Engine & cooling

2005 Lotus Elise Engine problems

Owners have filed 31 complaints about the 2005 Lotus Elise's engine & cooling with NHTSA - 67% of all its complaints, most recently on May 20, 2014. They describe 1 crash, 1 fire and 0 injuries. Stalling, loss of power, oil consumption, overheating, head gaskets, timing chains and engine failure.

Complaints
31
Recalls
1
Crashes
1
Fires
1
Injuries
0
Deaths
0

Engine recalls for the 2005 Lotus Elise

Engine and engine cooling

11V5100005,041 vehicles affected

The problem
Lotus is recalling certain model year 2005-2007 elise and exige vehicles manufactured from june 1, 2004, through november 30, 2006. The oil cooler line may become detached from its fitting.
The risk
A detached oil line could spray oil on a tire, increasing the risk of a crash, or it could spray oil throughout the engine compartment increasing the risk of a fire.
The fix
Lotus will notify owners, and dealers will repair the vehicles as necessary free of charge. The safety recall is expected to begin on or before december 19, 2011. Owners may contact lotus at 1-800-245-6887.

Engine complaints

Engine & coolingBrakesFire

Tl* the contact owns a 2005 lotus elise. The contact stated that while driving 40 mph, smoke began to emit in and around the vehicle. The contact attempted to engage the brakes but the pedal sank to the floor. The vehicle was towed to the dealer. The technician diagnosed that the oil cooler line fractured causing a leak and as a result, the oil cooler and brakes needed to be replaced. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The vehicle was repaired. The failure mileage was 41,187. The current mileage was 42,250.

Filed Incident Engine and engine cooling · Service brakesNHTSA 10592736
Engine & cooling

Nhtsa recall #11v-510. On 11/11/13 I made an appointment for 11/18/13 to have the referenced recall work performed on my 2005 lotus elise at star motor cars in houston, tx. On 11/18/13 I brought the car to star motor cars to have the recall work done. Today is 11/26 and the work has not been completed and star motor cars cannot tell me a date that it will be completed. Star motor cars has failed to perform the recall work in a timely manner. *Tr

Filed Incident Engine and engine coolingNHTSA 10553905
Engine & cooling

2005 Lotus elise. Consumer writes in regards to denial of reimbursement for repair of vehicles oil cooler line. *Smd the consumer stated a recall was issued for the exact problem he experienced. The manufacturer claimed the failure took place outside of the date range as set for in the reimbursement plan. The consumer stated there was no explanation of how the date range was set. He stated the recall explained the defect was on lotus vehicle manufactured from 2004-2006. The consumer stated he purchased his vehicle in march 2006. The failure occurred six months out warranty in november 2009. The consumer stated for some reason, the reimbursement window began october 5, 2010.

Filed Incident Engine and engine coolingNHTSA 10508023
Engine & cooling

Front oil cooler hose blew off spraying underside of car with oil. Pulled vehicle over and towed to dealer for maintenance fix. *Tr

Filed Incident EngineNHTSA 10470695
Engine & cooling

Right side oil cooler hose blew off while traveling at 65mph spraying oil over the right back tire. The engine seized and car coasted to a stop position on side of road. Car was inoperable and towed to dealer. *Tr

Filed Incident EngineNHTSA 10470694
Engine & cooling

Tl* the contact owns a 2005 lotus elise. The contact stated that he received a recall notice in january 2012 for nhtsa campaign id number:11v510000 (engine and engine cooling). The contact stated that he tried to get the vehicle repaired but the manufacturer stated that they were working on trying to determine how to repair the vehicle. The contact stated he wanted to get the vehicle repaired but it was taking too long for the vehicle to be serviced under the recall, which had exceeded a reasonable amount of time. The contact had not experienced a failure. Updated 8/6/12 *cn updated 08/14/2012 *js

Filed Incident EngineNHTSA 10464247
Engine & cooling

Oil line failure by the front left (driver side) tire. Was traveling straight on the freeway, no collision of any sort. Oil light came on and car started leaking oil by the front tire. Apparently a recall is in effect for this issue, but no fix is available yet. Recall summary can be seen here: http://www-odi.Nhtsa.Dot.Gov/cars/problems/recalls/recallsummary.Cfm?Rcl_campaign_id=11v510000&prod_id=215286&moduletype=vehicle&make=lotus&model=elise&veh_model_year=2005&searchtype=drilldown note: can't get exact mileage of car because it requires turning the engine on. *Tr

Filed Incident Engine and engine coolingNHTSA 10450305
Engine & coolingWheels & tires

Oem oil cooling line crimp let go that is in front wheel well to oil cooler. Engine oil poured all over front tire and brakes. Even at 15 mph I lost control. This would have been fatal if driving at highway speed. *Tr

Filed Incident Engine and engine cooling · WheelsNHTSA 10427071
Engine & cooling

This is a complaint for a 2005 lotus elise oil line failure. I previously reported two oil line failures together but in retrospect should have reported them individually as they occurred at separate times. The first oil line failure occurred on 3/29/2010. I came out to my car in the parking lot and there was a large puddle of oil under it. I did not ever see a drop of oil from the car previously. I paid 1,066 to get the driver side oil line repaired. I was told that the passenger side oil line should be...

Read the full complaint

fixed but I was not told that if it failed while driving that I could potentially lose control of the car. The passenger side oil line did indeed fail 4 months later but this time while I was driving on a highway going 55 mph. The entire oil capacity of the engine sprayed onto the passenger side front and rear tires as well as the windshield. Not only was it like driving on a sheet of ice, I could not see anything. Luckily there was no one in the lane next to me as I slid into it. I was able to gain control of the car and pull over. By the time I pulled over the engine was ruined requiring me to pay approximately 8,000 for a new engine and new oil lines. I have pictures of the car showing the entire passenger side of the car covered in oil. Updated 08-29/11 *bf *kb updated 05/03/12

Filed Incident Engine and engine coolingNHTSA 10419914
Engine & cooling

Tl* the contact owns a 2005 lotus elise. The contact stated that oil was leaking from the vehicle. The vehicle was not taken to the dealer however, the manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was 14,000 and the current mileage was 14,200. The right rear oil line at the metal fitting is currently leaking oil. Updated 10/28/11

Filed Incident Engine and engine coolingNHTSA 10419230
Engine & cooling

I bought my car used from a private seller in pennsylvania. After doing the first oil change myself I noticed the was oil seeping from one of the oil line fittings at the sandwich plate. After some research I have found this is a common problem among lotus' years 2005-2007, and can result in failure of the oil line at speed causing a crash or fire. It has also been brought to my attention that the nhtsa is performing an investigation on this issue. *Kb

Filed Incident Engine and engine coolingNHTSA 10416579
Engine & cooling

Tl* the contact owns a 2005 lotus elise. The vehicle was taken to the dealer for a routine oil change; however, the technician stated the oil line was leaking at the fitting where it connects to the engine and it needed to be replaced. There was an open investigation under nhtsa action number: pe11022 (engine and engine cooling engine and engine cooling:cooling system:hose) that may be related to the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The approximate failure mileage was 10,881.

Filed Incident Engine and engine coolingNHTSA 10416278
Engine & cooling

Failure of oil line connector. Spread oil over front brake, so as to make car stop poorly. Has happened twice: once when car was 1 month old, now 6 yrs later. *Tt

Filed Incident Engine and engine coolingNHTSA 10414719
Engine & cooling

While driving at highway speeds I suddenly smelled oil and looked down to see my oil pressure light come on. I immediately pulled over and found oil coming out of the right front side of the car onto the right front and rear tires. Upon have the vehicle towed to a repair should they found that the incoming oil line into the passenger side oil cooler had completely separated from the connector. *Tr

Filed Incident Engine and engine coolingNHTSA 10397512
Engine & cooling

After reading of serious oil line fitting failures on my model of car, I inspected my oil line fittings and found one that was leaking. If this fitting had failed to the point where the hose came off (which has happened to others), it would have sprayed oil in front of my right rear wheel, which could have caused loss of vehicle control, and ruined my engine. I repaired it with a new fitting that is more secure than the factory fitting. I also made measurements (using digital calipers) of the original...

Read the full complaint

fitting crimp before I removed it, and another fitting on the car that wasn't leaking oil. The measurements showed that the leaking fitting was not crimped as tightly as the one that wasn't leaking. I recommend that the original crimp specifications be reviewed (the original specification may not be tight enough), and that a recall be issued to, at a minimum, measure the actual crimp size on all six oil line fittings on the car to see if any are not sufficiently crimped. If they are not, then they should be replaced or recrimped (if that can be done properly). *Tr

Filed Incident Engine and engine coolingNHTSA 10392969
Engine & cooling

Vehicle inspection found oil is leaking at oil hose connector due to insufficient crimping of adapter to oil hose. Eventually this will lead to oil hose disconnection and a loss of engine oil.

Filed Incident Engine and engine coolingNHTSA 10391288
Engine & cooling

My 2005 lotus elise experienced a coolant leak in the p/n a12e0017f aluminum u-tube due to excessive rubbing on a oil fitting that the tube was resting on. Due to the engine vibration and shaking, the u-tube wore through the tube wall completely allowing coolant to leak out. The u-tube is located on the front side of the engine and rubs on a oil line fitting. Based on an online forum (lotustalk) and other lotus elise/exige owners, the u-tube rubbing is not an isolated. Apparently, some elises/exiges have the...

Read the full complaint

u-tube zip-tied to the oil line fitting, but the rubbing is still apparent and only a matter of time before a coolant leak will occur. My elise was not zip-tied, which no doubt accelerated the wearing and resulting leak. I decided to make a report since it looks like lotus owners are still identifying the rubbing and apply do-it-yourself fixes. I repaired mine at my own expense and started a thread on lotustalk to help other owners protect their cars from ever leaking like mines. *Tr

Filed Incident Engine and engine coolingNHTSA 10389986
Engine & coolingCrash

2005 Lotus elise. The oil line released from its fitting on the front right oil cooler wetting the tire with oil resulting in a loss of control. The car spun and left the road. No damage occurred and the car was towed from the median and the line was repaired. I selected the yes response to was there a crash based on the car leaving the road. *Tr

Filed Incident Engine and engine coolingNHTSA 10383910
Engine & cooling

Oil line failure in lotus elise - got red "engine oil pressure low" light, pulled over, clamp/hose had blown out and oil spilled out everywhere. *Ln

Filed Incident Engine and engine coolingNHTSA 10379547
Engine & cooling

On starting my car in the morning, the passenger side oil cooler hose from the engine to the front oil cooler separated at the rear crimp, quickly draining all of the oil. The oil warning light came on, and as I shut the engine off the engine made a couple of rattling noises. On attempting to replace the defective hose, I have been unable to find the part in stock, leading me to have new hoses made by a hydraulic shop. The failure is at a minimum responsible for a costly repair and clean up, that may take...

Read the full complaint

several weeks due to parts availability, and in a worst case may cause an accident due to oil on the tires, as well as engine failure due to loss of oil. My car is a 2005 elise with 55,000 miles. *Tr

Filed Incident Engine and engine coolingNHTSA 10377204
Engine & cooling

Said to be a 'common' problem when looking on forums;my 2005 lotus elise while driving down the road the oil light comes on, so naturally I see a gas station and go to pull in when the driver side front tire locks and skids to the right side . I was only doing less than 30mph so nothing bad happened . Got out and my entire crankcase of synthetic oil is all up the driver side and covering the front driver tire. I was headed to the interstate and this could have been disastrous. I feel blessed the light came on...

Read the full complaint

before I hit high rpm's. This would have lead to a locked up bottom engine ( thousands in repair) or sliding on the interstate causing accident. I contacted lotus with no reply. The online forums have horror stories of the exact same thin happenin and I find this unacceptable. The repair is a hydraulic hose that cools your engine oil from rear to front. The fitting is know to be bad and just break away over time. A very costly problem if ignored. I'm out the repairs , towing, tow damage to front clam. *Tr

Filed Incident Engine and engine coolingNHTSA 10371195
Engine & cooling

2005 Lotus elise oil-line (cooler line) failure. The oil line failure occurred while operating vehicle. The driver side rear wheel was coated with oil, creating possible deadly situation. I turned car off immediately. I hope that there was no engine damage. The vehicle had to be towed. This incident occurred during daylight hours and while operating the vehicle in a straight line. If the oil cooler line had failed at night or during a curve on a highway, the incident could have been serious or tragic. There have been several other complaints regarding this failure. *Tr

Filed Incident Engine and engine coolingNHTSA 10365604
Engine & cooling

Oil line connection failed which led to the oil hose popping out of the connection and causing oil to be pumped out of the engine all over the rear of the car and in front of the rear tires. As the car was being pulled over the rear end broke loose due to the oil being pumped out. I was lucky the car didn't spin out or it didn't happen in a more dangerous location. Cost $400 in repairs. *Tr

Filed Incident Engine and engine coolingNHTSA 10365025
Engine & cooling

2005 Lotus elise oil-line failure. Catastrophic oil line failure while operating vehicle. Passenger side rear (driven) wheel was coated with oil, creating possible deadly situation. Turned car off immediately, still might have engine damage. Several of these cases have been reported... Less than 10,000 of these vehicles were made. *Tr

Filed Incident Engine and engine coolingNHTSA 10363808
Engine & cooling

Oil line from engine to oil cooler failed. All oil in the engine sprayed onto bottom of car and tires. Almost lost control of car on highway. Engine subsequently overheated and needed to be replaced. *Tr

Filed Incident Engine and engine coolingNHTSA 10362546

Lotus Elise engine complaints by year

Elise engine problems, every year

Had a engine problem with your 2005 Elise? Tell other owners.

Your experience goes live straight away and helps every owner and buyer who checks this vehicle. Anonymous, free, no account.

Overall, how would you rate it? *

0/4000 · Please leave out names, phone numbers and your full VIN.

By posting you confirm it's your own, honest experience and agree to the rules. Safety defect? Also report it to NHTSA - that's how recalls start.

Source: U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) complaints and recalls, checked . Complaints are owners' own reports and are not verified. How we use the data

Owners helping owners

Know before you drive.

Every experience you share - good or bad - shows on that vehicle's page and helps the next owner and buyer. Two minutes, anonymous.

Share your experience