Lotus Evora GT410 Sport & Honda e

Lotus Evora GT410 Sport & Honda e

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Discussion

Mannginger

9,065 posts

257 months

Thursday 4th February 2021
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Lovely car, fantastic pics. Sorry to hear about the difficulties otherwise. Stay strong smile

RevsPerMinute

1,876 posts

221 months

Thursday 4th February 2021
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Great thread, making me want to just take my Exige out for a good blast, but not much fun with cup 2's.
Did you ever bite the bullet and put some PS4's on?

leglessAlex

Original Poster:

5,470 posts

141 months

Thursday 4th February 2021
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Thanks for the kind words everyone smile

RevsPerMinute said:
Did you ever bite the bullet and put some PS4's on?
Not yet, I was always at the wrong stage where it would have meant getting rid of a pair of the Cups that still had a lot of life left!

However, I did eventually change them for some winters, and then in Spring (maybe mid-March) I’ll change these for a set of PS4S I think.

leglessAlex

Original Poster:

5,470 posts

141 months

Thursday 25th March 2021
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Right! A sort of big update to talk about now, and then a big update to half talk about that'll be in a few weeks.

I'll cover the one that's happeneing in a few weeks first, as it concerns the Evora (rather than the other big update, that doesn't). Here's how it sits right now:

Evora @ Epsom by Alex D, on Flickr

Yeah, I know. It really, actually needs a clean now. That's going to be covered below...

The keen eyed will notice a few things that have happened recently. Firstly, the car is off winter tyres and onto a set of Pilot Sport 4S. First indications are that they're as amazing as everyone says, the cars feels so direct, responsive and grippy compared to the small, wobbly treadblocks of the winter tyres. I'm really really looking forward to making the most of the warmer, drier weather. If anyone wants a set of lightly worn winter tyres, please PM me!

Secondly, the wing mirrors and front hatch have been painted body colour. This is where the issues have arisen. Firstly, the body shop that I trusted to do the work and has been reliable for me in the past screwed up, and the front hatch is just plainly a different shade of green with far too much flake in it than the rest of the front clam. I'm not happy, but I'll be bringing it back to them later after other things have been done. The wing mirrors seem about right, and there's no direct panel to compare them to anyway. In addition to this, I realised I massively messed up again, I shouldn't have painted over the carbon. Not that I don't like it, I should have just bought a GRP part off ebay, or even one new and unpainted, and then painted that. The carbon part is £1,300!! I'm a completel fool and I'm really upset with myself for rushing into it without proper thought.

After picking up the car from the body shop, the handbrake/brake fluid alert light came on and stayed on, despite there being no issues with either the handbrake release or the fluid level. The fine fine people at Bell & Colvill sorted it out for me, it turns out a resistor in the loom 150mm back from the brake fluid level sensor is kaput, so they'll be replacing that for me. They really are exceptional people, maybe some people out there have had bad experiences with them but certainly no one I've ever heard of. I could never recommend them enough. The body shop, who I'm pretty sure were at fault for this, won't be named. They've been reliable for me in the past, and I want to give them at least the opportunity to fix the colour match.

In more positive news, the car is getting a spring clean! When it goes to B&C to get the resistor replaced, I'll be asking them to do a full assessment of the car and correct absolutely anything that's wrong. The wheels are going to The Wheel Specialist in Kingston/Chessington for a full refurb, and on the 29th of this month it's going to be at my detailers for a few days getting a full polish, to get out all the small scratches I've put in it. Whoops. It should look a million dollars when it's all done.

Lastly, I have a replacement windscreen washer nozzle that's a mist type instead of two individual jets, which always get on my nerves, they're crap. I've taken the chance on a Ford part that looks right and is heated like the part that's on it, I'll say if it has worked or not after I've fitted it.

And that's all! Well, for now. When it gets polished I'll get some nice photos taken, and go over my more long term future plans.

So, what other big news is there? Well, I got a new car!

So, I've always had a three year lease car provided by Motability (because man has no legs, innit), and for the past six years I've been in a Ford Fiesta. They're okay things, they did their job. This time, however, I've gone for something a little different, in some ways...

Honda e by Alex D, on Flickr

Honda e and cherry blossom by Alex D, on Flickr

Yep, I've gone electric! And I've bought what is, in my eyes, the objectively worst yet actually the best electric car on sale.

I'm sure everyone knows, but lets go over it. It's a Honda e (yes, lowercase e) Advance. It has a tiny 35.5kWh battery, a frankly pathetic 100 mile range (at best), a uselessly small boot and pointless rear seats. Objectively, as I said, it's a bit rubbish.

But look at it. Just. Look. At. It.

It's freaking adorable, retro and modern all at the same time. I know, I've got no photos of the interior which is basically the best part, I'll get on that. Sorry. Anyway, I've had it three days, I have nowhere to charge it at my flat and I utterly love it. I turned out the car park at Chiswick Honda when I picked it up, floored it, and brust out laughing. In fact, I laughed like a maniac the whole way home, causing many cyclists and pedestrians to look at me as if I should be put in an asylum.

Okay, so lets calm down for a second and go through it. As I mentioned, I have nowhere to charge it, so why did I get the electric car with the worst range? Well, I'm in the fortunate position where I have the freedom to buy with my heart, not my head. The Leaf and Zoe might well be good cars, and they're objectively loads better, but they stir the same emotions in me as a bog standard Golf or Focus. I just couldn't care less about them. The Honda on the other hand, is cool, in my eyes at least. So, so cool. The retro exterior, the interior screens, the camera wing mirrors, the ridiculously tight turning circle. Honda have done that Honda thing, they've made a truly brilliant car for completely the wrong audience. Just like the Mk1 Insight, the original and current NSX, and you could even argue cars like the S2000 almost come into that bracket too. Really good cars that have been undone by compeition that just appeals to more people.

It's my first experience of electric, and I'm left wondering why anyone chooses anything else for a city car, provided their situation allows for one (and I'm very aware many situations don't allow for one). The instant torque is fun and addictive, and the quietness when just cruising along a silent early morning street is really calming, I think.

The wing mirror cameras are one of the more intertesting parts on the car, and I think they deserve a seperate paragraph. Firstly, I think they're quite intuitive in positioning, I found myself automatically looking towards them very quickly. Secondly, the dynamic range is... okay. It's impressive for a camera, but a good demonstration that mass produced sensors for applications such as this still aren't as good as the human eye. They're getting there I guess, but for night time driving, especially in the wet, the traditional rear view mirror does give a better view. Still, none of those things were the real surprise. The real surprise is the perspective! Objects in the mirror are actually as close as they appear, and I'm not used to that at all. For traditional mirrors, your brain automatically calculates how close the object ACTUALLY is, for cameras they don't need to, so for the first while everything just looks very very close indeed. It's not bad, but it is weird.

The driving experience is just plain fun, it feels like a big tonka toy. It's surprisingly quick up to about 45mph, and the turning circle is about the same as a black cab, so U-turns are an option almost anywhere. The handling isn't bad, but it rolls a lot, as you'd expect. at 1,500kg+, it's in excess of a fat bloke more than the Evora. I'm very very temped by some Watanabes and lowering springs for it, but I'm trying to remind myself how I ruined the Fiesta by doing that, and it's not strictly allowed by Motability anyway. It's on Pilot Sport 4's though, which is interesting.

The range... okay, I guess we have to talk about it. In short, yes, it is that bad. 110 miles or so with no climate contol on, an indicated 75-80 miles with it on, i.e. in winter. But you know what? I don't care. I have the Lotus for longer trips, and living in London there are charge points everywhere. I'll have to spend half an hour scrolling through my phone or having a coffee once every few days while it does a 20-80% rapid charge, so what? Not a big deal for me. The price is steep too, but it's a motability car, so it doesn't really apply to me. Honestly, I don't really care about range or charging, so I can't be bothered to talk about it much or drtail my daily usage. I'll charge it when it needs it.

That's my update! I'll ask a mod to change the title I think, because I'll be talking about both cars here in this thread. Oh, and for anyone that's disappointed in the tree-hugging electric car, don't worry, an AMG estate is on the horizon I think biggrin

Apologies for the rubbish spelling and grammar, I'm not used to typing a lot anymore and my brain has completely turned to mush this winter. I think I need a job for mental stimulation.

AyBee

10,535 posts

202 months

Monday 18th October 2021
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Ok, so I'm not usually one for a bump, but I can't believe nobody has replied to this. Love the new addition (and the Evora, obviously) and completely agree with your summary of the e. If I had enough space and enough justification for 3 cars, I think I'd have our family estate (Superb 280) for the long journeys with loads of kit, an Evora 410 2+2 for fun and a Honda e for the short about town stuff - can't really think of a better 3-car garage for not a huge amount of money!

leglessAlex

Original Poster:

5,470 posts

141 months

Tuesday 19th October 2021
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Thanks for the bump AyBee! A lot has happened since, and you know, it's funny you mention the Superb 280...

In short, the Lotus has gone, I bought and sold an E63 AMG, I bought an Alpine A110 and a Skoda Superb 280 4x4 L&K.

So, the Lotus. Why did it go, and what are my thoughts on it? If anyone wants to know those things with a buttload of added typos (probably) then read on. Here's a pic of me on Skye on the 21st of June, ready to 'race' the sun across Scotland on the shortest night of the year. It was ace.

Skye, a final run out by Alex D, on Flickr

Well, probably the most relevant point is that the £42k finance payment was due after two years, and I didn't really have that in cash to pay it off. And, to be honest, I didn't really want to. That sound harsh, the Evora was a wonderful car, but there were a couple of minor things that made me want to move on. I have to say I don't miss it, certainly not in the way I miss my 6.2l C63 AMG Estate, which was unquestionably a special car. I think the Evora was 'just' a very, very good car.

The good bits: The chassis, the engine, the chassis, the brand, the chassis and oh yeah, the chassis. Seriously, it rode and handled that well, it was utterly exceptional. I have an A110 now, a car that's been rightly lauded, but the Evora was better, in my view anyway. It was comforable and yet controlled no matter what, it smoothed the edge off potholes as well as superbly dealt with compressions and humps int he road. Lotus really did an utterly brilliant job here, and I was so happy to have specced the touring suspension, not the sport. The engine was great too, reliable, linear and powerful, although we'll talk about that more later. The real highlight was that it made a really damn great noise. The brand might be a weird one to inclue, but I really enjoy being part of a community, and there are some really good people in the Lotus community. I like tha small brand feel, I've met some really great people that work there, and even the MD Matt Windle, the little I've spoken to him seems like a great guy.

The okay bits: The gearbox and the looks. These are both kinda self explanatory I think, the gearbox is, in the end, a torque converter and while Lotus have done a great job, it's not as good as a decent dual clutch, let alone something like a PDK in a Porsche. As for the looks, I mean I liked it enough to buy it, but it's always been a bit awkward from many angles I think.

The bad bits: Seating positon, the lack of power, the armrest (or lack of). First and foremost, the seating position. I didn't really realise until I got the Alpine how big a difference it makes when you get into a car and you're instantly in the right positon, something that never happened in the Evora. You're always too high, and this is coming from someone that actually normally likes a slightly higher seat. You get used to it, and it didn't stop me having some great times in the car, but it's something that is hard to ever get completely used to. The lack of power... Well, sort of. The problem, if you can call it that, is that the chassis setup is so good that really it feels like it could handle so much more than 400bhp. In second gear corners it was immense, but it tailed off pretty quickly after that. It wasn't a point that I focused on all the time, but when it bothered me, it bothered me. The armrest... wasn't there. Enough said. In a 1,408kg GT biased car, that was a serious point of irritation all the time.

That's a lot of text. Well done to anyone who got through it!

At the end of the day, I liked the car but didnt love it. I haven't missed it since I sold it, which I think says it all. Gave the car back to Jamie at B&C and I believe he'll sell it on when he gets five minutes to think, he's been so busy with the Emira launch!

On the subject of the Emira, I'll probably get one... but not the first one. I'll try and get a Cup or an R, and hope that they don't go with the AMG engine for it. The release editions are too slow and too heavy for what I'm looking for I think.

So, the E63! I won't go into it too much, as it was only with me for six months, but I bought it privately, didn't check thoroughly enough and it bit me. It happens. I utterly despise that some people are dishonest when selling a car, but at the end of the day, it happens and I've just got to deal with it.

It was a really nice car when it worked, but my hand controls I got fitted didn't allow for full throttle (I only found this out a couple of hours before getting rid) and so it never really felt all that fast, all things considered. It felt faster than my previous C63, but not by much. And it didn't sound as good, I am convinced that even thought they're more powerful and better on fuel, neither the 5.5 in my car or the later 4.0 are a patch on the old 6.2, which was a truly glorious engine. I wish I'd never sold my white PP estate, ugh. Anyway, have some photos:

Untitled by Alex D, on Flickr

Untitled by Alex D, on Flickr

Sitting pretty at C&M by Alex D, on Flickr

So! The Merc left last week, and it's replacment arrives at the house today! It's a Skoda Superb 280 4x4 in L&K spec, but weirdly I think has very little added to standard, no sunroof for example. That would normally be a deal breaker for me, but everything else about it was good and I was really stumped (ahem) at what other estate of a similar age, size and price I might like. Anyway, I have a warranty with this one so hopefully all good, even if if/when it does break, it'll be cheaper to fix than the Mercedes.

Have a pic I snapped at the dealership:

Untitled by Alex D, on Flickr

So, I still have the Honda e, I have a Superb estate, time for the last car, the A110... but I'm going to put that in another post later today. Have a teaser pic while I'm typing that up:

Alpine A110 by Alex D, on Flickr

Northbrook

1,434 posts

63 months

Tuesday 19th October 2021
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Nice fleet!

AyBee

10,535 posts

202 months

Tuesday 19th October 2021
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Lovely looking L&K. Mine's business grey with cream leather. They're so well optioned as standard that you don't really need anything else, I ended up with a pano roof but mainly because that's all that was available when I was looking. Debating an Evora 400/410 or a 997 as the weekend car but money tied up elsewhere for now so will be a little while.

Edited by AyBee on Wednesday 20th October 10:22

Not Ideal

2,899 posts

188 months

Wednesday 20th October 2021
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Thanks for the updates and sorry to hear about the E63 - that sounds a real shame.

That Alpine though.....

Mezzanine

9,218 posts

219 months

Wednesday 20th October 2021
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I’d say this is a really compelling three car combination.

All bases covered by great cars. Love the Alpine spec, the Honda blue is lovely and I would really love that Superb for daily use - subtle but effective.

Alonso92

245 posts

158 months

Wednesday 20th October 2021
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Nice write up! What were the problems with the e63 in the end?

CABC

5,584 posts

101 months

Wednesday 20th October 2021
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enjoyed the details. always good to hear the opinion of someone actually driving a variety of cars.

B'stard Child

28,419 posts

246 months

Wednesday 20th October 2021
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leglessAlex said:
In short, the Lotus has gone, I bought and sold an E63 AMG, I bought an Alpine A110 and a Skoda Superb 280 4x4 L&K.

Have a teaser pic while I'm typing that up:

Alpine A110 by Alex D, on Flickr
Bloody hell I thought they only made them in Blue!!!!! wink

leglessAlex

Original Poster:

5,470 posts

141 months

Thursday 21st October 2021
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Northbrook - Thank you! I appreciate that.

AyBee - They seem lovely, the hand controls get fitted today and I'm looking forward to taking it for a spin. I think it will be exactly what I want, a big, comforable spacious barge. I'm finding the rear legroom hilarious, it's massive!

Not Ideal - you're not wrong. It was, in fact, not ideal biggrin

Mezzanine - Thank you! It's the most reasonable and most attainable garage I've had in ages, and I'm actually really enjoying it. The Honda is just so much fun, it's so good at what it does. It has some really well engineered touches, and it results in a car that I actually want to drive, even with the Alpine and Skoda there. My previous small car, a Fiesta, wasn't like that. It wasn't horrible to drive, but if I could take the Evora or C63 over it I always would. The Alpine is just exceptional, and as I keep claiming, I'll definitely put a post up about it soon.

Alonso - In short, I don't know. The last misfire before getting rid of it didn't even trigger a warning light, even though it was so lumpy the whole car was moving. I don't even know if the fault was electrical or mechanical, although the lack of warning light was scaring me that it was mechanical and that a lunched engine was incoming.

CABC - Thank you! My posts are very, er, opinionated layman, I think. I'm definitely a long way from a driving god, and I know I'm often in the minority (and at times a bit of a PH parody) in what I like and dislike, and it's often very different to the majority.

B'stard - You'd think so, wouldn't you biggrin. It's one of two (so far) Emerald Green ones in the UK, and I love it so much. It's brilliant.


I promise a post on the Alpine is coming, I've just been surprisingly busy for a man with no job. Still, have a pic of the car up on the North York Moors, at Clay Bank car park. Was the only time I stopped really, did about 450-500 miles yesterday from home in Whitchurch, to York, to Whitby across the Moors, back to York, back to home.

A110 on The Moors by Alex D, on Flickr

lockhart flawse

2,041 posts

235 months

Thursday 21st October 2021
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FAB cars. Love the green Alpine - when you go onto the configurator you find a range of really great colours. Used values are really strong which is keeping me out of one for now.The Superb cant be beaten as an appliance - we are on our third.

Mannginger

9,065 posts

257 months

Thursday 21st October 2021
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It's interesting how much the wheels change colour in the different light conditions (even recognizing some road grime on the moors)

leglessAlex

Original Poster:

5,470 posts

141 months

Thursday 21st October 2021
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Mannginger said:
It's interesting how much the wheels change colour in the different light conditions (even recognizing some road grime on the moors)
Oh, I assure you, it's ALL grime hehe

Not washed in 2,000 miles and the pads are very dusty anyway it seems.

scottos

1,146 posts

124 months

Monday 25th October 2021
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Love the A110, what a great choice and what a stand out colour for one!

Before i read your previous post and saw the picture at Clay Bank, i was sure thats where it was but remember you are nowhere near, thats an epic day out! Did you get the blakey ridge road in when you were doing Whitby to York, or vice versa? Its probably my favourite over that way! Theres also a new cafe opened near Pickering, called NY500, its like a Yorkshire version of Caffeine and Machine, worth a pop in for a brew if you're up again!

I used to be closer over that way but have moved more west now, so tend to stick to the North Pennines with the odd dip into the Dales!

leglessAlex

Original Poster:

5,470 posts

141 months

Thursday 6th January 2022
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leglessAlex said:
I promise a post on the Alpine is coming
Lol. Well, it happened eventually, I started a new thread for all three cars which you can find by clicking here