Lotus Exige to get V6

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Development car been spotted testing, wider and longer wheelbase to fit in the 3.5 V6 from the Evora.
So the Exige should get around 276bhp now. 3.5 NA engine provides better mpg than the 1.8 SC (upto 257bhp) it replaces and better emissions.

(Autocar)
 
I wonder who they're sourcing the motor from. Sounds like the modding abilities will be a little larger as well.

Edit* Read on another site will be the Evora's. Forgot about that car. :ouch:
 
Where did you find this info and I wonder what pushed Lotus to change from a L4 to a V6? Well the only thing we need now is a V8 Exige. MUAHAHAHA!
 
Development car been spotted testing, wider and longer wheelbase to fit in the 3.5 V6 from the Evora.
So the Exige should get around 276bhp now. 3.5 NA engine provides better mpg than the 1.8 SC (upto 257bhp) it replaces and better emissions.

(Autocar)

Won't it mess up the weight?
 
At least post the pictures up:

000spyshotslotuige13124.jpg


002spyshotslotuige13124.jpg


Based on the extended wheelbase and 5 stud wheels there is reason to believe the chassis is actually the Evora with an exige body fitted to it. It clearly has a lot of elise/exige to the look of it but there are way too many changes for it to still use the existing exige chassis. Another one noticed is the door line is clearly lower than on the current model.

Looks interesting but instead of wasting their time on further rehashes of existing cars they should be focusing on getting these new models out sooner rather than later.
 
So Lotus starts by introducing a new line of incredibly generic looking supercars, then follows up by making the super-light Exige bigger and heavier? Oh dear...
 
Could this not just be a test-mule for something else? - Don't see any reason why Lotus would build a new Exige on the Evora platform, especially not with the old style body. Perhaps it's just an Esprit mule?
 
TheCracker
Could this not just be a test-mule for something else? - Don't see any reason why Lotus would build a new Exige on the Evora platform, especially not with the old style body. Perhaps it's just an Esprit mule?

I sure hope so. A 'big' Exige, let alone overweight, is no Exige.
 
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There isn't anything wrong with the evora platform itself. It is actually very good. This would most likely be a lighter weight performance focused car as opposed to the evora being closer to the GT side.

I doubt it is just a "test body" as it is way too much work to have made that body fit on to an evora just to test with. All the panels while looking similar to the existing Elise/exige are definitely different.

I think the problem is that Lotus is out of 2zz engines now and their next car isn't due till 2013. They wont survive if they try to last till then with just the evora and the 1.6 litre elise.

If they can shave 100-200kg off the evora and package it with the evora s engine the car will be a rocket.
 
There isn't anything wrong with the evora platform itself. It is actually very good. This would most likely be a lighter weight performance focused car as opposed to the evora being closer to the GT side.

I doubt it is just a "test body" as it is way too much work to have made that body fit on to an evora just to test with. All the panels while looking similar to the existing Elise/exige are definitely different.

I think the problem is that Lotus is out of 2zz engines now and their next car isn't due till 2013. They wont survive if they try to last till then with just the evora and the 1.6 litre elise.

If they can shave 100-200kg off the evora and package it with the evora s engine the car will be a rocket.

A 100-200kgs reduction in weight would make it a 1240-1340kgs car, which is still over a qtr ton more than the current Exige. I can't see how or where they'd cut that weight from either.
 
Sub one tonne sports cars are a thing of the past. Given safety regulations and what people in general expect feature wise in their car it is all but impossible to keep the weight as it were.

The evora weighs 1350kg as it is. So shaving off 100-200kg off that isn't all that bad of a weight increase over the previous model.

In reality it doesn't need that much weight shaved off anyway. Not sure on the evora s but the normal evora is on par in performance to the exige. So some suspension improvements and weight reduction will make it a fair bit quicker.

Shaving weight on the evora wouldn't be too hard. Some fixed bucket seats like the existing elise, scrap the trimming behind the seats, get rid of some sound deadening. I'm sure there is heaps that can be done. I've managed to scrap a good 20kg off my elise so far and have still kept the carpets and plastics in the interior.

End of the day, the gtr and the 370z have shown that you don't necessarily need light weight to have amazing performance. Sure it is against what Lotus stands for but they do what they need to do.
 
Sub one tonne sports cars are a thing of the past.

I would dispute that, they exist now, the market will if anything increase, and they are plenty of signs in the future there will be more choice.
Mazda are making one, and other makes starting to use mass produced carbon fibre bodies will allow for small sports cars with small engines under 1000kgs.
Cars like 370Z and GTR will become extinct, or at least their drive-trains will. Their engines will get smaller, perhaps boosted by hybrid systems.
 
I'm not talking about niche low volume cars. Yeah they still sell caterhams and a few other obscure brands but those are dwindling as they slowly are no longer legal for road use and are too impractical anyway since most of them can't be used in the rain.

Show me some mass market performance car that is less than 1 tonne. You will need to link me on whatever Mazda is making as I haven't heard of it.

Carbon fiber is getting cheaper but It is still not anywhere near cheap enough and the cars that do use it still are over a tonne in most cases.

Hybrid drive trains may become more popular but they will make cars even heavier. A standard engine+gearbox is always going to be lighter than one which starts adding electric motors and batteries, etc.

Either way Nissan proved that weight isn't everything when it comes to performance.

There is one car I know of that should be coming out though that should in final trim still be under 1 tonne. The Alfa romeo 4c. We'll see what happens though in terms of price and if they can stick to the 850kg by the time production comes.
 
The next MX-5 will be under 1000kgs.
That's mass market.
I would expect one of the German makes to use their carbon tech to make a large volume small coupe or roadster too. Within 5 years.
 
Sub one tonne sports cars are a thing of the past. Given safety regulations and what people in general expect feature wise in their car it is all but impossible to keep the weight as it were.

The evora weighs 1350kg as it is. So shaving off 100-200kg off that isn't all that bad of a weight increase over the previous model.

In reality it doesn't need that much weight shaved off anyway. Not sure on the evora s but the normal evora is on par in performance to the exige. So some suspension improvements and weight reduction will make it a fair bit quicker.

Shaving weight on the evora wouldn't be too hard. Some fixed bucket seats like the existing elise, scrap the trimming behind the seats, get rid of some sound deadening. I'm sure there is heaps that can be done. I've managed to scrap a good 20kg off my elise so far and have still kept the carpets and plastics in the interior.

End of the day, the gtr and the 370z have shown that you don't necessarily need light weight to have amazing performance. Sure it is against what Lotus stands for but they do what they need to do.

Lotus's own website has the Evora and Evora S at 1385 and 1440kgs. 100-200kgs is a lot to take from a car like this. Those weights are for the 2-seat version, so you aren't loosing much there. Fixed race seats might loose you 20kgs, a bit less trim maybe 10kgs more, 15kgs for the carpets maybe - but then what else goes?

Lotus enthusiasts won't stand for a heavy Exige/Elise, not when other manufacturers can still produce 1 tonne sports cars.
 
The next MX-5 will be under 1000kgs.
No. Mazda said that the target for the next Miata was under 1000kgs, and if you'll recall quite a lot of people thought that was a pie in the sky idea when Mazda said it too.
 
Lotus's own website has the Evora and Evora S at 1385 and 1440kgs. 100-200kgs is a lot to take from a car like this. Those weights are for the 2-seat version, so you aren't loosing much there. Fixed race seats might loose you 20kgs, a bit less trim maybe 10kgs more, 15kgs for the carpets maybe - but then what else goes?

Lotus enthusiasts won't stand for a heavy Exige/Elise, not when other manufacturers can still produce 1 tonne sports cars.

Fair enough on the weight. I checked 3-4 different reviews and all stated 1350kg. Either way 1382kg then you still can take some weight off that anyway. You took 45kg there quite easily. Stereo, deadening, seats, carpet, thinner plastic trimmings, more exotic materials, etc. The bodywork itself being a different design could be lighter. I saved at least 10kg on the muffler alone on my Elise. Around another 10kg swapping my wheels over to some forged pieces. So if a car as bare bones as an Elise has stuff you could easily do to make it lighter I'm sure Lotus can manage something with a car much better equipped.

Think it was the nissan gtr 1-2 years back shed 100kg from memory. Was either for the next years model or for the spec v.

I am a Lotus Enthusiast. I can understand though that it is unrealistic to still make a sub 1 tonne car these days at a reasonable price. Maybe other enthusiasts aren't as rational. In an ideal world the Elise should still weigh 650kg like the original did. Anyway the main point of a Lotus is it is relatively light weight (compared to everything else out there) though most of all delivers a pure driving experience. If Lotus can maintain the driving experience their cars are known for the car can be whatever weight.

So what other new cars are there that are sub 1 tonne as has been mentioned twice now. I mentioned the Alfa romeo 4c. The miata is what Mazda hopes to achieve (they haven't achieved it yet). Anything else?
 
The original Elise had aluminium brake discs. They replaced them with steel as they couldn't make them reliable enough. It was a very brief period Lotus had that ultra light car.
I suppose an Elise should have carbon brakes, but I don't think it's even an option is it?
 
The original Elise had aluminium brake discs. They replaced them with steel as they couldn't make them reliable enough. It was a very brief period Lotus had that ultra light car.
I suppose an Elise should have carbon brakes, but I don't think it's even an option is it?

Prohibitively expensive for a car in that price segment i'd say. Also in a car where the driving experience is everything, having brakes that traditionally have a poor pedal feel would take away from that experience. It shouldn't need the kind of stopping power that carbon disks provide, not even at this, relatively, bloated weight. You can quite easily over brake a light car.
 
The McLaren F1 GTR was under 1000kg (~940kg IIRC) so it stands to reason that now in an age of mass produced carbon fiber that there should be more affordable ~1000kg sportscars available. If the F1 GTR can weigh that much with a big V12 engine then surely the weight saved from swapping that mill for a turbo I4 mill should allow for the necessary luxuries to be included in a similar car.
 
Prohibitively expensive for a car in that price segment i'd say. Also in a car where the driving experience is everything, having brakes that traditionally have a poor pedal feel would take away from that experience. It shouldn't need the kind of stopping power that carbon disks provide, not even at this, relatively, bloated weight. You can quite easily over brake a light car.
Carbon braking would not be over-braking as the discs would be tiny. But I have heard the feel is not as good. Could be an option though, especially for track cars.
 
Carbon braking would not be over-braking as the discs would be tiny. But I have heard the feel is not as good. Could be an option though, especially for track cars.

For a race car maybe, but it would be over-kill for an occasional trackday car.
 
Carbon brakes overkill for a track/road car? You've never driven a very new car equipped with carbon brakes on the street before...
 
Carbon brakes overkill for a track/road car? You've never driven a very new car equipped with carbon brakes on the street before...

No i haven't. Mostly because very few road cars are equipped with carbon brakes, generally because they don't require them. Heavy but powerful cars and cars that require constant heavy braking (top-flight racing cars) are the only vehicles in which carbon brakes are really necessary.
 
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