RE: Lotus launches 'ulimate' roadgoing Exige

RE: Lotus launches 'ulimate' roadgoing Exige

Friday 4th May 2018

Lotus launches 'ultimate' roadgoing Exige

First there was the Cup 430, now there is the Sport 410. Less track focused, apparently - and cheaper too



Apparently no-one has time to draw a breath at Lotus. With the dust barely having been left to settle on the Exige Cup 430, the road-biased Exige Sport 410 has been announced. Naturally it takes its cue from the track-focused car, but is retuned to befit a slightly different market position. Musical chairs, I hear you mutter - well, yes, but Porsche has been engineering into the same margins for decades, and done rather well out of it. So let's swerve around the business plan for a moment and delve into the details.

What does the Sport 410 buy you? Well, as you might expect, you get 416hp (410 referring to the imperial) - delivered by a recalibrated 3.5-litre supercharged V6 engine; the same one which produces 436hp in the Cup. Lotus doesn't explain the thinking behind the lower output - there's marginally less torque, too, at 310lb ft - but obviously it preserves the range-topping status of its more expensive sibling (although, interestingly, the same 3.3-second to 60mph time and 180mph top speed are claimed for the Sport). 


The new variant is fractionally heavier than the Cup car, and courtesy of an overhauled aero pack, offers slightly less in the way of downforce, too (150kg at max speed compared to 220kg for the Cup). While minimal, the alterations do serve up a slightly softer profile for the Sport - which makes sense in a model meant for driving up the high street. Also - and this is the real kicker - you can have the car in Roadster configuration, which you can't with the Cup. 

The other welcome carryover is the very trick chassis. The three-way Nitron dampers which made their debut on the track car are present and correct on the Sport, as are the Eibach adjustable anti-roll bars and the AP Racing brakes. Given the clickable flexibility already built-in to the set-up, you wouldn't think the Hethel's 'retuning' efforts have taken an inordinate amount of time - but expect the Sport to deliver a fair bit more compliance right out of the box than was evident in a car used to set Lotus's lap record. 


Inside it seems the Sport has been treated to fairly comprehensive covering of Alcantara, and you get Lotus's own carbon fibre sports seats too, plus the spectacle of the open-gate manual gearshift (like the Cup, there's no auto option for the 410). Of course, you'll be expected to go above and beyond with the option ticks: air conditioning, cruise control and a Bluetooth-enabled infotainment system are both on the 'available' list, as is a range of carbon fibre components and the titanium exhaust system that would shave another 10kg from the kerbweight. 

Expect practically any flutter on the spec sheet to send the Sport's asking price toward £100k - but the car starts at £85,600, which is a handy saving over the £99,800 Cup. If the car drives half as well as that model, it may well prove to be the pick of Hethel's ever-expanding lineup. 

 

 

 

Author
Discussion

suffolk009

Original Poster:

5,344 posts

164 months

Thursday 3rd May 2018
quotequote all
Well, of course you can have the 430 with a Roadster roof if you want. It's a dealer fit item.

Love Cackett's description of the CD/radio as "infotainment system".

And how is the range expanding when they've just deleted the 380?

Looks a nice spec car.

Thorburn

2,398 posts

192 months

Thursday 3rd May 2018
quotequote all
suffolk009 said:
Well, of course you can have the 430 with a Roadster roof if you want. It's a dealer fit item.
If its the same as the Sport 350 Roadster then presumably the Roadster deletes the rear wing and front splitter?

Tickle

4,881 posts

203 months

Thursday 3rd May 2018
quotequote all
Thorburn said:
suffolk009 said:
Well, of course you can have the 430 with a Roadster roof if you want. It's a dealer fit item.
If its the same as the Sport 350 Roadster then presumably the Roadster deletes the rear wing and front splitter?
I think the 350 sport roadster has/had the rear wing.

suffolk009

Original Poster:

5,344 posts

164 months

Thursday 3rd May 2018
quotequote all
Tickle said:
I think the 350 sport roadster has/had the rear wing.
Sadly the 350 gets a weird looking wing rather than the nice curved carbon item. AFAIK the roadster has no front splitter (that might change now it gets the new front clam), and has a lower top speed.

Scoobysaurus

172 posts

96 months

Thursday 3rd May 2018
quotequote all
If it starts at £85k I think the Sport 350 must still be the "pick" of the range

Thorburn

2,398 posts

192 months

Thursday 3rd May 2018
quotequote all
Tickle said:
I think the 350 sport roadster has/had the rear wing.
Ah, I think there was the option to have it with or without.

PerfectDark

47 posts

106 months

Thursday 3rd May 2018
quotequote all
Has the PH proofreader been given the day off? (Ulimate) rolleyes

That aside, I love the sound of this. Mind you I can’t help but feel even a standard Elise would give you 90% of the experience, but also helping you keep your licence! I wouldn’t say no to one if the numbers came up on Friday though - a Lotus has always been part of the dream garage for me.

Edited by PerfectDark on Thursday 3rd May 19:09

HeMightBeBanned

617 posts

177 months

Thursday 3rd May 2018
quotequote all
Bonkers money for something built on the M111-derived platform.

Jasandjules

69,825 posts

228 months

Thursday 3rd May 2018
quotequote all
HeMightBeBanned said:
Bonkers money for something built on the M111-derived platform.
But a sub 3.5 secs 0-60...........

suffolk009

Original Poster:

5,344 posts

164 months

Thursday 3rd May 2018
quotequote all
Jasandjules said:
HeMightBeBanned said:
Bonkers money for something built on the M111-derived platform.
But a sub 3.5 secs 0-60...........
180mph.

98elise

26,381 posts

160 months

Thursday 3rd May 2018
quotequote all
HeMightBeBanned said:
Bonkers money for something built on the M111-derived platform.
What's wrong with the platform?

Plug Life

978 posts

90 months

Thursday 3rd May 2018
quotequote all
They are doing it wrong. They should stick some crazy aero on it, call it the Lotus Clark or Lotus Andretti and sell it for £600k!

Tickle

4,881 posts

203 months

Thursday 3rd May 2018
quotequote all
98elise said:
HeMightBeBanned said:
Bonkers money for something built on the M111-derived platform.
What's wrong with the platform?
It's a great platform. Light, strong and rigid. They are good chassis traits for a performance car IMHO.

PerfectDark

47 posts

106 months

Thursday 3rd May 2018
quotequote all
Tickle said:
98elise said:
HeMightBeBanned said:
Bonkers money for something built on the M111-derived platform.
What's wrong with the platform?
It's a great platform. Light, strong and rigid. They are good chassis traits for a performance car IMHO.
Agree with you there Tickle, and it shows what a fantastic job Lotus did (thanks to Richard Rackham and the team). It fits the Lotus core philosophy of “simplify and add lightness” and it’s been a highly versatile platform. If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it!

MDL111

6,895 posts

176 months

Thursday 3rd May 2018
quotequote all
Plug Life said:
They are doing it wrong. They should stick some crazy aero on it, call it the Lotus Clark or Lotus Andretti and sell it for £600k!
Made me smile - and might well be true

anonymous-user

53 months

Thursday 3rd May 2018
quotequote all
HeMightBeBanned said:
Bonkers money for something built on the M111-derived platform.
For that sort of money you can nearly be off up the road in a 530 bhp British twin-turbo V8 with a carbon tub (McLaren 540) that's 20 years newer, just as quick and a whole lot less cramped.

DamnKraut

456 posts

98 months

Thursday 3rd May 2018
quotequote all
Will only be 'ulimate' for another four weeks or so until Lotus' next monthly special edition. wink

Congrats to the author for managing to write a piece without using his regular 7-liner sentences that cause nausea with the average reader.


HeMightBeBanned

617 posts

177 months

Thursday 3rd May 2018
quotequote all
98elise said:
HeMightBeBanned said:
Bonkers money for something built on the M111-derived platform.
What's wrong with the platform?
It’s too cramped, ingress and egress is a pain in the arse and the interior architecture is sub-par. It’s basically not befitting of a car costing so much money.

I own two M111-based cars and love them dearly, but I’m not so blinkered that I can’t see the limitations and the lunacy of Lotus pricing.

GranCab

2,902 posts

145 months

Thursday 3rd May 2018
quotequote all
Who needs a calendar to tell you when a new month has arrived when we can rely on PH announcing a "new" Lotus ????

PhillipM

6,515 posts

188 months

Thursday 3rd May 2018
quotequote all
I'm waiting for the 'Ultimate June Edition'
Or possibly the 'July 475 Extreme'