S3 vs S2 Elise / Exige
Discussion
I wonder how Lotus will improve on the styling of the S2 Elise and Exige. I see that a number of people are saving for the S3, but when you look at the styling of the S2 I find it difficult to see how it can be improved on visually. The Europa and even the Evora, to a certain degree, are testament to this.
cyberface said:
bogie said:
copy something else maybe? ...like a Gallardo or an Aston 
Well they copied the nose of the 997 GT3 on the 2010 Exige, don't you think?....next they will move the engine to the back mmmm......errrrr.....
Do we know what powerplant it'll use? I think I picked up that the current Toyota one is not in prod any more. I'd be guessing that they'd be looking for something of similar power rating (130-200bhp) but wondering if they'll fall into the normal race and look for something with an extra 20% for a newer (probably slightly heavier sadly) model.
Just to be a gossip monger I wonder if it is really the S4?
The tesla looks alot like a nicked S3, as if they rocked up when it was ready in 2006 and said "we'll have that, you´re skint, heres a wad of cash". Pure idle forum speculation obviously, i know nowt about owt!
Anyway Im sure it will be brilliant, plus it is hard to make a low sports car look ugly. although it has been done! The tweaked S2 still has "wow" and fresh 8 years on, quite an achievement after such a time.
The tesla looks alot like a nicked S3, as if they rocked up when it was ready in 2006 and said "we'll have that, you´re skint, heres a wad of cash". Pure idle forum speculation obviously, i know nowt about owt!
Anyway Im sure it will be brilliant, plus it is hard to make a low sports car look ugly. although it has been done! The tweaked S2 still has "wow" and fresh 8 years on, quite an achievement after such a time.
According to this the 1ZZ is still in production
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Toyota_engine...
I suspect that will be the engine of choice and they'll just keep upping the power with super chargers to differentiate.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Toyota_engine...
I suspect that will be the engine of choice and they'll just keep upping the power with super chargers to differentiate.
bencollins said:
The tweaked S2 still has "wow" and fresh 8 years on, quite an achievement after such a time.
That is my point. The S2 was way ahead of its time with regard to the design visually. I even read in a car mag that it looked over designed. Hypothetically if it was the same size as the Ferrari's and Lambo's of this world it would knock them into a cocked hat for looks. However sports cars should be small and minimalist.doggydave said:
Hypothetically if it was the same size as the Ferrari's and Lambo's of this world it would knock them into a cocked hat for looks.
Personally, I think it does. The current crop of Ferrari's, anyway - they're all too concentrated on aero efficiency and have lost the flair of the older Ferrari's (in my own opinion, the 348 was the last Ferrari to be truly stunning, not that the 355 was ugly in any way, it just started the smoothed over look that went on through the rest of the models to follow, whereas the 348 still had flair). Lamborghini, however, took their car's forward in aero efficiency, but maintained the "look at me again and I will kill you" aggressive beauty from earlier models and enhanced it further.But the Lotus Elise is a thing of beauty in it's own right, and when compared to any other car. The S1 was stunningly attractive, and then came the S2 to rain all over it. Who would have thought such small adjustments could turn it into something Pininfarina should be kicking themselves they didn't come up with it first?!
But let's face it, a Series 3 Elise will accommodate the market, not the enthusiast, sadly. Car makers have been hit hard by the credit crunch, Lotus among them. They have the new Esprit any time soon, the S3, no doubt, a year or two later, but my bet is on it being a bigger comfier machine to rival a Boxster and a Z4, which sell in far bigger numbers. Looks-wise, I am sure it will impress, but will fall short of wowing S2 lovers.
Edited by stormwarning on Sunday 24th January 01:29
stormwarning said:
But the Lotus Elise is a thing of beauty in it's own right, and when compared to any other car. The S1 was stunningly attractive, and then came the S2 to rain all over it.
not so sure about that, S1 is till the definitive Elise shape, S2's are over-designed for my tasteS1 Exige is probably the very best looking version, and I reckon will always be the one.
doggydave said:
bencollins said:
The tweaked S2 still has "wow" and fresh 8 years on, quite an achievement after such a time.
That is my point. The S2 was way ahead of its time with regard to the design visually. I even read in a car mag that it looked over designed. Hypothetically if it was the same size as the Ferrari's and Lambo's of this world it would knock them into a cocked hat for looks. However sports cars should be small and minimalist.From wiki:
“The American industrial designers of the 1930s and '40s like Raymond Loewy, Norman bel Geddes and Henry Dreyfuss grappled with the inherent contradictions of 'form follows function' as they redesigned blenders and locomotives and duplicating machines for mass-market consumption. Loewy formulated his ‘MAYA’ (Most Advanced Yet Acceptable) principle to express that product designs are bounded by functional constraints of math and materials and logic, but their acceptance is constrained by social expectations.”
An example of this is headlamps are slowly creeping toward the A pillar and will probably form part of the a pillar / windscreen at some point soon, say two generations ahead, but if you launched a car like that now, joe soap couldnt handle the leap and would not buy it.
According to PHs mainly stick-in-the-muds who post on the main page, the jag XF was hideous, yet most folks now say it is gorgeous. I guess this makes stylists go a bit nuts during the interim period.
So your answer to the original question is that S3 will look more advanced and that of course is the job of the stylist, to make a design that stays fresh for ages but doesnt look shyte at launch!! not easy! (and the head lamps will be nearer the a pillar lol)
Just out of interest, what do people think of the Tesla styling (dont start on the tech).
Personally i really like the tesla, but the bonnet is very slab like and loses in drama to the s2. I reckon a cross between the two would be spot on. I prefer a "busy front and rear ends clean sides". This kind of follows natural design, fish, birds and mammals have busy front and rear ends, but clean sides. Nature is the best designer.
Scuffers said:
braddo said:
Why would headlights be making their way to the A Pillar? I can't think of a reason other than maybe pedestrian crash safety?
at a wild guess, hight? (as in minimum high from the deck)But you cant stick the headlamps there now because the leap would be too great, Loewe´s MAYA.
so the stylist has to be ahead of the curve, but not too far ahead.
Edited by bencollins on Monday 25th January 14:27
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