Evora and Aston, Porsche, Ferrari
Discussion
ravon said:
Jackal, You have much 968CS experience, you know how rapid they are cross country, just how much better as a pure driving machine is the Evora to a 968CS ? I've only had a quick drive down the road so far in an Evora, but they are really getting into my price range now.
Hello mate. They are worlds apart so very difficult to compare. An evora feels decades and decades more modern and is lot better for feedback and the suspension is in another galaxy. The 968cs would feel very old, heavy and a bit impotent power-wise after steeping out of the lotus but then again, the porsche has plenty of things going for it like its crazy tank like 80/90's porsche solidity which is reason enough to choose the car in itself.Some of it comes down to whether you like older cars or newer ones. A 968cs is a bit of an icon that you'd want to keep forever. I'm not sure an evora is that. There aren't many modern cars these days that aren't just a little bit throwaway IMO.
The bit that totally miffed me, was that original Autocar "Track Car of the Year Award", which the Evora won, but with a lap time that was only a few tenths faster than a 968 ( non-CS ) had managed on the same circuit in 1991 ? But of coarse in '91 Goodwood was not the perfect billiard table that we know today, and the car would have been on much inferior rubber.
1981linley said:
Quite. But no car is the perfect all round package. What is said here about the engine of an Evora could be applied in equal measure to the body work and interior of the said Cayman or Carrera.....uninspired. Ferrari is a little more rounded....but then in a different price bracket completely in terms of purchase and running costs. For me, the engine matters less than the looks, handling and overall feel and I find it more than adequate in terms of performance balanced with everyday practicalities like erm....fuel economy and oh, reliability. The Toyota engine ought to be bomb proof. So, all in, super car looks, Lotus prestige, rarity, relative lightness and handling, combined with japanese reliability for the expensive parts is about as good as it gets. I also either guess you are either a it mainstream and get the whole German thing or you don't...I don't and prefer things a lot more unique and bespoke.
Well "bespoke" in this instance is a reflection on the lack of sales more than any desire of Lotus to keep them rare.I can absolutely see your point about the Lotus prestige, Handling etc but competitors to the Evora and I,m thinking Cayman above all else, offer bespoke characterful 6 cylinder motors, and cabins that are solid well made places to be.A Cayman R or S also handles brilliantly and anyone who thinks Caymans/Boxsters have inferior interiors to the Lotus is IMO wrong and thats without the likely huge step up with the new 981. If the new 911 cabins I've sat in are any indicator then Lotus has a to improve things further.The reliability of the Toyota engine is desirable but its complete lack of aural character or personality would weigh heavily against it for me personally.Its not like it cant be done with the layout. Audis new S4 is a S/C V6 and the turbo 6s in BMWs and the Nissan GTR are genuinely enjoyable to use as well as massively effective.
I
ravon said:
The bit that totally miffed me, was that original Autocar "Track Car of the Year Award", which the Evora won, but with a lap time that was only a few tenths faster than a 968 ( non-CS ) had managed on the same circuit in 1991 ? But of coarse in '91 Goodwood was not the perfect billiard table that we know today, and the car would have been on much inferior rubber.
Wouldn't let that bother you. The times for a stock NA evora round donny came in at aroudn 1.21 IIRC which I thought was very impressive. Certainly as quick as a 240bhp exige and probably at least 5 seconds quicker than what a stock 968CS could manage.That said, the handling upgrade path for a 968CS is a well trodden one and they make pretty brisk and unflappable track cars once honed a bit. Very easy to drive though, wouldn't be my thing personally.
Mag laptimes are best ignored though surely. What about the famed lotus 90's supercar the Esprit sport300. Almost beaten 10 years later by a basic front wheel drive Focus RS around Goodwood.
Edited by jackal on Sunday 29th January 20:09
Hi Guys,
Ive never posted on here before but thought after reading Evora Owners original post id add my 2pence worth, especially after the trading in an Aston for an Evora comment. A couple of years ago I was lucky enough to get myself a 4.3 V8 Vantage. It was my dream car, didnt even try anything else, I looked for ages on Pistonheads and Autotrader and finally saw one I could afford at an Aston dealer. It was my ideal colour, gray with red calipers and gun metal alloys with two tone red and black interior, and I absolutely loved that car.......for about a year. Then the incessant squeeking of various interior trim bits just drove me insane! I wouldnt say the car was unreliable, it never let me down mechanically but when you have a perminant high pitched buzz behind your right ear which couldnt be fixed I got fed up (other squeeky issues but that was the final nail in the coffin!).
I test drove a bunch of cars, all the usual suspects, and finally went for an NA Evora. I wanted to do my bit for the British economy plus it was a great drive and quite rare in my part of the world which was an added bonus. I loved the Evora, especially not having to brake for roundabouts and popping over the camber (two successive ones in Dundee you could almost get air on!).
However, I now have a C63 AMG Coupe, I almost feel like a traitor but in the end I just had to get myself something that would work, no hassle included. In the end I had the Evora for 9 months, and whilst again it didnt really let me down mechanically (well once, knackered battery on 2nd Jan which ended up costing me £300 in total to replace) I think I had the dealer look at 25+ warranty issues in the two visits I had. For the new owner they now probably have a completey sorted car but for me I just got tired of being part of the development of the car.
You pay a lot of money and expect a finished product. Even if I lived next door to a dealer it would still be annoying getting niggly issues fixed constantly. I really hope with the Esprit they get the QC right on launch as Id sell my house to own one! I certainly have no problems with the excellent dealer service I always recieved. I still look at the Evora threads just to see what the latest chat is, hopefully ill own one again as a cheap weekend runabout in 10 years time but until then Im sadly going to default to stuff that works.
Ive never posted on here before but thought after reading Evora Owners original post id add my 2pence worth, especially after the trading in an Aston for an Evora comment. A couple of years ago I was lucky enough to get myself a 4.3 V8 Vantage. It was my dream car, didnt even try anything else, I looked for ages on Pistonheads and Autotrader and finally saw one I could afford at an Aston dealer. It was my ideal colour, gray with red calipers and gun metal alloys with two tone red and black interior, and I absolutely loved that car.......for about a year. Then the incessant squeeking of various interior trim bits just drove me insane! I wouldnt say the car was unreliable, it never let me down mechanically but when you have a perminant high pitched buzz behind your right ear which couldnt be fixed I got fed up (other squeeky issues but that was the final nail in the coffin!).
I test drove a bunch of cars, all the usual suspects, and finally went for an NA Evora. I wanted to do my bit for the British economy plus it was a great drive and quite rare in my part of the world which was an added bonus. I loved the Evora, especially not having to brake for roundabouts and popping over the camber (two successive ones in Dundee you could almost get air on!).
However, I now have a C63 AMG Coupe, I almost feel like a traitor but in the end I just had to get myself something that would work, no hassle included. In the end I had the Evora for 9 months, and whilst again it didnt really let me down mechanically (well once, knackered battery on 2nd Jan which ended up costing me £300 in total to replace) I think I had the dealer look at 25+ warranty issues in the two visits I had. For the new owner they now probably have a completey sorted car but for me I just got tired of being part of the development of the car.
You pay a lot of money and expect a finished product. Even if I lived next door to a dealer it would still be annoying getting niggly issues fixed constantly. I really hope with the Esprit they get the QC right on launch as Id sell my house to own one! I certainly have no problems with the excellent dealer service I always recieved. I still look at the Evora threads just to see what the latest chat is, hopefully ill own one again as a cheap weekend runabout in 10 years time but until then Im sadly going to default to stuff that works.
Ah fair enough sorry I maybe misunderstood that bit and the rest.
I love the Evora and its a natural step up from car (albeit in non s form probably slower
)...
But the running costs (like tyres/brakes and fixing niggles) worry me... the Evora is heavier so will be heavier on brakes/tyres I think. And from what I have read/heard tyres are expensive on an Evora.
Some people may laugh that people consider running costs on a 40k+ car but it is applicable to me(as I don't ever want to think 'enjoying' my car is stupidly/prohibitly expensive - this is regardless of being able to afford said car).
This is one of the reasons I traded in a 911 (a 996) for the Elise... the servicing costs of that were reasonable but the 'what if something goes wrong' costs (RMS / IMS / etc) and wear and tear (brakes / tyres) were of a 70k car.
That all said -> I enjoy reading positive experiences and I hope to own an Evora if and when I grow tired/bored of my current car!
Rakoosh, sorry if it came across as a little weird; it was when I had the Elise that we had to take a bigger car. Last summer we took the Evora and it was amazing.
I love the Evora and its a natural step up from car (albeit in non s form probably slower
)... But the running costs (like tyres/brakes and fixing niggles) worry me... the Evora is heavier so will be heavier on brakes/tyres I think. And from what I have read/heard tyres are expensive on an Evora.
Some people may laugh that people consider running costs on a 40k+ car but it is applicable to me(as I don't ever want to think 'enjoying' my car is stupidly/prohibitly expensive - this is regardless of being able to afford said car).
This is one of the reasons I traded in a 911 (a 996) for the Elise... the servicing costs of that were reasonable but the 'what if something goes wrong' costs (RMS / IMS / etc) and wear and tear (brakes / tyres) were of a 70k car.
That all said -> I enjoy reading positive experiences and I hope to own an Evora if and when I grow tired/bored of my current car!
Evora Owner said:
Rakoosh, sorry if it came across as a little weird; it was when I had the Elise that we had to take a bigger car. Last summer we took the Evora and it was amazing.
I think you'll always get a bit of a rose-tinted view when going on an owns forum. We tend to forgive the car that we love for a hell of a lot of the grief that it gives us!
Although I have never driven a Lambo or Ferrari, I did test drive a couple of Astons a few years back when I had my exige s. I loved the vantage so much and was ready to part with my money there and then. But the test drive was the clincher. I just found it really tame which was a real disappointment. The salesman was actually ex-lotus and said to me "do you really love your exige?" to which my answer was an obvious yes, he said "you probably won't get on with the Aston, in fact nothing is even comparable"
I did place an order on the evora on release, but got quite irked when I was told it was going to be mid 40k and it turned out that it would be mid 60k as it was launch edition spec.
I did also look into gallardo ownership, but when I took into account servicing, running and performance it just didn't add up. I just thought a car that was well engineered and developed shouldn't keep chewing through all it's replaceables so quickly which were all bloody expensive too. In the end I got a TVR Sagaris and it was amazing, really really fast, really eye catching, gave me that proper 'fizz' and running costs were reasonable. The only downside was the build quality was shocking, but that didn't affect enjoyment one bit as it was usually just cosmetic, the undergubbins were all solid. if you go on the TVR forums they all sound great as all the posts are written by people who are really passionate about the car, even though I've sold mine a while ago I still get unreasonably defensive about TVRs!
I think it's great that someone who has had ownership of all these cars can share their experiences on these forums, and generally I think lotuses do outperform many of the big guns on British roads, because that's where they were developed. I'm pretty sure a Lambo would be leagues ahead on the roads around Sant Agata or a Ferrari more intoxicating on Modena roads. But as I live in Kent its a lotus (or TVR) for me.
Although I have never driven a Lambo or Ferrari, I did test drive a couple of Astons a few years back when I had my exige s. I loved the vantage so much and was ready to part with my money there and then. But the test drive was the clincher. I just found it really tame which was a real disappointment. The salesman was actually ex-lotus and said to me "do you really love your exige?" to which my answer was an obvious yes, he said "you probably won't get on with the Aston, in fact nothing is even comparable"
I did place an order on the evora on release, but got quite irked when I was told it was going to be mid 40k and it turned out that it would be mid 60k as it was launch edition spec.
I did also look into gallardo ownership, but when I took into account servicing, running and performance it just didn't add up. I just thought a car that was well engineered and developed shouldn't keep chewing through all it's replaceables so quickly which were all bloody expensive too. In the end I got a TVR Sagaris and it was amazing, really really fast, really eye catching, gave me that proper 'fizz' and running costs were reasonable. The only downside was the build quality was shocking, but that didn't affect enjoyment one bit as it was usually just cosmetic, the undergubbins were all solid. if you go on the TVR forums they all sound great as all the posts are written by people who are really passionate about the car, even though I've sold mine a while ago I still get unreasonably defensive about TVRs!
I think it's great that someone who has had ownership of all these cars can share their experiences on these forums, and generally I think lotuses do outperform many of the big guns on British roads, because that's where they were developed. I'm pretty sure a Lambo would be leagues ahead on the roads around Sant Agata or a Ferrari more intoxicating on Modena roads. But as I live in Kent its a lotus (or TVR) for me.
parvs said:
generally I think lotuses do outperform many of the big guns on British roads, because that's where they were developed. I'm pretty sure a Lambo would be leagues ahead on the roads around Sant Agata or a Ferrari more intoxicating on Modena roads. But as I live in Kent its a lotus (or TVR) for me.
you would be amazed how overlooked this simple logic is, even here on this forum.[quote=parvs]I think you'll always get a bit of a rose-tinted view when going on an owns forum. We tend to forgive the car that we love for a hell of a lot of the grief that it gives us!
Perhaps this is right . But iam sorry lotus, TVR are not in the same league as Ferrari ,Lamborghini ,Aston Martin or even Porsche.
Perhaps this is right . But iam sorry lotus, TVR are not in the same league as Ferrari ,Lamborghini ,Aston Martin or even Porsche.
I cant comment about many ferraris because i have only driven the new ff very briefly but i definately agree that the Evora S is a much more njoyable drive and handles so much better than Aston Martins and definately Porsches. Astons look and sound out of this world but the performance was not what i expected. And Porsches just seem to have lost their umph! they seem so toned down and boring now! I have owned my Evora S for a while now and havent had a second thought about any otherb cars when i get in that driving seat.
So you prefer Porsche and Ferrari, that's fine and you are right they are in a different league but I would not say they are better. More glamorous and expensive, yes. Better drivers cars, I don't think so. My opinion but the Porsche is fundamentally flawed and the Ferraris over hyped. I think they are fab nonetheless but for the money the Evora is a terrific proposition. If I had £60/£80/£100k in the bank it wouldn't be spent on the German or Italian but then it wouldn't have to as the Lotus would be my choice regardless...
cayman-black]arvs said:
I think you'll always get a bit of a rose-tinted view when going on an owns forum. We tend to forgive the car that we love for a hell of a lot of the grief that it gives us!
Perhaps this is right . But iam sorry lotus, TVR are not in the same league as Ferrari ,Lamborghini ,Aston Martin or even Porsche.
Perhaps this is right . But iam sorry lotus, TVR are not in the same league as Ferrari ,Lamborghini ,Aston Martin or even Porsche.
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