ClintonM3

Pretty. Porsche added a little spice with the Spyder and Cayman R. Now Lotus is dressing up. Is probably as direct of a competitor than before. Opinions?



http://www.autoblog.com/2012/03/06/l...ge-s-roadster/

orthojoe

Looks great! I thought the Elise was topless version of the Exige? Are they just dropping the Elise name and giving you Exige vs Exige roadster?

Dino944

I'd be interested to see it and drive it. I test drove an Elise and its quite different from any Boxster/Cayman. Its substantially lighter and more nimble than any Porsche ...I believe the base Elise weighs around 2,000 lbs. Its tremendously fun to drive, and maybe if you just going to use it for Sunday drives or the track its a good choice. Porsches feel like GT cars compared to a Lotus Elise just because of the massive weight difference. Interestingly, I knew 2 people that owned Elises and who used them as daily drivers...one guy traded his for a Cayman S, the other traded his for a Cayman R. They both thought Elises were better cars for the track than for use as daily drivers, and the Boxster/Cayman has them beat in terms of ride quality and storage space.

The down side to their cars is that build quality is pretty rough, some may find the ride quality punishing on all but the best roads, dealers are few and far between (and many seem to drop the franchise in less than 5 years), and there are very few creature comforts (even more so than Cayman Rs/Boxster Spyders). You also have to keep it in the upper rev range because there is no low end torque (at least on base models). To be honest, I had some trouble with the idea that its powered by something found in run of the mill Toyotas. My wife really liked the Lotus and she thought it might be a fun car to get someday in addition to what we already have.

Best regards,
Dino

Dr.Bill

Not interested.

They are hard to climb into and out of. Also, the foot box is so narrow I can't drive one in regular shoes - my foot can't hit the throttle without hitting the brake as well. Plus, if you are carrying anything more than a pack of gum, there is no storage space.

Take a test drive in a Lotus - it's a Porsche appreciation event!

Now, as a dedicated track car never to be driven on the street, a Lotus is hard to beat.

cvazquez

+1 Not practical for my requirements, however, looks great at any angle!

Jon70

Nice car, but irrelevant here as it won't be sold in the US.

cvazquez

The 2013 Boxster is stunning plus practical, so will have my eyes on one around 2016!

66mustang

I test drove an Elise a few months ago. I was really disappointed in it. Yes it was lighter, faster, and more nimble than my Boxster. What is didn't have was the comfort of my car. If I was going for a trackrat, it would be the elise. For a car that I want to drive, there is no way I could do it.

bensf

Looks great but I wish they had put the resources into developing the new Elan so that current Boxster and Cayman owners that prefer the mid engine platform could have an upward path that Porsche is not willing to provide.

skl2

Goregous looking...almost looks like an Evora spyder or something. My dad had an Elise...the Exige was just a more "track ready" Elise...you could still take the top off the Exige, but it had a different rear hatch and intake configuration so it was a bit more difficult. The Exige was much harder to see out of on the street, so he went with the Elise. It made my Cayman feel like a Panamera....the Elise was so small and nimble. But, like others have mentioned, it was strictly a toy! It was built more like a kit car (quality wise) and it had little if any refinement.

renvagn

Looks great, but sometimes just looking at is better than owning. THe Elise I instructed in 4 years ago was spartan inside in the true spirit of a traditional sports car from the UK. It did however go like a go cart on rails.

gomarlins3

Not bad, but wouldn't be my first choice.

mooty

depends on your age
at 38 i had an elise and an exige.
i track the exige with nitron shox (read, stiff) i also DD'd the little car. 38,000 miles in 12 months. no problem. and roads in SF aint that smooth.

Alan Smithee

Looks fantastic inside and out. I'm sure these will sell at a much higher price point than the Spyder/R. Regardless, I could never get over having a supercharged Toyota minivan engine...at least the Toyota 4-cylinder had some character.

I came close to getting an Elise when they came out here in 2004 (got a 997 instead), but the Discovery Channel (I think) documentary on the Evora assembly line did not give me much confidence in how these things are put together. Reminded me of how I built model cars as a kid - a bunch of glue and plastic.

skxf430

+1