460hp Lotus Exige V6
Discussion
anonymous said:
[redacted]
It's been a bit of a quiet year for me, so I haven't done huge amounts to the car since the last update. Visually, I don't think the car needs much anymore, and I think I could ruin it quite easily if I'm not careful. With that said, I have done some subtle changes.A little project this year that I wanted to do was sort the exhaust. Part of the reason for this was that I was moving house and didn't want to annoy my neighbours with a stupidly loud exhaust. I hadn't had an awful lot of luck with valved exhausts in the past, with the valve failing, so decided it was best to start with an OEM exhaust from the 380 and 410 Exige to give me an ounce of hope for it lasting. With the valve closed, it is quite restrictive, then with the valve open it's a straight through. I wasn't a huge fan of the tip as it was shiny stainless, so got my friend to paint it. It was a gamble and although we used a special ceramic lacquer, it still didn't really last due to the heat. Looked good when it was done though, and now it's effectively just black, so still has the effect I wanted of hiding the exhaust and not making it as shiny.
The next update is more of a garage update, and is still very much ongoing. I bought a garage (it had a house attached for some reason), so wanted to spruce it up a bit. Here's how it started:
Here is how it is now I've painted it and done a self levelling screed:
Next stages are doing a stud wall, ceiling and an epoxy paint and adding a little insulation in the process.
Back to the car, and the next thing I wanted to do to it was to replace some of the plastic with carbon fibre. I'm not normally a huge carbon fibre lover, but the plastic doesn't wear well and looks a bit knackered over time. I looked at the options on the market and didn't really like anything out there due to either the lack of quality or design. This led to discussions with a friend of mine who has a carbon company and soon after, I set up a company which will be selling parts...
The name of the company will be Hell Slow as the car numberplate and my instagram are already that. I made a logo, and wanted it on the car, but preferably in a classy way, not just a sticker, so I got Tillett to custom embroider the headrests of my seats:
Back to carbon, and here you can see some of the progress on making the moulds:
We've had quite a few delays as I'm so specific with with how I want everything, which has led to design changes quite a few times, but we're now getting there and I have the first set of side skirts on my car!
Oh, and one last photo to end, taken on my way to a shoot last month, showing my winter wheels, which I got refurbed in shadow chrome. Look way better than the diamond cut look which I had before (which wasn't in great condition anymore).
Gameface said:
The headrests are the first misstep for me.
Everything else has been spot on.
What's it like getting in and out of it in the garage?
Well they did have a big Tillett Logo on before, plus to be honest, you only see them if you're actually looking for them. The roof is so low that they're not that visible most of the time. Can always change back at any time of course, but I'm happy with them as they're a little nod to the new company.Everything else has been spot on.
What's it like getting in and out of it in the garage?
It's been a while... I decided it was time for some rather dramatic changes to my car. I intend to respray the car in a few months in a new colour and it has become a bit of a case of "while I'm doing it, I might as well also..."
So I've bought front and rear facelift clams, of course most people will think they look pretty much the same, but to me I like that it brings the car a little more up to date.
The next step will be removing the current clams from the car, then making some aero parts...
So I've bought front and rear facelift clams, of course most people will think they look pretty much the same, but to me I like that it brings the car a little more up to date.
The next step will be removing the current clams from the car, then making some aero parts...
AyBee said:
Looking forward to following this! What's the thought process around the colour change given yours is 1 of 2 liquid yellow cars in the UK?
Lotus decided that Liquid Yellow would become an option for anyone, so there are a lot more Liquid Yellow cars out there now. I’ve deliberately waited for Exige production to end, my car will be totally 1 of 1 when it’s done…Am43 said:
Very nice, are we getting a sneak peek of the proposed aero plans ?
I’ve designed a rear wing from scratch which will be made soon. We did a round of CAD, then I made it out of wood to check proportions, then decided to make some changes to aid the design. It’ll then be replicated in CAD, load tested to make sure it can handle the max theoretical downforce, then we’ll CNC it from 8mm thick aluminium.GFWilliams said:
I’ve designed a rear wing from scratch which will be made soon. We did a round of CAD, then I made it out of wood to check proportions, then decided to make some changes to aid the design. It’ll then be replicated in CAD, load tested to make sure it can handle the max theoretical downforce, then we’ll CNC it from 8mm thick aluminium.
wow! do you know what downforce at what speed? what about the front end?
It’s a Cup R wing, but with different uprights, I have the aero data for the wing profile so can get the right idea. I’ll be able to adjust height and angle of attack to hopefully get it balanced close enough. I’m basing the uprights on the Cup R, but adding some design to make it (IMO) look better. I’m not racing my car, so it doesn’t need to be perfect, it just has to feel a nice balance. The car has no downforce at all with the 350 wing, and I was running the Cup R race car splitter before so the balance was very front heavy. I managed okay on trackdays…
The front aero parts I’m adding have had lots of CFD analysis and are designed to work together, and they’re done by a company with a very good reputation.
The front aero parts I’m adding have had lots of CFD analysis and are designed to work together, and they’re done by a company with a very good reputation.
GFWilliams said:
AyBee said:
Looking forward to following this! What's the thought process around the colour change given yours is 1 of 2 liquid yellow cars in the UK?
Lotus decided that Liquid Yellow would become an option for anyone, so there are a lot more Liquid Yellow cars out there now. I’ve deliberately waited for Exige production to end, my car will be totally 1 of 1 when it’s done…Am43 said:
Very nice, are we getting a sneak peek of the proposed aero plans ?
I’ve designed a rear wing from scratch which will be made soon. We did a round of CAD, then I made it out of wood to check proportions, then decided to make some changes to aid the design. It’ll then be replicated in CAD, load tested to make sure it can handle the max theoretical downforce, then we’ll CNC it from 8mm thick aluminium.
Things are going well so far, I made a video of the rear clam removal, which is on YouTube, but I won't link for fear of mods.
To give a few thoughts:
- It came off much easier than I expected, we did both front and rear clam in 6 hours
- Electronics which are in the boot (relays, fuses, ECU and battery) were a pain to disconnect, label, and then feed through two small grommets. Will be 10x worse trying to rewire it after the respray I think.
- Now everything is off, there's a noticeable difference between the front and rear in condition. The front wishbones and upright are steel and quite rusted and need some attention. The rear end (mainly aluminium) was in very good condition.
- While everything is off, it makes me want to do "just one more thing". Budget unfortunately is stopping this, so I have a feeling this might not be the last time the body comes off.
Next stage is to get the new clams in the right place to check fitment, then I'll be testing wing uprights.
To give a few thoughts:
- It came off much easier than I expected, we did both front and rear clam in 6 hours
- Electronics which are in the boot (relays, fuses, ECU and battery) were a pain to disconnect, label, and then feed through two small grommets. Will be 10x worse trying to rewire it after the respray I think.
- Now everything is off, there's a noticeable difference between the front and rear in condition. The front wishbones and upright are steel and quite rusted and need some attention. The rear end (mainly aluminium) was in very good condition.
- While everything is off, it makes me want to do "just one more thing". Budget unfortunately is stopping this, so I have a feeling this might not be the last time the body comes off.
Next stage is to get the new clams in the right place to check fitment, then I'll be testing wing uprights.
k it" credit card? 
I'm curious to see the Exige in the new colour, I do really like the yellow on this and I always thought that the paint condition looked very good in the photography. I've really liked the modifications to the car thus far, well judged I would say, so interested to see the planned aero changes.
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