Supercar to junior supercar

[Jumpingjackflash]

Hello,

I am current McLaren owner and previous Elise S2 owner. I am considering selling the Mclaren because it is too fast for UK roads and I am constantly soiling myself worried about the police. The McLaren is a stunning machine and makes the performance easily assessable. However you can not use 100% of the power 90% of the time which is also very frustrating and you wonder what are you paying all the money for.

I really enjoy a proper drive on a Sunday but need to keep my license. I am considering getting back in a Lotus. I am not sure what model? I like the V6 models but are concerned they might be too quick and just be in the same situation as the McLaren. I was thinking the V6 Roadster might be more supple and less frantic. Or maybe an Elise Sprint with minimum power and weight.

Any advice and suggestions would be appreciated ?

[AAD44H]

I would be looking at something like a Caterham for raw thrills or a manual 911/Cayman GT4 for something in the middle.

[Jumpingjackflash]

I have had Boxster's, 991 turbo and GT3. The 911's are still mental fast for the roads.

[justin220]

Try an Evora.

I've got a 540C just now but have had an Evora previously and loved it. They have a lot of similarities. You'll also keep the practicality of a coupe/GT which I don't think the Elise or Exige have.

[Jumpingjackflash]

justin220 said:

Try an Evora.

I've got a 540C just now but have had an Evora previously and loved it. They have a lot of similarities. You'll also keep the practicality of a coupe/GT which I don't think the Elise or Exige have.

Do you not find your McLaren mental fastbfkr the roads? Are you paranoid about the police?

[Jumpingjackflash]

When did Lotus start getting heavy? Lotus are advertised a dry weight of 1180kg and 1400kg for entry level Exige and Evora. Alpine are advertising a Wet weight of 1080kg. The Alpine has an Aluminium Body and interior build closer to a Megane than Lotus. I was surprised.

[cat with a hat]

Jumpingjackflash said:

When did Lotus start getting heavy? Lotus are advertised a dry weight of 1180kg and 1400kg for entry level Exige and Evora. Alpine are advertising a Wet weight of 1080kg. The Alpine has an Aluminium Body and interior build closer to a Megane than Lotus. I was surprised.

Alpine went out of their way to make it light.

[Jumpingjackflash]

I thought Lotus did too?

[kambites]

Jumpingjackflash said:

I thought Lotus did too?

Lotus have damned great 3.5 litre V6 in the middle and a subframe designed accordingly. The Elise is still around 850kg, I think.

[Thorburn]

cat with a hat said:

Jumpingjackflash said:

When did Lotus start getting heavy? Lotus are advertised a dry weight of 1180kg and 1400kg for entry level Exige and Evora. Alpine are advertising a Wet weight of 1080kg. The Alpine has an Aluminium Body and interior build closer to a Megane than Lotus. I was surprised.

Alpine went out of their way to make it light.

Exige has 100bhp+ more than the Alpine and other components to match. Compare the Elise to the Alpine and it's what? 150kg less?

[bennno]

Was half thinking the same thing earlier today, have a V8 F Type, 550bhp in a small 2 seat bodyshell - clearly its not McLaren fast, but you are backing off pretty much immediately after putting your foot down. By comparison I could hammer my old caterham, elise, mx5 etc

Bennno

Edited by bennno on Saturday 31st March 20:14

[SELON]

I did exactly the same. Mclaren was too fast for where I live with speed cameras everywhere for at least 20 minutes drive to the countryside (still a fantastic car!). I bought a new Exige 350 Sport manual. Loved that too. Really great fun, can drive it at 30 and feels like 70 in the Mclaren, plus the interaction with the gearbox...in a Mclaren convoy it can keep up quite nicely well into 3 figures

In its own way it’s a real event to drive. So much more visceral than Boxster etc. Exhaust noise is fantastic. Manual gearbox with the exposed mechanism is a party piece. Very driveable as well.

Depends what you want it for.

Mine was Sunday morning blasts and track days and also trips across Europe (Exige has slghtler bigger boot than the Elise I think). Cracking car.

Something like an Elise 220 or 250 would do the job just as well, I think.

[s111dpc]

Go for an Elise 250 or 260 Cup. I had an S Cup (217bhp) and it was perfect for fast road use, great handling with enough power to enjoy it without being silly - the later Odell just build on that with a bit more power.

[CTE]

Virtually all modern cars are too fast for UK roads for a number of reasons. I too am lucky enough to have access to a 12C, Evora 400, Exige roadster (just sold it actually), and an S1 Elise.
I can honestly say I enjoy driving them all equally for different reasons, but if I were too hone in one car for all occasions, it would be the Evora 400...which I have tweaked to 430hp and which makes all the difference...although you might end up with the same concern regarding your licence. It is still very quick, but the performance when on full chat is not as severe, but it is also very involving at lower speeds. It is also a car which grows on you as you learn its depths of ability.

[CTE]

Second thoughts...you really should try an Evora 430 GT...with or without the wing, depending upon your preference.

[DaveGB]

Felt the same with a 911 GT3. Have now gone through 2x Evora (S and 400) and 3 Exige V6.(V6S, 350, 380)

If you want comfort of McLaren but more noise at sensible speeds then Evora 400 or above.

If you want more feedback, rawer feel but still keep the mini McLaren looks then Exige V6. Sport 350 is best value point, but for me the extra for 380 looks , Carbon, sound was worth it

Yes all can still reach license losing speed in no time, but I can enjoy them at normal road speeds too.

Edited by DaveGB on Monday 16th April 22:32

Edited by DaveGB on Monday 16th April 22:34

[fridaypassion]

Exige/ Evora wont get you around the problem of cop watching. I have just moved from a 987 Cayman PDK to an Evora 410

The 7 speed PDK has decent short gearing so you can rev it. The 410 has manual Porsche like gearing so hitting almost 90 in second but all the juicy bits of the performance are in the top 1k of the revs so not really over accessible in the UK.

I'm considering 2 things for when the car hs a good few more mles on it. Firstly a remap to see if the fizz can be brought down a bit. It seems odd to me that a supercharged engine has such a concentration of it's performance just at higher revs. I'm convinced this is VVT related and could be brought down.

If that route doesn't work as a last resort I'm seriously considering fitting the Komotec lowered final drive. That would be a serious investment but I'm sure would turn the Evora into a proper hooning machine.

[CTE]

The Komotec 430 upgrade give you the "fizz" right through the rev range...it makes the car feel lighter and more responsive. The downside is that you now reach those silly speeds even quicker...on the positive side, if you drive reasonably, it is more economical!

[Bispal]

Jumping Jack Flash, very spooky! I have just done exactly the same thing! Sold my 12C coupe 2 weeks ago and collect my new 350 sport roadster on Saturday! It wasn’t a conscious decision it was organic. I have a 2 day 600 mile drive planned at the weekend to run it in and then I will report on the differences between the McLaren and Exige 350, so hold your horses.....

[G111MDS]

Bispal said:

Jumping Jack Flash, very spooky! I have just done exactly the same thing! Sold my 12C coupe 2 weeks ago and collect my new 350 sport roadster on Saturday! It wasn’t a conscious decision it was organic. I have a 2 day 600 mile drive planned at the weekend to run it in and then I will report on the differences between the McLaren and Exige 350, so hold your horses.....

Buying from Edinburgh Lotus? If so, we were at the dealership just after you’d bought it and Ian was moving it to take some video footage. Looked great, and the exhaust note was incredible! Enjoy