Discussion
After selling my beastly 147GTA I decided to tick one of my "Must own before I die" cars off the list after I failed financially trying to buy one about 7-8 years ago (but still ended up in a lovely Sport160)
I really really wanted one in Black, but I've not seen one for sale for years, so last November I picked up my Lotus Exige, in Quartz, with useless Aircon:
(The filthy sunstrip is now gone, I should point out). Its pretty standard, running the 190 kit and braided hoses, and the previous owner had the wheels resprayed in Silver from the usual black. I've not decided whether to go back-to-black yet, in someways I like them, but I'm trying to keep it as standard as possible...we'll see.
Compared to the Elise, its pretty extreme. Louder, hotter, grippier...not sure its any quicker though. Looks absolutely stunning in the plastic however, the pictures don't really do the curves and proportions any justice. Needless to say, visits to the petrol station result in a pantomime of stares, pointing and strange questiosn.
Plans are to fit Motorsport seats (has 111S seats at the moment), Dave Andrews/Emerald set up, and Nitrons in the future, sprinked with plenty of trackdays and B-road jaunts. And seeing as prices are starting to sky-rocket, I'm glad I bought when I did!
(Not many good pictures a the moment...)
I really really wanted one in Black, but I've not seen one for sale for years, so last November I picked up my Lotus Exige, in Quartz, with useless Aircon:
(The filthy sunstrip is now gone, I should point out). Its pretty standard, running the 190 kit and braided hoses, and the previous owner had the wheels resprayed in Silver from the usual black. I've not decided whether to go back-to-black yet, in someways I like them, but I'm trying to keep it as standard as possible...we'll see.
Compared to the Elise, its pretty extreme. Louder, hotter, grippier...not sure its any quicker though. Looks absolutely stunning in the plastic however, the pictures don't really do the curves and proportions any justice. Needless to say, visits to the petrol station result in a pantomime of stares, pointing and strange questiosn.
Plans are to fit Motorsport seats (has 111S seats at the moment), Dave Andrews/Emerald set up, and Nitrons in the future, sprinked with plenty of trackdays and B-road jaunts. And seeing as prices are starting to sky-rocket, I'm glad I bought when I did!
(Not many good pictures a the moment...)
Edited by MattyB_ on Saturday 22 January 19:37
Cheers all.
In all honesty, I do prefer the Elise as a road car, the Exige takes it step too far in terms of usability (or lack of) and needs to be pushed hard to really enjoy its talents - too hard for public roads. Its a grumpy bas***d around town! So its a good job I've got some trackdays lined up this year
They're hotter and noiser in the cabin, plus the boot isn't compartmented but the space is still there.
In terms of driving, the road-legal slicks make them twitchy when its anything other than dry. It also 'feels' a little less nimble than the Elise, and all the power and benefits are right at the top end of the scale, so they need to be pushed very hard to really appreciate their talents.
I'd say that, unless your planning on priorotising trackdays, the Elise is much the better choice.
In terms of driving, the road-legal slicks make them twitchy when its anything other than dry. It also 'feels' a little less nimble than the Elise, and all the power and benefits are right at the top end of the scale, so they need to be pushed very hard to really appreciate their talents.
I'd say that, unless your planning on priorotising trackdays, the Elise is much the better choice.
Its on Yoko A048's at the moment. Absolutely *insane* grip levels in the dry once they're warm, but on greasy roads they can catch you out - as it did to me at the weekend when I got on the power a bit too early when the roads were greasy :O
EVO did a S1 vs S2 Exige mini article when they first reviewed the S2 Exige many years back. The basic conclusion was that, bar the looks, the S2 Exige was better in every respect, and if your considering a change from the 111R, might be worth thinking about just how you're going to to use it? If its fair weather, weekends only with plenty of trackdays, the Exige makes a compelling arguement.
The other side of the coin is the cost - seems that very soon you'll struggle to find a reasonable S1 for less than £25k...although I know of a 100k miler going for £17k if you're not bothered about the mileage!
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