This kind of thing is getting to be as routine as paying the phone bill. With the beautiful Lotus Elise coming to the US any time now, dealers on the short list for the 2005 models, most of which are spoken for, are starting to hit eBay with offers well-heeled Elise lovers may not refuse. Remember those $10,000+ purchase contracts for the Mini Cooper that were being hawked a couple years back? It almost makes the $8,000 buy-it-now price one Illinois dealer is asking almost seem like a bargain (MSRP: $44,460.00 + $8,000 = $52,460). I'd expect the speculators to up the ante as the first cars start hitting these shores sometime next month.

Lotus Cars U.S.A

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