Drove the Lotus Evora Today
12-02-2009, 08:13 AM
#12
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Sorry guys, no pictures. I figured we had all seen them before. The car I drove was the electric blue color.
No glue smell. It was mostly leather smell. It was also missing the creaks and moans that the Elise is born with. One noise I did notice were pebbles and road gravel pinging off the underside and wheel wells. Nothing anywhere near the Elise, but still there. It was mostly noticeable when rolling through residential neighborhoods at slow speeds.
The steering feel was excellent. It was a little heavier and slightly duller than the Elise, but still light years beyond most all other cars. The shifter was smoother and less clunky than that in the Elise. I would say it 75% as good as the shifter in the S2K and 50% better than the Elise.
No glue smell. It was mostly leather smell. It was also missing the creaks and moans that the Elise is born with. One noise I did notice were pebbles and road gravel pinging off the underside and wheel wells. Nothing anywhere near the Elise, but still there. It was mostly noticeable when rolling through residential neighborhoods at slow speeds.
The steering feel was excellent. It was a little heavier and slightly duller than the Elise, but still light years beyond most all other cars. The shifter was smoother and less clunky than that in the Elise. I would say it 75% as good as the shifter in the S2K and 50% better than the Elise.
12-02-2009, 08:23 AM
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So would you all pay the $80k if it came with a proper British engine, like the buzzy, underpowered, unreliable, dirty Lotus and Rover engines used in the past?
12-02-2009, 09:28 AM
#14
Originally Posted by Nin009,Dec 2 2009, 11:13 AM
Sorry guys, no pictures. I figured we had all seen them before. The car I drove was the electric blue color.
No glue smell. It was mostly leather smell. It was also missing the creaks and moans that the Elise is born with. One noise I did notice were pebbles and road gravel pinging off the underside and wheel wells. Nothing anywhere near the Elise, but still there. It was mostly noticeable when rolling through residential neighborhoods at slow speeds.
The steering feel was excellent. It was a little heavier and slightly duller than the Elise, but still light years beyond most all other cars. The shifter was smoother and less clunky than that in the Elise. I would say it 75% as good as the shifter in the S2K and 50% better than the Elise.
No glue smell. It was mostly leather smell. It was also missing the creaks and moans that the Elise is born with. One noise I did notice were pebbles and road gravel pinging off the underside and wheel wells. Nothing anywhere near the Elise, but still there. It was mostly noticeable when rolling through residential neighborhoods at slow speeds.
The steering feel was excellent. It was a little heavier and slightly duller than the Elise, but still light years beyond most all other cars. The shifter was smoother and less clunky than that in the Elise. I would say it 75% as good as the shifter in the S2K and 50% better than the Elise.
12-02-2009, 03:19 PM
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I would have seriously considered the Evora in place of the CS I have on order except that I don't have the confidence that Lotus knows how to build a car with the quality and reliability that Porsche does. The Evora is very similar to CS performance, arguably looks better, but I doubt it will be as trouble-free and it's about $20k more. If I were living in the UK where I'm sure it's a lot cheaper (compared to Porsches), I'd have to think seriously about it though.
12-02-2009, 04:01 PM
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haha, type "Lucas Electrics" into google images, and this is one of the first results:
I agree- it may be "just" a camry engine, but I'd take a proven, reliable toyota unit over a rover K series and lucas electrics any day!
I agree- it may be "just" a camry engine, but I'd take a proven, reliable toyota unit over a rover K series and lucas electrics any day!
12-02-2009, 04:54 PM
#19
Mid Engine, 276hp V6, 3,000lb Aluminum Sports car, at $80,000 sounds like something Honda made almost 20 years ago.
I think it looks good though and it does have back seats for display/insurance purposes. Not sure I'd trust Lotus build quality though. The Camry motor may sound lame, but at least you know its pretty reliable and affordable to replace if there's a freak aftermarket twin turbo accident.
I think it looks good though and it does have back seats for display/insurance purposes. Not sure I'd trust Lotus build quality though. The Camry motor may sound lame, but at least you know its pretty reliable and affordable to replace if there's a freak aftermarket twin turbo accident.
12-02-2009, 07:18 PM
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Fantastic idea by Lotus but the problem is the existence of a 320 Cayman S that weighs the same if not less and is cheaper.
In 1991 there was no real competition for the NSX. Today Lotus has to deal with the Boxster S and Cayman S.
Hell my 2006 Boxster S has 280HP and weighs 2900 pounds.
I still want to test drive the Evora to see if its steering is better than the Cayman-Boxster. Apparently it is.
In 1991 there was no real competition for the NSX. Today Lotus has to deal with the Boxster S and Cayman S.
Hell my 2006 Boxster S has 280HP and weighs 2900 pounds.
I still want to test drive the Evora to see if its steering is better than the Cayman-Boxster. Apparently it is.