Exige 260 RGB Rear Wing

[HedgehogFromHell]

A speedy and simple question for the Exige masses. Can you retrofit the oversized rear wing to replace earlier mid fixed wings along with the roof tunnelling?

I've longed after an Exige since the S1 rolled out, now I'm old enough to own and enjoy one, I went to the local Lotus dealer, Lipscomb... "Never meet your heroes" isn't applicable here, the car is perfect. Like slipping into a monocoque glove... Perfect for me. Just wondering about the non RGB and earlier models with the "mid wing" as I'm looking at 57-60 plate cars and noticed the varying wings.

Chuffed that at face value tyres, maintenance, insurance and running costs will be cheaper than my RS

Oh and Whilst I'm here, I might as well ask you... N/A or blown car? Reasons for and against please

[400SE Dave]

Yes you can retro fit the rear wing and you can get the extended roof scoop (either as an original Lotus roof - very expensive or it is being done from moulds as a 'aftermarket' job). Changing the rear wing also means having a couple of holes filled and changing a few grills in the engine cover where the old one comes from if you want to make it look right. Overall though it is costly for a small benefit imo.

I am sure you know it is not just an RGB wing?? It became standard on all Exige S models late 2009 (2010 MY cars) so perhaps you should just increase your Budget a little to get a 2010 Exige S Power Pack model which already has the scoop and wing as it will for sure cost you a couple of grand to get them done after.

As for NA or SC, I would go SC as it is more flexible and the power more usable more of the time as you don;t need to keep it 'on cam'. If however you will be mainly on the track that is less of a consideration but ultimately it is down on power. NA were only made until 2006 so you would get an older car.

Here is an example although you don't mention your Budget

http://www.pistonheads.com/sales/2901284.htm

Edited by 400SE Dave on Tuesday 6th September 09:28

[HedgehogFromHell]

I've just seen that one in my trawls!

Thank you for your input, you've put across some incredibly valid points that I'm currently taking note of.

Well, my budget was originally around the £26,000 mark, but I think I may have to wait a little longer in order to get the 'perfect' car for me. I've waited a fair few already, so unless I get a bloody good offer this weekend, I can wait a little (tinsy winsy) bit longer..

Is there anything else you can impart on me that a salesman might not? I'm basically asking you of every pro and con you have over the ownership period.

I don't think I mentioned this being my daily, It doesn't bother me about it's harshness, that is a huge attraction to me in all honesty.

[mikem7709]

Christopher Neil are doing the rear wing for £750 all in and the same for the extended roof.

[400SE Dave]

HedgehogFromHell said:

Is there anything else you can impart on me that a salesman might not? I'm basically asking you of every pro and con you have over the ownership period.

I don't think I mentioned this being my daily, It doesn't bother me about it's harshness, that is a huge attraction to me in all honesty.

I haven't got experience of using one as a daily driver, mine just comes out for fun however apart from the lack of luggage/storage room and poor rear visibility (non- existent in the S but you soon get used to it) I can't see there is a major flaw. I would say however that it must be an S as then you can make 'comfortable' progress in normal traffic without having to keep dropping down 1 or even 2 gears.

As for fuel, driving normally I am sure you will see around 30mpg area. Tyres as a daily driver would be my concern as the A048's are very soft, I get only 4k out of mine so I guess 5-6k in less aggressive modes may be possible but depending on the miles you cover it could be worth considering more 'normal' tyres, say the AD07's fitted to Elise's could be a harder wearing option and there are others also.

Servicing costs are reasonable and intervals are 12 months/10k on the Toyota engined cars.

If I think of anything else I add it later but hope this helps.

[HedgehogFromHell]

mikem7709 said:

Christopher Neil are doing the rear wing for £750 all in and the same for the extended roof.

Thank you That information may help massively if I opt for an older plate

[HedgehogFromHell]

400SE Dave said:

I haven't got experience of using one as a daily driver, mine just comes out for fun however apart from the lack of luggage/storage room and poor rear visibility (non- existent in the S but you soon get used to it) I can't see there is a major flaw. I would say however that it must be an S as then you can make 'comfortable' progress in normal traffic without having to keep dropping down 1 or even 2 gears.

As for fuel, driving normally I am sure you will see around 30mpg area. Tyres as a daily driver would be my concern as the A048's are very soft, I get only 4k out of mine so I guess 5-6k in less aggressive modes may be possible but depending on the miles you cover it could be worth considering more 'normal' tyres, say the AD07's fitted to Elise's could be a harder wearing option and there are others also.

Servicing costs are reasonable and intervals are 12 months/10k on the Toyota engined cars.

If I think of anything else I add it later but hope this helps.

Yes, to be honest, rear visibility doesn't concern me very much and I've worked out that the luggage space is plentiful, I just need bags that'll go in the hole I could alway put my big military bags on the passenger seat if needs must

Tyres are an interesting one, despite my driving style I seem to eek out more life from most tyres. I shall have a dig around reference the AD07's, could the harder tyre option cause considerable handling compromise? I've seen a few pictures on the internet of Exiges wearing Toyo T1R, does anyone have any thoughts on this tyre with the Exige? I've had it fitted to my old Astra VXR and had little issues, but I'm more than aware that an MR coupe is a completely different ball game to a FF Hatch.

Just for the future, what are the tuning options available for the Exige? Personal opinions on the tuners would be helpful, but a name to search would suffice

Thank you for your help so far PHers!

[400SE Dave]

HedgehogFromHell said:

I shall have a dig around reference the AD07's, could the harder tyre option cause considerable handling compromise?

Just for the future, what are the tuning options available for the Exige? Personal opinions on the tuners would be helpful, but a name to search would suffice

On the road I doubt you would be anywhere near the limits of a more 'normal' tyre and as they are fitted to the Elise I don;t think it is the biggest compromise although as I run A048's I can't comment for sure.

As for tuning, if you choose an S then you can go to 260bhp for around £2k using Lotus parts fitted at the dealer (new injectors/fuel pump/Ecu/induction). Add a decent intercooler and this goes north of 270. I think Hangar 111 do upgrades as well. May need a clutch upgrade if you start pushing past this level

[HedgehogFromHell]

400SE Dave said:

On the road I doubt you would be anywhere near the limits of a more 'normal' tyre and as they are fitted to the Elise I don;t think it is the biggest compromise although as I run A048's I can't comment for sure.

As for tuning, if you choose an S then you can go to 260bhp for around £2k using Lotus parts fitted at the dealer (new injectors/fuel pump/Ecu/induction). Add a decent intercooler and this goes north of 270. I think Hangar 111 do upgrades as well. May need a clutch upgrade if you start pushing past this level

Fair comments. I guess the only way to find out is to try! I'll be requesting new tyres for the car from the dealer when I purchase it, so that'll hopefully give me 3-4,000 miles of happy motoring to decide my tyre choices. I've heard it's £750 for a set of 48's due to the smaller/narrower front wheel size to the rears, is this correct?

Thank you for the tuning information, I'll research and write down the results for the future

What is the TRD air box I keep hearing about?

[mikem7709]

TRD airbox is just a bigger bottom half of the airbox and larger filter. People say it makes the throttle response sharper, I`m not so sure but it certainly sounds much better and well worth the £60 it costs

I went with the Lotus 260 upgrade (again from Christopher Neil at £1975 all in) with a TRD, Forge intercooler and Lotus stage 3 back box.

Tyres are a personal choice but if its an everyday car, get a spare set of rims and throw some T1R`s/Eagle F1`s/KU31`s or whatever you prefer as the A048`s don`t last long and aquaplane too much in standing water.

Edited by mikem7709 on Tuesday 6th September 21:45

[HedgehogFromHell]

mikem7709 said:

TRD airbox is just a bigger bottom half of the airbox and larger filter. People say it makes the throttle response sharper, I`m not so sure but it certainly sounds much better and well worth the £60 it costs

I went with the Lotus 260 upgrade (again from Christopher Neil at £1975 all in) with a TRD, Forge intercooler and Lotus stage 3 back box.

Ah so it's like the Mountune Airbox that I have for my RS currently. Although I'd be happier paying £60 than £175 haha.

Thank you again, any information you think might be useful to me about the car (No matter how insignificant it may seem) would be greatly appreciated

[Arun_D]

FWIW, I run my 2008 Exige S 220 as an everyday car, and it's a real hoot. As mentioned, rear vision is limited but you honestly adapt to just using the door mirrors frequently.

I still use A048s and the rears have lasted me 6500miles so far, with a tad under 3mm left. That was mixed everyday driving and a Nurburgring trip. I've not changed the fronts in the year i've had the car. I'm fully expecting to lose a lot of that tread depth at my evening track session tomorrow, though!

I absolutely adore the 2010MY styling, but everytime I've seen the larger rear wing on an earlier car, it looks a bit odd seeing a new wing on a car with an older front clam. I am tempted by the longer roof scoop at times, though.

hmm, £750...

[HedgehogFromHell]

Arun_D said:

FWIW, I run my 2008 Exige S 220 as an everyday car, and it's a real hoot. As mentioned, rear vision is limited but you honestly adapt to just using the door mirrors frequently.

I still use A048s and the rears have lasted me 6500miles so far, with a tad under 3mm left. That was mixed everyday driving and a Nurburgring trip. I've not changed the fronts in the year i've had the car. I'm fully expecting to lose a lot of that tread depth at my evening track session tomorrow, though!

I absolutely adore the 2010MY styling, but everytime I've seen the larger rear wing on an earlier car, it looks a bit odd seeing a new wing on a car with an older front clam. I am tempted by the longer roof scoop at times, though.

hmm, £750...

I didn't realise there was a difference in the front clamshells? Possibly because i've only ever seen the different facelifts separately.

Track days I'm fully expecting to shred the tyres, my RS does a good job on the continentals it has on it, but that's just something I've had to factor in to the expenditure column

[The Bandit]

Just to add to the discussion/views:

Tyres - 48s are good but not very long lasting and can be 'entertaining' in the very wet. Some are now running Yokohama AD08s(£480 a set)as you wont get AD07 fronts in the right size.
I've not heard many good things about T1Rs although R1Rs are good.

Servicing - Avoid main dealers unless you really need to for warranty reasons, find a trusted independant such as http://www.backontrackmotorsport.co.uk/ and look to pay under £200 for a service(every 1 yr or 9k miles), make sure the brake fluid is changed every year.
Good pads are around £200-£250 and brake discs £150-£300 a set(unless you have 4 pots) so the consumables and maintenance are very reasonable.

Driver training(sorry!) - If you're used to FWD(as i was) then get some training as mid engined/RWD can be unforgiving at times.

Downsides - Errrm....hang on....trying to think of some....ah, yes, getting in and out is always fun until you're used to it. The small fuel tank may niggle(200-250 mile fill ups). And the headlights aren't the greatest....other than that, just f*$£ing do it, you'll love it

[HedgehogFromHell]

The Bandit said:

Just to add to the discussion/views:

Tyres - 48s are good but not very long lasting and can be 'entertaining' in the very wet. Some are now running Yokohama AD08s(£480 a set)as you wont get AD07 fronts in the right size.
I've not heard many good things about T1Rs although R1Rs are good.

Servicing - Avoid main dealers unless you really need to for warranty reasons, find a trusted independant such as http://www.backontrackmotorsport.co.uk/ and look to pay under £200 for a service(every 1 yr or 9k miles), make sure the brake fluid is changed every year.
Good pads are around £200-£250 and brake discs £150-£300 a set(unless you have 4 pots) so the consumables and maintenance are very reasonable.

Driver training(sorry!) - If you're used to FWD(as i was) then get some training as mid engined/RWD can be unforgiving at times.

Downsides - Errrm....hang on....trying to think of some....ah, yes, getting in and out is always fun until you're used to it. The small fuel tank may niggle(200-250 mile fill ups). And the headlights aren't the greatest....other than that, just f*$£ing do it, you'll love it

Yeah I've already been realistic and decided that taking it easy and learning the car/getting a lotus dt to teach me before pushing it in any way shape or form is required. Thankfully I'm mature and level headed enough to realise that!!

I'll have a look into the tyres, didn't even know they did an R1R. The fuel tank isn't too much of an issue to me, but nice to be pre warned of the average miles to empty. I rather like the whole game of getting in and out

[theturbs]

mikem7709 said:

Tyres are a personal choice but if its an everyday car, get a spare set of rims and throw some T1R`s/Eagle F1`s/KU31`s or whatever you prefer as the A048`s don`t last long and aquaplane too much in standing water.

2 sets of rims is also worthwhile if you intend to drive the car on a track on a regular basis

[HedgehogFromHell]

theturbs said:

2 sets of rims is also worthwhile if you intend to drive the car on a track on a regular basis

Just out of interest, I take it the OEM items are a lightweight wheel, what's the going rate on an additional set?

[theturbs]

HedgehogFromHell said:

Just out of interest, I take it the OEM items are a lightweight wheel, what's the going rate on an additional set?

There are a number of OE wheel designs, which vary in weight. I don't think that the standard "Y-spoke" Exige wheels are particularly light.

A new set of Team Dynamics ProRace 1.2 will set you back about £600 (I think, without doing any research), and are a popular choice. Alternatively have a look at the classifieds on here, SELOC or Exiges.com as sets of wheels come up reasonably often.

For further details and other wheel options have a look at the TechWiki on SELOC.

HTH

Edited to actually answer your question - I don't know the prices for additional sets of OE wheels, but no doubt someone will be along shortly with the figures.

Edited by theturbs on Wednesday 7th September 17:52

[HedgehogFromHell]

I had PR1.2s on my Astra VXR and they set me back £800 for 18" so if i kept the OE sizes, I think your estimate is about right. Seems strange to have such a light focussed car and lump heavy wheels on it!!!

[chevronb37]

Just to put in a note about tyres. I bought mine with T1Rs on and they're fine until you get on track with them. Even then they're still OK, but they go off quickly once they get hot and the car feels a bit lively. I am currently running 048s and the car feels fantastic on them but hard work. It tramlines and follows cambers a great deal more, the steering's a little heavier and the ride is worse. However, I think it only serves to add to the whole Exige experience. I don't know if I'd be quite so enamoured if it was an only car, mind...

For reference, mine is an S1.