10 Cars Past Their Expiration Dates

By the late 1990s, Lotus's flagship (and only) sports car, the V-8-powered Esprit, was nearing retirement age. Lotus wanted to return to its roots: producing lightweight, tossable, and undeniably fun-to-drive cars. The result was the feathery (less than 2000 pounds) and relatively inexpensive Elise. America didn't get the Elise until 2005, and it came packing a Toyota 1.8-liter four-cylinder and an incredibly rewarding driving experience.

The Elise has been a huge hit for Lotus?one that lives on even after it was supposedly going to end production in 2011. And the excellent chassis was so adaptable that Tesla used it as the basis for its first car, the Roadster. But now, late in 2012, the Elise goes back more than 15 years. With the more modern, powerful, and roomier (but no less fun-to-drive) Evora now in the Lotus stable, the Elise could certainly use a full remodel.

Source: http://www.popularmechanics.com/cars/news/pictures/10-cars-past-their-expiration-dates?src=rss

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