Does Anyone Own an Exige 350 Auto?

Does Anyone Own an Exige 350 Auto?

Author
Discussion

rootsandculture

Original Poster:

131 posts

92 months

Tuesday 28th July 2020
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Are they actually hopeless and awful? Not necessarily compared with the manual (which clearly is fantastic), but as a stand alone proposition.

I think I already know the answer, but I’m doing a bit of a garage reshuffle and thinking this may kill two birds with one stone, plus they’re handy money when they come up.

I live in London and keep a number of classics so fancy something that can be little less hardwork ALL of the time.

Kananga

1,113 posts

163 months

Tuesday 28th July 2020
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I was in the same mindset and then bought a manual. Keen to hear the views to this.


SELON

1,172 posts

136 months

Wednesday 29th July 2020
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There are a few. I know one happy owner who’s had his for the past 4 years from new. So they are out there. It’s the IPS system. Shift changes seem good and the downshift has Rev marching I think - only judging by the sound of it, while following - which is awesome.

Kananga

1,113 posts

163 months

Wednesday 29th July 2020
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I thought the IPS suffered from a delay/lag between the time of paddle action and the gear actually changing. IIRC, this was only for upshifts but I may be wrong.

Have heard that people just drive around this.

Diablos-666

2,786 posts

185 months

Wednesday 29th July 2020
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I have an Exige V6s IPS which is pretty much the same as a 350.

The IPS system is great on the downshifts but there is about a second lag on upshifts. It is a bit annoying but doesn’t bother me that much.

The car is quite extreme but it’s nice leaving it in auto mode when you want it when stuck in traffic.

I think it’s great and I no need to worry about miss-shifting on track and lunching the engine.

rootsandculture

Original Poster:

131 posts

92 months

Wednesday 29th July 2020
quotequote all
Diablos-666 said:
I have an Exige V6s IPS which is pretty much the same as a 350.

The IPS system is great on the downshifts but there is about a second lag on upshifts. It is a bit annoying but doesn’t bother me that much.

The car is quite extreme but it’s nice leaving it in auto mode when you want it when stuck in traffic.

I think it’s great and I no need to worry about miss-shifting on track and lunching the engine.
Thanks for the reply

Sounds like I should book a test drive when one comes up

CTE

1,496 posts

247 months

Thursday 30th July 2020
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A good friend of mine has one...and he is very happy with it. I`ve had a drive of it and you do lose a bit of interaction compared with the manual, but the gearchanges are quicker and consequently the straightline acceleration is quicker simply because you are not losing half a second or so every time you dip the clutch pedal. The car is still very engaging to drive and in truth better able to cope with town/city driving.

My friend says the changes are very quick when in sport (and more relaxed when not) and on the case and at higher revs, also downshifts are nice as you get a lovely blip of the throttle.

His car is a 2016 M/Y and as with most manufacturers, details improve with time so the later the car you can find the better. He got a brilliant deal on his car so I`m sure you can, and yes go and drive one.


Big E 118

2,424 posts

176 months

Thursday 30th July 2020
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CTE said:
A good friend of mine has one...and he is very happy with it. I`ve had a drive of it and you do lose a bit of interaction compared with the manual, but the gearchanges are quicker and consequently the straightline acceleration is quicker simply because you are not losing half a second or so every time you dip the clutch pedal. The car is still very engaging to drive and in truth better able to cope with town/city driving.

My friend says the changes are very quick when in sport (and more relaxed when not) and on the case and at higher revs, also downshifts are nice as you get a lovely blip of the throttle.

His car is a 2016 M/Y and as with most manufacturers, details improve with time so the later the car you can find the better. He got a brilliant deal on his car so I`m sure you can, and yes go and drive one.
That's me. CTE has had a number of Exiges and I was keen to have one but I'm tall and the space between clutch/wheel/gearstick was just too tight for me to drive comfortably for any distance so hence picking up an IPS car.

It's a standard V6 but when I took it to my local dealer (Bell & Collville) they updated the software which I believe is the same software as the 350 IPS has. The gearchange speed does vary depending on throttle inputs. If you're driving around at 40mph with minimal throttle input and want "test" the changes by flipping up and down there is a definite, long delay. If you're accelerating hard and near the redline the shifts are a lot quicker and there is very little delay. Same with downshifts, if you're driving the car hard and are on the brakes hard the downshifts are quick.

My opinion on this is that it's a "Lotus" thing, the programmers seem to have written the software to change well when you're driving the Exige as intended but if you want to flip around the gearbox when you don't need to it treats you with contempt!

In summary, you do lose some of the interaction with such a tactile car so the manual car is the better drivers car but if the IPS suits you then give one a go. The Exige is a great car and you'll still have a blast driving one whichever gearbox you opt for. On the plus side IPS cars do stick around and I bought a very low mileage car for significantly cheaper than a manual one.



rootsandculture

Original Poster:

131 posts

92 months

Thursday 30th July 2020
quotequote all
Big E 118 said:
CTE said:
A good friend of mine has one...and he is very happy with it. I`ve had a drive of it and you do lose a bit of interaction compared with the manual, but the gearchanges are quicker and consequently the straightline acceleration is quicker simply because you are not losing half a second or so every time you dip the clutch pedal. The car is still very engaging to drive and in truth better able to cope with town/city driving.

My friend says the changes are very quick when in sport (and more relaxed when not) and on the case and at higher revs, also downshifts are nice as you get a lovely blip of the throttle.

His car is a 2016 M/Y and as with most manufacturers, details improve with time so the later the car you can find the better. He got a brilliant deal on his car so I`m sure you can, and yes go and drive one.
That's me. CTE has had a number of Exiges and I was keen to have one but I'm tall and the space between clutch/wheel/gearstick was just too tight for me to drive comfortably for any distance so hence picking up an IPS car.

It's a standard V6 but when I took it to my local dealer (Bell & Collville) they updated the software which I believe is the same software as the 350 IPS has. The gearchange speed does vary depending on throttle inputs. If you're driving around at 40mph with minimal throttle input and want "test" the changes by flipping up and down there is a definite, long delay. If you're accelerating hard and near the redline the shifts are a lot quicker and there is very little delay. Same with downshifts, if you're driving the car hard and are on the brakes hard the downshifts are quick.

My opinion on this is that it's a "Lotus" thing, the programmers seem to have written the software to change well when you're driving the Exige as intended but if you want to flip around the gearbox when you don't need to it treats you with contempt!

In summary, you do lose some of the interaction with such a tactile car so the manual car is the better drivers car but if the IPS suits you then give one a go. The Exige is a great car and you'll still have a blast driving one whichever gearbox you opt for. On the plus side IPS cars do stick around and I bought a very low mileage car for significantly cheaper than a manual one.
Really helpful thanks guys

I was wondering if a software update would be an option.



George29

14,714 posts

171 months

Thursday 27th August 2020
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Sorry to jump in on the thread, but have Lotus stopped making the Exige auto?

I am looking to replace my M2 comp and fancy an Exige next, but I don't like manuals. I was looking on the Lotus site but can't seem to find any mention of auto option? I generally drive using the paddles in my current cars - what's the Exige auto like in this regards as I know it's an auto not an automated manual?

Cheers

Diablos-666

2,786 posts

185 months

Thursday 27th August 2020
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If you want an auto then your only options are the V6S or the 350.
All models after that are manual only unless you opt for an Evora.
I find the auto is fine if left in auto. If you use the paddles then there is a noticeable delay in the upshift.
On track you need to pre-empt the delay so you don’t hit the limiter.
The delay is annoying but it doesn’t detract from the overall experience of the car in my opinion.
The car is hardcore but it’s nice to just put it in auto mode an cruise along when you can’t be arsed.

George29

14,714 posts

171 months

Friday 28th August 2020
quotequote all
Diablos-666 said:
If you want an auto then your only options are the V6S or the 350.
All models after that are manual only unless you opt for an Evora.
I find the auto is fine if left in auto. If you use the paddles then there is a noticeable delay in the upshift.
On track you need to pre-empt the delay so you don’t hit the limiter.
The delay is annoying but it doesn’t detract from the overall experience of the car in my opinion.
The car is hardcore but it’s nice to just put it in auto mode an cruise along when you can’t be arsed.
Thanks for the info. I’m not a huge fan of the Evora but I love the Exige and I don’t think I’ll be able to find a used one in the spec that I want (auto, either orange or isotope green) so was going to order new. It wouldn’t be used on track either so sounds like it should be ok

DaveGB

1,671 posts

188 months

Wednesday 2nd September 2020
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Drove one and not impressed with delay from pull of paddle. Evora 400 auto is much better and always baffled me why they don’t have same tweaks to Exige IPS.

GTRene

17,781 posts

231 months

Thursday 3rd September 2020
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you can build them, like this Lotus Exige Sport EX460 IPS, no idea how it drives though.

https://suchen.mobile.de/fahrzeuge/details.html?id...

NigelTVR

58 posts

56 months

Monday 5th October 2020
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I have an exige roadster S with the IPS and it’s not bad at all. I only drive in sport using manual mode and enjoy using the paddles. Yes a slight delay in up shifts but down is very good with rev matching. I think the delay is no real problem unless maybe you are on a track at the rev limit all the time. My car is driven often, most days and I just prefer the IPS if in traffic or commutes.