RE: Lotus Exige S3 | PH Used Buying Guide
Discussion
custardkid said:
Interesting to see how rare Exige3s are and Evoras are vs GT3 GT4s and Mclarens .. Especially as i assume production will be haulted in the next year or two with the arrival of the new models
ONS/dft open source first registration data cumulative since 2014
Only 30 RHD 430 CUPs....!!! That won't go up much either I suspect. Makes it more than twice as rare as a McLaren Senna at 77 UK cars but not quite as rare as an Allegro Vanden Plas.....ONS/dft open source first registration data cumulative since 2014
Excuse to post mine up.
Great, car, its a 2018 Exige 350 Sport.
It's had the roof, front access panel, and rear louvres colour coded.
Forged wheel option.
Crap headlights, crap stereo, pain to get in and out of, mists up easy in the winter, etc (mine is a 'fair weather' car).
However, it's intoxicating and generally received positively out there.
I fitted a 2Bular exhaust which makes it too naughty for most trackdays, but it sounds like a banshee now.
Great, car, its a 2018 Exige 350 Sport.
It's had the roof, front access panel, and rear louvres colour coded.
Forged wheel option.
Crap headlights, crap stereo, pain to get in and out of, mists up easy in the winter, etc (mine is a 'fair weather' car).
However, it's intoxicating and generally received positively out there.
I fitted a 2Bular exhaust which makes it too naughty for most trackdays, but it sounds like a banshee now.
Venisonpie said:
kambites said:
I guess the Roadster version is moderately subtle as these things go.
To my eye it's probably the best looking of the Elise variants.
Stunning.To my eye it's probably the best looking of the Elise variants.
Shatteringly quick - and it's always good to get the roof off!
The S1 could have gone in this direction 
https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/yaNaJADwbMrP00BM...
https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/yaNaJADwbMrP00BM...
Edited by rob999 on Wednesday 28th October 14:51
carspath said:
Bispal - Who does your servicing please?
£250 sounds more than reasonable .
Can someone please detail just how much more expensive it is to run an S3 Exige than an S3 Elise --- a breakdown of the costs would be great
Day to day bills like servicing/repairs you're adding ~33% to the cost of everything for an S3 Exige versus an S2 Exige/Elise.£250 sounds more than reasonable .
Can someone please detail just how much more expensive it is to run an S3 Exige than an S3 Elise --- a breakdown of the costs would be great
However, where it grates is if you drive the car aggressively/track it. With bigger wheels, brakes and more weight, for an S3 Exige these wear and tear bits are a c50% more expensive and last ~50% of the time they would in a S2/Elise. On top of fuel consumption c30% lower it all adds up incrementally.
kiethton said:
Day to day bills like servicing/repairs you're adding ~33% to the cost of everything for an S3 Exige versus an S2 Exige/Elise.
However, where it grates is if you drive the car aggressively/track it. With bigger wheels, brakes and more weight, for an S3 Exige these wear and tear bits are a c50% more expensive and last ~50% of the time they would in a S2/Elise. On top of fuel consumption c30% lower it all adds up incrementally.
have you owned both?However, where it grates is if you drive the car aggressively/track it. With bigger wheels, brakes and more weight, for an S3 Exige these wear and tear bits are a c50% more expensive and last ~50% of the time they would in a S2/Elise. On top of fuel consumption c30% lower it all adds up incrementally.
kiethton said:
carspath said:
Bispal - Who does your servicing please?
£250 sounds more than reasonable .
Can someone please detail just how much more expensive it is to run an S3 Exige than an S3 Elise --- a breakdown of the costs would be great
Day to day bills like servicing/repairs you're adding ~33% to the cost of everything for an S3 Exige versus an S2 Exige/Elise.£250 sounds more than reasonable .
Can someone please detail just how much more expensive it is to run an S3 Exige than an S3 Elise --- a breakdown of the costs would be great
However, where it grates is if you drive the car aggressively/track it. With bigger wheels, brakes and more weight, for an S3 Exige these wear and tear bits are a c50% more expensive and last ~50% of the time they would in a S2/Elise. On top of fuel consumption c30% lower it all adds up incrementally.
fastraxx said:
kiethton said:
Day to day bills like servicing/repairs you're adding ~33% to the cost of everything for an S3 Exige versus an S2 Exige/Elise.
However, where it grates is if you drive the car aggressively/track it. With bigger wheels, brakes and more weight, for an S3 Exige these wear and tear bits are a c50% more expensive and last ~50% of the time they would in a S2/Elise. On top of fuel consumption c30% lower it all adds up incrementally.
have you owned both?However, where it grates is if you drive the car aggressively/track it. With bigger wheels, brakes and more weight, for an S3 Exige these wear and tear bits are a c50% more expensive and last ~50% of the time they would in a S2/Elise. On top of fuel consumption c30% lower it all adds up incrementally.
Depends on the driving and use you want from your car. I have driven lots of Loti but for me a tweaked old Elise with a LSD works.
The great thing is there is a Lotus for everyone. You just need to try a few and work out what you want.
None are better than the others and more expensive doesn't always mean it is a greater car.
The great thing is there is a Lotus for everyone. You just need to try a few and work out what you want.
None are better than the others and more expensive doesn't always mean it is a greater car.
carspath said:
Bispal - Who does your servicing please?
£250 sounds more than reasonable .
Can someone please detail just how much more expensive it is to run an S3 Exige than an S3 Elise --- a breakdown of the costs would be great
Bell & Covill service my 430CUP & my McLaren 675LT. My 430CUP has cost me zero in additional expense in 2 years. Only 2 services, big one was £500+vat and the small one (just completed) was £250+vat. The 675LT was under £800 with VAT and an MOT too and nothing has gone wrong with that either, in 10 months & 5k miles (so there YouTube)£250 sounds more than reasonable .
Can someone please detail just how much more expensive it is to run an S3 Exige than an S3 Elise --- a breakdown of the costs would be great
I Don't see why an Exige would cost anymore than an Elise (other than it has 2 extra cylinders but I am guessing never owned a new Elise only S1's which cost me a small fortune but they are over 20 years old now), labour costs are the same and parts are all Toyota and they are all very reliable. You can buy comprehensive warranties in the high hundreds of pounds with options to even include wear & tear items (yes really I saw the B&C price list yesterday).
I would say a new Lotus is very reliable and economical to run, certainly a lot cheaper to tax, insure & service than my S5 Audi by a LONG way......Oh and its 1,000,000,000 times more exciting and enjoyable which is why the Audi had to go. I thoroughly recommend B&C too, excellent service and great bunch of chaps.
kiethton said:
fastraxx said:
kiethton said:
Day to day bills like servicing/repairs you're adding ~33% to the cost of everything for an S3 Exige versus an S2 Exige/Elise.
However, where it grates is if you drive the car aggressively/track it. With bigger wheels, brakes and more weight, for an S3 Exige these wear and tear bits are a c50% more expensive and last ~50% of the time they would in a S2/Elise. On top of fuel consumption c30% lower it all adds up incrementally.
have you owned both?However, where it grates is if you drive the car aggressively/track it. With bigger wheels, brakes and more weight, for an S3 Exige these wear and tear bits are a c50% more expensive and last ~50% of the time they would in a S2/Elise. On top of fuel consumption c30% lower it all adds up incrementally.
My Elise S1s (I had two at different times) were pretty expensive to run, there was something that needed to be fixed at every service, ranging from headers corroded, through the clutch hoses stretching to the boot release falling off. They also needed the geometry adjusting quite often.
It never once let me down, but it also never came back from a service with only the scheduled work needed.
I didn’t mind, I thought (and still do) that they were for me pretty much the finest handling cars available.
It never once let me down, but it also never came back from a service with only the scheduled work needed.
I didn’t mind, I thought (and still do) that they were for me pretty much the finest handling cars available.
Bispal said:
Not sure about all that BUT even if true an Exige is probably one of the cheapest new track cars after A Caterham and Elise to run on track. BUT with the CUP cars you forget you are not comparing like with like as it will stay with GT3/4's and M3/4's and other exotics that cost mega bucks to run on track. In comparison with these it is very, very cheap to track. I have many friends who have stopped tracking their McLarens and bought Exiges to reduce their bills, for them an Elise would not have the power on track, you need to compare apples with apples.
This. The exige is a massive leap forward for not much cost (used vs used).Frankstar123 said:
Apologies if this has been mentioned already. I'm 6 foot 2 15 1/2 stone. Would I fit in one. ? :|
Depends on your proportions. If you're particularly long in the torso you might struggle for headroom and even if you're not, you probably wont have space to wear a helmet for track days. Obviously the taller you are, the more flexible you need to be to get in and out, too. Frankstar123 said:
Apologies if this has been mentioned already. I'm 6 foot 2 15 1/2 stone. Would I fit in one. ? :|
I'm 6ft 4 and 12.5 stone and had no problem fitting in the V6S I test drove a few years ago. Don't remember how much headroom there was, but certainly enough that I could see everything well enough and not worry about touching the ceiling. My mate who's 6ft 3 and a stone or two heavier has a Sport 350 so must be manageable for us taller folk.Had my eye on one of these for a couple of years now (hence the test drive before boring house stuff got in the way), and the main question I have is whether the different gear change is worth the premium between a V6S or the Sport 350. I've only owned 2 very much non-sporty cars in my life so it'll be a massive jump up that I won't be able to exploit fully, so debating going cheaper V6S and spending the difference on driver training. But if the gear change is night and day better, I'd rather the better car...
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