V12V vs. Evora S
Discussion
I had a track event this past weekend at Daytona International Speedway (DIS). It's an event that is held twice a year and features Ferrari, Lambo, Aston, Jaguar, and Lotus which is co-sponsored by the dealers.
Aston of North America brought in several cars including a DBS Volante, V8VS, V12V, N420, Rapide, and Virage Volante. I have never had the opportunity to ride or drive in a V12V before, so that was my first choice. My driver was from AM's PDC program and I thought he was pretty good. The track was configured the same way as it is used for the Daytona 24 Hour race, which is a road course using the infield. Along the back straight there is a chicane to slow you down known as the "bus stop". The Aston driver, Jamie, got up to about 130 mph after the NASCAR turn 1 bank before having to slam on the brakes at about the 350ft marker prior to entering the chicane. Upon exit, we saw an indicated 148 mph on turn 3 which is a steep 31 degrees. On subsequent laps, we remained at almost the same top speed, although it appeared he missed a couple of shifts. Over all, a pretty fun experience, although it did leave me a bit queasy feeling afterward, prolly due to the lack of any food in my stomach.
After lunch, several of my friends said that I just had to try a few laps in a Lotus Evora S because it was truly amazing. It did not disappoint. My driver was the amazing Le Mans driver David Murry, who had been brought in by Lotus just for the weekend. Interestingly, Lotus only sent one car and halfway during the first day they realized they had forgotten that the car still had luggage in the rear! The car was completely street spec with street tires and brakes. But what a car, and what an amazing driver! He really put Aston, their PDC driver, and the V12V to shame!
I volunteer for one of the Grand Am/Rolex Series teams so I have been at this particular track a multitude of times but I have never been on the actual course. Murry, however, has probably driven this track through thousands of laps and knows it like the back of his hand. After I climbed in and we got on the pit exit, he hammered the throttle and took the first few turns through the infield at blinding speed. The car is amazingly quiet, which deceives as to how fast you are actually going. The noise I noticed more at first was the squeal of the tires as we went past certain turns. Once we left turn 1 we were at about 145 as we approached the chicane. I saw the 350 spot where the Aston driver had stepped on the brakes go by, but Murry kept going. I see the 300 foot marker go by, and then the 200 one and we're still accelerating and I start to panic. He was busy talking to me about how good he thought this car was and that he had never driven one before that day. I thought in the conversation he got distracted and missed his mark. Then, right before the 100ft marker, he slams on the brakes. My body goes thrusting forward, held in place only by the seatbelt. I find out later that I was subjected to 1.98g of forces on the violent braking. But the Evora doesn't complain; it just brakes without drama or fade as it did all day long. Murry makes a quick jog of the steering wheel to the left and then to the right and we fly past the chicane at almost 100 mph where I would never have dared driven past 30 on my own car. The tires actually go beyond the rumble strips and partially onto the grass, but I never felt a thing. The suspension is so smooth that it felt as if we might have run over the smallest of bumps.
Upon exiting the Bus Stop, again he stomps on the throttle. We start heading toward turn 3 when he looks at me and lets go of the steering wheel (!) while telling me about how very stable this car is to drive. I look at the speedo and I see it tick over 165mph before he grabs the steering wheel again and yanks it to the left as we enter the infield again. We then proceed to repeat this a couple more laps.
When we return to the pits, I have a silly grin on my face. I don't feel the slightest bit dizzy or sick (I did have lunch which probably helped) and as I climb out of the car, someone else gets in and he proceeds to do this again and again all day only stopping to pick up new passengers and refuel. Murry is like a machine!
The car had used tires when it started the day and new brakes. By the end of the day, the tires still had plenty of life left although Lotus did send a few extra sets. The brakes still had almost half their pad left but they would need to be replaced at some point in order to endure Murry's driving during the three day event. The most amusing part was that, at the end of the day, they loaded the luggage back into the car and drove it off to the hotel to rest so they can repeat this two more days—talk about "run what you brung"!
I have a new respect for the Evora. It is truly an amazing car, but having such an amazing driver made it really shine.
During the rest of my day, I got to try out several other cars and I finally drove the V12V—what a beast! And surprisingly smooth and easy to drive too! Taking off was way easier than in my V8V, but once you step on the gas a bit more, the amount of acceleration is phenomenal. The Evora S is definitely a better track car, but in the looks and class department, the Aston has no equal. Since I am not a race car driver and don't intend to do any track days, I still prefer the Vantage. If I can manage the $$, there will be a V12 in my future.
Aston of North America brought in several cars including a DBS Volante, V8VS, V12V, N420, Rapide, and Virage Volante. I have never had the opportunity to ride or drive in a V12V before, so that was my first choice. My driver was from AM's PDC program and I thought he was pretty good. The track was configured the same way as it is used for the Daytona 24 Hour race, which is a road course using the infield. Along the back straight there is a chicane to slow you down known as the "bus stop". The Aston driver, Jamie, got up to about 130 mph after the NASCAR turn 1 bank before having to slam on the brakes at about the 350ft marker prior to entering the chicane. Upon exit, we saw an indicated 148 mph on turn 3 which is a steep 31 degrees. On subsequent laps, we remained at almost the same top speed, although it appeared he missed a couple of shifts. Over all, a pretty fun experience, although it did leave me a bit queasy feeling afterward, prolly due to the lack of any food in my stomach.
After lunch, several of my friends said that I just had to try a few laps in a Lotus Evora S because it was truly amazing. It did not disappoint. My driver was the amazing Le Mans driver David Murry, who had been brought in by Lotus just for the weekend. Interestingly, Lotus only sent one car and halfway during the first day they realized they had forgotten that the car still had luggage in the rear! The car was completely street spec with street tires and brakes. But what a car, and what an amazing driver! He really put Aston, their PDC driver, and the V12V to shame!
I volunteer for one of the Grand Am/Rolex Series teams so I have been at this particular track a multitude of times but I have never been on the actual course. Murry, however, has probably driven this track through thousands of laps and knows it like the back of his hand. After I climbed in and we got on the pit exit, he hammered the throttle and took the first few turns through the infield at blinding speed. The car is amazingly quiet, which deceives as to how fast you are actually going. The noise I noticed more at first was the squeal of the tires as we went past certain turns. Once we left turn 1 we were at about 145 as we approached the chicane. I saw the 350 spot where the Aston driver had stepped on the brakes go by, but Murry kept going. I see the 300 foot marker go by, and then the 200 one and we're still accelerating and I start to panic. He was busy talking to me about how good he thought this car was and that he had never driven one before that day. I thought in the conversation he got distracted and missed his mark. Then, right before the 100ft marker, he slams on the brakes. My body goes thrusting forward, held in place only by the seatbelt. I find out later that I was subjected to 1.98g of forces on the violent braking. But the Evora doesn't complain; it just brakes without drama or fade as it did all day long. Murry makes a quick jog of the steering wheel to the left and then to the right and we fly past the chicane at almost 100 mph where I would never have dared driven past 30 on my own car. The tires actually go beyond the rumble strips and partially onto the grass, but I never felt a thing. The suspension is so smooth that it felt as if we might have run over the smallest of bumps.
Upon exiting the Bus Stop, again he stomps on the throttle. We start heading toward turn 3 when he looks at me and lets go of the steering wheel (!) while telling me about how very stable this car is to drive. I look at the speedo and I see it tick over 165mph before he grabs the steering wheel again and yanks it to the left as we enter the infield again. We then proceed to repeat this a couple more laps.
When we return to the pits, I have a silly grin on my face. I don't feel the slightest bit dizzy or sick (I did have lunch which probably helped) and as I climb out of the car, someone else gets in and he proceeds to do this again and again all day only stopping to pick up new passengers and refuel. Murry is like a machine!
The car had used tires when it started the day and new brakes. By the end of the day, the tires still had plenty of life left although Lotus did send a few extra sets. The brakes still had almost half their pad left but they would need to be replaced at some point in order to endure Murry's driving during the three day event. The most amusing part was that, at the end of the day, they loaded the luggage back into the car and drove it off to the hotel to rest so they can repeat this two more days—talk about "run what you brung"!
I have a new respect for the Evora. It is truly an amazing car, but having such an amazing driver made it really shine.
During the rest of my day, I got to try out several other cars and I finally drove the V12V—what a beast! And surprisingly smooth and easy to drive too! Taking off was way easier than in my V8V, but once you step on the gas a bit more, the amount of acceleration is phenomenal. The Evora S is definitely a better track car, but in the looks and class department, the Aston has no equal. Since I am not a race car driver and don't intend to do any track days, I still prefer the Vantage. If I can manage the $$, there will be a V12 in my future.
Edited by KarlFranz on Monday 14th November 04:12
Sounds to me like the biggest difference there was the driver. Knowing the track is bound to make you faster - see here for a prime example: www.youtube.com/watch?v=eWp-QH_vH_8
Not taking anything away from the Aston PDC driver of course
Not taking anything away from the Aston PDC driver of course
KarlFranz said:
snip
"wrung what you brung"!
The Evora S is definitely a better track car, but in the looks and class department, the Aston has no equal. Since I am not a race car driver and don't intend to do any track days, I still prefer the Vantage. If I can manage the $$, there will be a V12 in my future.
Corrected that for you "wrung what you brung"!
The Evora S is definitely a better track car, but in the looks and class department, the Aston has no equal. Since I am not a race car driver and don't intend to do any track days, I still prefer the Vantage. If I can manage the $$, there will be a V12 in my future.
Nice review
Don't forget the Evora S is only 35 BHP less than a 4.3 Vantage and well over 300 kg lighter!
This is what Lotus do!
It will make a massive difference to every characteristic of the car, suspension, turn in, braking the lot.
Lotus have come a long way from "loads of trouble usually serious" with the help of Proton.
I looked at the Evora, but they have not got round to cutting the roof off yet
BTW wait until you get in the newer more power stuff they are bring to market!
Edited by mikey k on Tuesday 8th November 11:21
Edited by mikey k on Tuesday 8th November 11:23
Forgot to mention:
Jag had a XF, XF-R, XK-R, and XK-RS there. None of their cars could take more than a few laps on the standard brakes without experiencing fade. Most people agreed that the XK-RS wasn't worth the extra money when it came to track performance.
Lambo had the new Aventador there which looked like a F117 fighter for the road. The car has a very menacing look and the side intakes are so ridiculously huge that a bird strike would be a potentially serious problem of it were a plane.
Also, halfway through the first day, the track officials told the Aston folks that they weren't allowed to take more than 1 passenger on the Rapide at one time which was kind of a bummer.
Jag had a XF, XF-R, XK-R, and XK-RS there. None of their cars could take more than a few laps on the standard brakes without experiencing fade. Most people agreed that the XK-RS wasn't worth the extra money when it came to track performance.
Lambo had the new Aventador there which looked like a F117 fighter for the road. The car has a very menacing look and the side intakes are so ridiculously huge that a bird strike would be a potentially serious problem of it were a plane.
Also, halfway through the first day, the track officials told the Aston folks that they weren't allowed to take more than 1 passenger on the Rapide at one time which was kind of a bummer.
There's a thing on this on Lotus's Facebook page.
Having driven the Evora S on track recently I don't doubt that you were impressed. It's a brilliant car the Evora and deserves to sell much better than it does. Unfortunately for Lotus that market sector only seems interested in 911s and I doubt many of those buying a new 911 even bother to drive the Evora. I'd love it say it's their loss but unfortunately it's Lotus's too!
However the V12 Vantage is considerably quicker in a straight line and has much wider, stickier rubber than the Evora. Yes it's carrying a bit more weight but nothing, not even the Evora's brakes are a match for the stupendous carbon ceramic stoppers in the Vantage. I think the Evora would be closer to the Vantage over a lap than it has any right to be but the Vantage will still cross the line comfortably in front with drivers of similar ability.
Your tales of 148mph (V12 Vantage) versus 165mph (that's flat out in the Evora!) don't square with my recent experience in both cars. I take nothing away from the Evora though, it's half the price of the Vantage but let's not get too carried away!
Having driven the Evora S on track recently I don't doubt that you were impressed. It's a brilliant car the Evora and deserves to sell much better than it does. Unfortunately for Lotus that market sector only seems interested in 911s and I doubt many of those buying a new 911 even bother to drive the Evora. I'd love it say it's their loss but unfortunately it's Lotus's too!
However the V12 Vantage is considerably quicker in a straight line and has much wider, stickier rubber than the Evora. Yes it's carrying a bit more weight but nothing, not even the Evora's brakes are a match for the stupendous carbon ceramic stoppers in the Vantage. I think the Evora would be closer to the Vantage over a lap than it has any right to be but the Vantage will still cross the line comfortably in front with drivers of similar ability.
Your tales of 148mph (V12 Vantage) versus 165mph (that's flat out in the Evora!) don't square with my recent experience in both cars. I take nothing away from the Evora though, it's half the price of the Vantage but let's not get too carried away!
There's loads of stuff going on over here if you were interested. Including the Lotus driving academy, which offers top notch one on one driving tuition (Martin Donnelly is the chief instructor) in the Elise and Evora S around Lotus's superbly updated test track. I highly recommend it. Equally the Aston Martin PDC is said to be very good as well, although I haven't done that yet.
The Pits said:
There's loads of stuff going on over here if you were interested. Including the Lotus driving academy, which offers top notch one on one driving tuition (Martin Donnelly is the chief instructor) in the Elise and Evora S around Lotus's superbly updated test track. I highly recommend it. Equally the Aston Martin PDC is said to be very good as well, although I haven't done that yet.
I was referring more to ALL the top marques on a track on the same day with professional drives doing passengert laps so we can go and see what they are like driven "well" There are loads of good driver training courses. Ride Drive, Car Limits etc
Sorry, I thought you might have been interested in seeing what an Evora ca really do in skilled hands. For anyone that is, the day at Hethel is the place to go. They also do dates at the Hungaroring for those after something more exotic.
You're right, it is a good idea to get all the top marques together, far more informative than any motorshow. I imagine though that you could only arrange such an event via the dealers, the politics among the rival marketing depts would be impossible to navigate I'd wager. Ferrari would also cheat like they have done for every road test for years and soon render the event meaningless. It would be fun while it lasted though!
You're right, it is a good idea to get all the top marques together, far more informative than any motorshow. I imagine though that you could only arrange such an event via the dealers, the politics among the rival marketing depts would be impossible to navigate I'd wager. Ferrari would also cheat like they have done for every road test for years and soon render the event meaningless. It would be fun while it lasted though!
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