2011 Lotus California... Err Elise

[McLaren]

I know, but the Elise has been the same for over how many years?! Eight. What did you get on this Elise? An overdue facelift. At least the E85 Z4 lasted six years and the E86 Z4 lasted two years, but that's not the point.

Works for Porsche evidently.

My point is that they should have done the facelift before planning the Evora and made it into production. Then again, if the Elise had a facelift in 2006 and the Evora is produced in 2012, the most recent facelift will not exist this time. Even with this time, the Evora will not make it to Gran Turismo 5 as well.

Lol wut?

 

[homeforsummer]

Yes, I am a car design freak

I'd personally call a car design freak someone who can provide constructive comment on a design. Call me a language freak, but I'm not sure saying that you'd laugh at it in the street particularly constructive...

 

[harrytuttle]

Somewhere I read the front is actually wider than the previous Elise that's why I said the front likely has more drag. If you assume the front has the same surface area/similar shape then yes the car should have a reduced Cda given the Cd is lower. I'm assuming that isn't the case.

You can assume, but that doesn't mean you're right. Throwing keywords and variables around is no substitute for critical thinking. A car can most definitely be more efficient if it's been made wider. What's important to overall drag is not one dimension or another, but the entire shape. A wider front end may be responsible for reducing high pressure in front of the side scoops. This means that while the front end is technically a little less efficient, the car as a whole can be noticeably more efficient.

Besides, haven't you ever heard of a Gurney flap?

 

[JB-BMW1989]

I'd personally call a car design freak someone who can provide constructive comment on a design. Call me a language freak, but I'm not sure saying that you'd laugh at it in the street particularly constructive...

No, it isn't. I was being rude at the time, so it's not that important. As for Evora for not making to Gran Turismo 5, that goes for Gran Turismo 5 Prologue too. I was making a theory on what would happen if the Elise facelift was done in 2006 and Lotus planned the Evora in 2008. Of course, it wasn't true. I had to make a theory because the Series 2 of the Elise has been into production for eight years. That leaves me with one question,

Is the 2011 model a Series 2 or Series 3? It's because I don't even know if it's a new series or just the same series with a facelift.

 

[homeforsummer]

Well you could argue that the Series 2 was mostly a facelift too, given that the chassis hasn't changed since the S1. They gave it wider wheels and changed the suspension settings a little for the S2 but otherwise it was very similar to the S1. Even the engines were until they decided to crack America and needed to ditch the K-Series for Toyota units.

 

[Eric.]

Wait, so we never got the S1 Elise over here? I wouldn't know, I've only saw exactly one Lotus in my lifetime, a white Exige.

 

[ExigeEvan]

No, it isn't. I was being rude at the time, so it's not that important. As for Evora for not making to Gran Turismo 5, that goes for Gran Turismo 5 Prologue too. I was making a theory on what would happen if the Elise facelift was done in 2006 and Lotus planned the Evora in 2008. Of course, it wasn't true. I had to make a theory because the Series 2 of the Elise has been into production for eight years. That leaves me with one question,

Is the 2011 model a Series 2 or Series 3? It's because I don't even know if it's a new series or just the same series with a facelift.

Please, please read the first post.

Read the article.

Then, post in the thread. You're either ignoring these important steps or your comprehension is failing you.

These are the official Lotus pictures of the Elise S3 face lift car, maybe Elise S2.5 to be launched at the Geneva motorshow on 2nd March as we announced last week - Cometh the Hour.

*snip*

We understand that the all new car, some are calling the S4 and others the S3 is due in 2014.

 

[JB-BMW1989]

I read the first post, the article and posted here. Now I get the whole thing. I bet for few 2002-2010 Elise owners, they will be getting conversions. I'm just saying, you know?

 

[homeforsummer]

Wait, so we never got the S1 Elise over here? I wouldn't know, I've only saw exactly one Lotus in my lifetime, a white Exige.

Nope. You didn't even get the S2 brand new, it only came to the States two or three years into it's lifespan when Lotus fitted Toyota engines and made other necessary changes to enable them to sell it over there.

 

[YSSMAN]

I thought Lotus sold a few of the S1s here as "racing-only" models? Seems like they had splitters, spoilers and a roll-cage. I could very well be (and probably am) wrong.

 

[exigeracer]

I thought Lotus sold a few of the S1s here as "racing-only" models? Seems like they had splitters, spoilers and a roll-cage. I could very well be (and probably am) wrong.

Lotus brought very few Sport 190 S1 Elises over. I think it may have been in the single-digits. A dodgy company out of Cali also "imported" several and "converted" them for "street use" however they got shut down by the government and those cars get picked off the market and destroyed. One pops up every now and then for sale, but stay away.

I think that Lotus has imported pretty much every Elise variant to the States for track use, maybe barring the S1 Exige (however there are quite a few Motorsport Elises around).

The very first year of S1 Elises are also now legal to be imported and street registered in Canada under its 15 year policy. Still haven't heard of any, but it is doable.

 

[AOS-]

not liking they got rid of the extra 2 obsolete lamps. I actually dug the 4-eyed look.