RE: Lotus Exige S Automatic: Review
Discussion
daytona365 said:
Surely an automatic would always be in the wrong ratio to negotiate corners ? Or am I 40 years behind auto evolution ?!
Depends how you drive it. On my MINI, if I slow gently and then hoof it into a sharp corner (say a junction) then the auto is almost certainly in too high a gear and there's a horrid mid-corner gear change.The trick is to get to know the gear box and balance the throttle to give the shift mechanism a hint about your next move. For example, I can pretty much time my upshifts through throttle modulation alone (a slight lift is sufficient).
Downshifts take a little longer - there's a shift point at just under 30mph, so I might plan to brake to 25 instead of 30 into the corner thus getting the gearbox to be in a lower gear. Giving more than a certain pressure on the throttle pedal through the corner ensures it stays in that lower gear as I drive through and out.
It took my a few thousand miles to adapt, but I wouldn't go back to a manual box (unless I was rich enough to take classic Ferraris on a track day).
unsprung said:
"Things ain't what they used to be is a rose tinted refrain we're often guilty of here on PH"
Car forums do seem to attract a disproportionate amount of whinging, pedantry and proclamations that change is failure.
And yet change is... everywhere.
This isn't change, this is an option, you can still buy the manual.Car forums do seem to attract a disproportionate amount of whinging, pedantry and proclamations that change is failure.
And yet change is... everywhere.
The only reason why they're doing it is Asian Money, not because "change is better".
Sampaio said:
unsprung said:
"Things ain't what they used to be is a rose tinted refrain we're often guilty of here on PH"
Car forums do seem to attract a disproportionate amount of whinging, pedantry and proclamations that change is failure.
And yet change is... everywhere.
This isn't change, this is an option, you can still buy the manual.Car forums do seem to attract a disproportionate amount of whinging, pedantry and proclamations that change is failure.
And yet change is... everywhere.
tram50 said:
I did read in a previous article that the shift time was 240ms. My Clio 200 EDC claims to do it in 150ms and I tend to believe the times now having seen the video. There is a noticeable delay between pulling the paddle and hearing the shift.
In milliseconds? I wish they wouldn't keep circulating these porkies, I would stay that is slightly slower than the E Class I used to have.
Twoshoe said:
Snoggledog said:
Isn't the copy ever read before being published?
Why, what's wrong with it?article said:
Given the cars the 3.5 V6 is used in by Toyota....
In fact, look at the whole sentence - it's totally devoid of punctuation (take a deep breath):
Given the cars the 3.5 V6 is used in by Toyota it's fortunate the Exige is available with an Aisin six-speed slusher and not the CVT many Japanese brands seem to favour in overseas markets.
A great deal of rhetoric has been forthcoming of late from the new CEO expounding the importance of launching a product on time. Being a Marketing man and allegedly a fan Lotus, he should have been acutely aware of the dangers of bringing an under-developed product to market.
Lotus' future can only be secured with an Engineering led recovery. To sack a bundle of your engineering staff (and have talented staff get to the point of walking out), then demand a slush box to compete with PDK and to be delivered in a ridiculously short lead-time indicates a failure of policy, not of the engineers.
Perhaps it would have been more appropriate if the gearbox had 6 reverse gears and one forward.....
Lotus' future can only be secured with an Engineering led recovery. To sack a bundle of your engineering staff (and have talented staff get to the point of walking out), then demand a slush box to compete with PDK and to be delivered in a ridiculously short lead-time indicates a failure of policy, not of the engineers.
Perhaps it would have been more appropriate if the gearbox had 6 reverse gears and one forward.....
dandarez said:
Twoshoe said:
Snoggledog said:
Isn't the copy ever read before being published?
Why, what's wrong with it?article said:
Given the cars the 3.5 V6 is used in by Toyota....
In fact, look at the whole sentence - it's totally devoid of punctuation (take a deep breath):
Given the cars the 3.5 V6 is used in by Toyota it's fortunate the Exige is available with an Aisin six-speed slusher and not the CVT many Japanese brands seem to favour in overseas markets.
Gassing Station | General Gassing | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff