I will always love this look. It’s always fun to turn low-slung, custom-built sports cars into tough safari cars. Crazy, smart people are always coming up with new cars to change, but I think this Lotus Elise S1 from the British company Get Lost is my favorite so far. As spring comes in the Northeastern United States, this two-seat convertible is just what we need. It also looks like a lot of fun. Project Safari is the name of the restoration project. It’s not just an Elise with bigger shocks; it’s a full restaurant with some unique design features. It was also done in a self-aware, tongue-in-cheek way. Get Lost knows that an off-road Elise is silly, but that’s part of the fun. It’s well-thought-out nonsense that’s not too bad. George Williams, the founder of Get Lost, said, “We leaned into the idea of taking an Elise off-road because it might sound silly.” Because of that one stupid thought, we were able to be really creative. Not only did every part of the car look good, but it was also carefully chosen to improve its overall personality and abilities. Because it has its suspension system, the Elise has four inches more ground clearance than its predecessor, which looked like a skateboard. Its all-terrain Nankang tires give it grip, and its improved undertray keeps its belly safe from rocks and other debris. It has one of the coolest mid-engine air vents I’ve ever seen sitting over the roll bar, and the nose has four bright yellow rally lights on top of a low slope. The center air intake hole is big, but it’s split into two ducts that bring air to the mid-mounted engine on either side of the back windshield. There is also a specially made back engine cover with a valley for a spare wheel. The white exhaust tips that come out of the rear mesh match the wheels, which is a nice touch. They will turn soot-black after a few rides, though. The extra tire’s engine isn’t named in Get Lost, but Project Safari says that the original Elise’s 1.8-liter four-cylinder engine gives “strong, reliable performance,” so it’s probably not that engine. With its hydraulic stopper and limited-slip differential, Get Lost should be more fun to drive in snow and dirt. Get Lost wants to build customer cars later this year, but for now, it’s only taking letters of interest from partners and clients. It’s not clear how much it costs, but with the strange body parts and unique suspension, it will be expensive. One more thing that is needed is a Lotus Elise base car, which isn’t exactly cheap. However, this is great for those of us in the Northeast. Our roads are always worse for sports cars in the spring and summer because of the snow and slush that falls in the winter. The weather gets worse as you go further north. You can enjoy Project Safari all year, though. This sports car would also be more fun to drive in the winter than older types.
