2008 Lotus Elise Review
Derek Ogden has been driving two for a week.
ELISE
With a rag top, getting into and out of the Lotus Elise is a headache. . . and arms, legs and head if you're not careful.
The secret is to push the driver's seat all the way back, slide your left foot under the steering column and sit in the seat with your head down. The output is the same in reverse.
The simplest is to remove the fabric top - two clips are enough, roll it up and store it in the trunk with two metal supports.
Compared to the roof removed, this is a piece of cake. Step over the threshold, stand up and, holding the steering wheel, slowly lower yourself into the seat and adjust it for reach. You are not so much sitting in a Lotus as you are wearing it.
Once inside the little roadster, it's time to turn on the fun (er, sorry, engine). The car is powered by a 1.8-liter Toyota engine with variable valve timing, located behind the two-seat cab, with a power of 100 kW, which allows the car to accelerate from zero to 100 km/h in 6.1 seconds on its way to a top speed of 205 km/h.
How can 100kW provide such performance? It's all about weight. Weighing just 860kg, the Elise S has an aluminum chassis that weighs just 68kg. Light steel is also used.
Steering and braking are extremely responsive, as is the suspension, which can chatter on uneven surfaces.
This can be forgiven for a car that is designed to capture the essence of driving a sports car. In fact, at $69,990, this is the perfect introduction to the genre.
The $8000 Touring package adds things like leather trim, an iPod connection, and soundproof panels — not that noise should be a concern for a sports car aficionado.
The $7000 Sport Pack raises the bar with Bilstein sport suspension dampers, switchable traction control, and sports seats.
EXIGE C
If Elise is an analogue of Lotus on training wheels, then Exige S is a completely different matter. In fact, it's the closest you can get to a race car legally on the road.
While the standard Exige puts out 163kW of power, the 2008 Exige S is now available with an optional Performance Pack that boosts power to 179kW at 8000rpm – the same as the limited edition Sport 240 – thanks to supercharger Magnuson/Eaton M62, faster. flow nozzles, as well as a higher torque clutch system and an enlarged air intake on the roof.
With a torque boost from the standard 215 Nm to 230 Nm at 5500 rpm, this power lift helps the Performance Pack Exige S go from zero to 100 km/h in 4.16 seconds to the accompaniment of the magnificent roar of the engine located behind the cab. The manufacturer claims fuel economy is a modest 9.1 liters per 100 km (31 mpg) on the combined city/highway cycle.
Again, the old foe, weight, was defeated with a power-to-weight ratio of 191kW/tonne, placing the Exige S at supercar level. It drives like a kart (or should be a "racer", the Exige S is that fast).
Lotus Sport has a hand in this by providing Formula XNUMX-style launch control, in which the driver selects revs via a dial on the side of the steering column for optimal standing starts.
The driver is advised to depress the accelerator pedal and quickly release the clutch, which in most cases is a recipe for transmission damage and reduced wheel spin power.
Not with this child. The damper softens the clutch and transmission clutch force to minimize the load on the transmission, as well as wheel spin up to a speed of 10 km / h, after which the traction control system takes effect.
As with launch control, the degree of traction control can be adjusted from the driver's seat, changing it on the fly to suit cornering characteristics.
It can be changed in increments of 30 - a new set of instruments shows how much traction control is dialed in - from 7 percent tire slip to complete shutdown.
The brakes also received a Performance Pack treatment with thicker 308mm perforated and ventilated discs up front, controlled by AP Racing four-piston calipers, while standard brake pads have uprated performance and braided brake hoses.
Direct steering provides maximum feedback to the driver, while there is nothing between the steering wheel and the road, including power steering.
Parking and maneuvering at low speeds can be tiring, only made worse by the lack of visibility from the cab.
An interior rear-view mirror is as useful as a hip pocket in a sweatshirt, offering a clear view of nothing but the turbo intercooler that fills the entire rear window.
External mirrors come to the rescue when reversing.
The 2008 Lotus Elise and Exige ranges feature new instruments with an easy-to-read white-on-black design. Along with the speedometer hitting the 300 km/h mark, the indicators now flash on the dash pointing left or right, unlike the one indicator that was there before.
The shift indicator also changes from one LED to three consecutive red lights during the last 500 rpm before the rev limiter disengages.
The instrument panel also features a new high-definition LCD message panel that can display a scrolling message with the vehicle's system.
Information. Red on black helps readability in direct sunlight.
New gauges continuously display fuel, engine temperature and odometer. However, it can also display time, distance traveled, or digital speed in mph or km/h.
Warning symbols are not visible until they are activated, keeping the instrument panel visually unobtrusive and distracting, and airbags are standard.
There is a new one-piece alarm/immobilizer and a key with lock, unlock and alarm buttons. The Lotus Exige S retails for $114,990 plus travel expenses, with the Performance Pack adding $11,000.
Standalone options include unidirectionally adjustable Bilstein dampers and ride height, ultra-light split-type seven-spoke forged wheels, a switchable Lotus traction control system, and a self-locking differential.
HISTORY OF THE LOTUS
The stamp of Lotus founder Colin Chapman, with his mastery of cutting-edge technology and incorporation of racing features, can be found on all Elise S and Exige S models.
Lotus is credited with popularizing the mid-engine layout for Indycars, developing the first Formula One monocoque chassis, and integrating the engine and transmission as chassis components.
Lotus was also one of the pioneers in F1, adding fenders and shaping the car's underside to create downforce, as well as being the first to move radiators to the sides of a car to improve aerodynamic performance and invent active suspension. .
Chapman drove a Lotus from a poor student at the University of London to a multimillionaire.
The company encouraged its customers to race their cars, and entered Formula One itself as a team in 1, with a Lotus 1958 driven by privateer Rob Walker and driven by Stirling Moss, winning the brand's first Grand Prix two years later in Monaco.
Big success came in 1963 with the Lotus 25, which, with Jim Clark at the wheel, won Lotus its first F1 World Constructors' Championship.
Clarke's untimely death - he crashed in the 48 Formula 1968 Lotus in April 1 after his rear tire failed at Hockenheim - was a major blow to the team and to Formula One.
He was a dominant driver in a dominant car and remains an integral part of Lotus' early years. The 1968 championship was won by Clark's teammate Graham Hill. Other riders who had success with the marque were Jochen Rindt (1970), Emerson Fittipaldi (1972) and Mario Andretti (1978).
The boss was also not lazy behind the wheel. Chapman is said to have completed the laps within seconds of his Formula One drivers.
After Chapman's death, until the late 1980s, Lotus continued to be a major player in Formula One. Ayrton Senna played for the team from 1 to 1985, winning twice a year and taking 1987 pole positions.
However, by the company's last Formula 1994 race in XNUMX, the cars were no longer competitive.
Lotus won a total of 79 Grand Prix races and Chapman saw Lotus beat Ferrari as the first team to achieve 50 Grand Prix victories despite Ferrari having won its first nine years earlier.
Moss, Clark, Hill, Rindt, Fittipaldi, Andretti. . . it was a pleasure and a privilege for me to share a place with all of them.
