Lotus News Including S2 Exige First Drives
Discussion
From lotuslife :
LOTUS IN THE PRESS
EXIGE
Over the last few days, key magazines around the world have been driving an early prototype of the Lotus Exige on the Test Track at Hethel. These "first-drives" follow on from our global announcement to the world on 08 September 2003 about the Exige.
Autocar Magazine will be the first magazine to publish their impressions of their drive of the prototype Exige and this issue will go on sale on Tuesday 23 September 2003. Also in this issue, will be an interview with Victor Kiam and Simon Wood and a situation report at Lotus including the latest on Lotus Engineering's developments.
Over the next few weeks, Exige prototype drives will be seen in the following media:
* Automobile Revue (Switzerland)
* Automotor und Sport (Germany)
* Auto Hebdo (France)
* Evo (Italy)
* Evo (UK)
* Car Graphic (Japan)
* Motor (Australia)
PININFARINA ENJOY
On 17th and 18th September, 25 journalists from across Europe were invited by Pininfarina to its test facility near Paris to drive its Enjoy concept car, for which Lotus Engineering is a key technical partner.
Gavan Kershaw from Lotus' Ride and Handling team attended the event to explain Lotus' work on the vehicle dynamics of the Enjoy, and to offer demo drives for journalists who wanted to experience its optimum performance.
The Enjoy, originally shown at the Geneva Motorshow in March 2003, is based on the Lotus Elise's epoxy-bonded extruded aluminium chassis. The one-off 'barchetta' was at Hethel from mid-July to mid-August for ride & handling development, and for an engine upgrade to 135bhp.
The inevitable question around whether the car would be put into production was answered by Andrea Pininfarina, the Italian company's CEO. He explained that with Lotus, Pininfarina is currently investigating the feasibility of producing the Enjoy. If given the green light, only around 100 units would be produced, and the car would not be badged a Pininfarina or a Lotus.
Pininfarina judged the event a resounding success, and were very grateful for Lotus' co-operation. Coverage of the Enjoy drives is expected over the next few weeks in publications across western Europe.
Once again Lotus have taken the honours at the annual Autocar Sideways Challenge held at Silverstone. Gavan Kershaw and Matt Becker headed off stiff competition in the face of such stars as Justin Wilson, Phil Bennett, Markko Martin, Tiff Needell and Autocar's Chris Harris, to come first and second respectively.
With no practice laps and the need to put a car sideways three times in a single run around Priory, Brooklands and Luffield, the guys, using the Autocar supplied BMW M3, beat off more than 85 other drivers to bring the title back home to Hethel for the fifth time in the event's six year history.
LOTUS IN THE PRESS
EXIGE
Over the last few days, key magazines around the world have been driving an early prototype of the Lotus Exige on the Test Track at Hethel. These "first-drives" follow on from our global announcement to the world on 08 September 2003 about the Exige.
Autocar Magazine will be the first magazine to publish their impressions of their drive of the prototype Exige and this issue will go on sale on Tuesday 23 September 2003. Also in this issue, will be an interview with Victor Kiam and Simon Wood and a situation report at Lotus including the latest on Lotus Engineering's developments.
Over the next few weeks, Exige prototype drives will be seen in the following media:
* Automobile Revue (Switzerland)
* Automotor und Sport (Germany)
* Auto Hebdo (France)
* Evo (Italy)
* Evo (UK)
* Car Graphic (Japan)
* Motor (Australia)
PININFARINA ENJOY
On 17th and 18th September, 25 journalists from across Europe were invited by Pininfarina to its test facility near Paris to drive its Enjoy concept car, for which Lotus Engineering is a key technical partner.
Gavan Kershaw from Lotus' Ride and Handling team attended the event to explain Lotus' work on the vehicle dynamics of the Enjoy, and to offer demo drives for journalists who wanted to experience its optimum performance.
The Enjoy, originally shown at the Geneva Motorshow in March 2003, is based on the Lotus Elise's epoxy-bonded extruded aluminium chassis. The one-off 'barchetta' was at Hethel from mid-July to mid-August for ride & handling development, and for an engine upgrade to 135bhp.
The inevitable question around whether the car would be put into production was answered by Andrea Pininfarina, the Italian company's CEO. He explained that with Lotus, Pininfarina is currently investigating the feasibility of producing the Enjoy. If given the green light, only around 100 units would be produced, and the car would not be badged a Pininfarina or a Lotus.
Pininfarina judged the event a resounding success, and were very grateful for Lotus' co-operation. Coverage of the Enjoy drives is expected over the next few weeks in publications across western Europe.
Once again Lotus have taken the honours at the annual Autocar Sideways Challenge held at Silverstone. Gavan Kershaw and Matt Becker headed off stiff competition in the face of such stars as Justin Wilson, Phil Bennett, Markko Martin, Tiff Needell and Autocar's Chris Harris, to come first and second respectively.
With no practice laps and the need to put a car sideways three times in a single run around Priory, Brooklands and Luffield, the guys, using the Autocar supplied BMW M3, beat off more than 85 other drivers to bring the title back home to Hethel for the fifth time in the event's six year history.
Tyres actually more like £600 if you go to the right place (Exige S1 tyres were certainly not cheap when I had one) -as for the rest of the stuff maybe slightly more expensive but not dramatically, I really can't see the S2 being the car the S1 was.... -I will test drive one thought when available... (BTW this is all IMHO)
DanH said:
Yes, but a second hand noble is very expensive to run
(disks 280 quid a piece, pads 130 quid a pair, set of tyres 800+ etc. etc.)
Stuart - the car is a mule - its not the real thing - it is totally unfinished - its just a press taster... Where are the engine piccies?, where are the performance figures? where are the driving impressions? - note the subtle shading of the pics and the black colour chosen (not to mention the well worn bodywork) - ask yourself how does the rear engine cowl and wing fit together - not well I think... Great to see Lotus in the news with a new car rather than a paint jobbie but lots of work to do yet before I'm tempted 
DanH said:
guy those prices I quoted are straight from Mole Valley. 600 quid for a set of tyres? As if! Its 500 quid for the two rears!
Show me an Elise disk that costs 280 quid as well!
Well the less said about mv the better....
I paid 340 pounds for my last set of rears fitted and balanced.... 170 each....
I think you will be pleasantly surprised about the running costs of a noble - I have been - not a huge amount more than my Exige was - then again I do have a bit of a chip on my shoulder about lotus - it called the M250 and a lost deposit.....
but that's another tail. I will hold station until I have had a chance to drive the new Exige.... >> Edited by guysh on Thursday 25th September 11:51
bobble hat said:
VX220 / NOBLE ARE YOU LOT PUDDLED OR WHAT . THERE JUST PRETEND SPORTS CARS . IF YOU WANT A SPORTS CAR YOU DONT BUY A CAR WITH A GRIFFIN ON THE FRONT DO YOU . IF THE EXIGE TOUCHED 35K ITS WORTH SPENDING THAT BIT EXTRA FOR THE PLEASURE OF KNOWING YOUR DRIVING A HERITAGE NOT A HERRING.
Maybe there is an outside chance that Bobble Hat drives a car because of the name? Heritage is possibly just an excuse.
Pagani Zonda's don't have any Heritage from what I have heard, but I would still buy one if I had that sort of money to throw away. It wouldn't be for the name, it would be for the car.
Horses for courses, but no need to just blast a car because of its name/badge IMHO.
If you are talking about the S2 Exige, then the equivalent VX is of course the forthcoming VX Sprint. It is likely to weight in at something like the Exige's weight, and have 260Bhp/270lbft. To drive the VX Sprint back to back with the S2 Exige would be a VERY cool opportunity.
One mans Angelina Jolie is another man's Jodie Foster. Live and let live I say.
If you want to slag off cars (including Lotus ones) then go to SELOC. It seems to be their Raison d'etre.
Yeah if they put the sprint engine in a prettier car I'd be more interested. Also the sprint is going to be a lot more hardcore than the S2 Exige given that it has no boot at all! (which rules it out for me as I'm not able to run 2 cars).
Oh not to mention the fuel starvation issue the sprint was having at high g's according to one test driver who has enough credibility for me to believe.
bobble hat said:
VX220 / NOBLE ARE YOU LOT PUDDLED OR WHAT . THERE JUST PRETEND SPORTS CARS . IF YOU WANT A SPORTS CAR YOU DONT BUY A CAR WITH A GRIFFIN ON THE FRONT DO YOU . IF THE EXIGE TOUCHED 35K ITS WORTH SPENDING THAT BIT EXTRA FOR THE PLEASURE OF KNOWING YOUR DRIVING A HERITAGE NOT A HERRING.
what a joke!!!
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