Transcript from the show
Transcript from Auto Motor und Sport Exige Review
(Guns and Roses playing in the background, superceded by full throttle romps on the Exige and screaming Toyota powerplant) 5 minutes total air time.
A race car for the road. That’s what many cars aspire to be… only few ever make it. The Lotus Exige is one of those. Light. Hard. And brutal. It weighs 916 kilograms and symbolizes a pure and genuine sports car.
Adequate power plus low weight… that’s the formula Lotus has been using for a long time to construct its cars. One of the most uncompromising ways Lotus has applied this to a street legal car is in the case of the Exige.
The engine is situated between the two axles, directly behind the driver for optimum weight distribution. The four cylinder unit borrowed from the Toyota Celica produces 192 horsepower and really gets revved-up high. A real delight compared with the feeble engine in the former Exige model.
Its chassis and aerodynamic construction were also improved. And yes, the Exige now has ABS. Purists might have their doubts, but whoever gets into a wet and slippery situation will really appreciate this electronic helper.
Comfort almost likely will be a topic of discussion at Lotus. Comfort… that awful word. Artificial leather, a radio or even air conditioning. “For heaven’s sake, NO!” the purists might shout. But still, they’ll order it. According to Lotus, almost all cars are delivered loaded with all these extras. And by the way, at Lotus, they toyed-around with power window controls until they were slightly heavier than ordinary crank handles. So comfort really doesn’t have to hurt after all.
The taut suspension hardly cushions the bumps at all… but that’s alright. You quickly get the feel of being in a go-kart. The thrill of driving… pure and genuine.
Just for the record, here’s the rest of the car’s specs: A 0 – 100 (km/h) time of 5.8 seconds. Top speed: 237… which, of course, is not as important as the car’s great cornering speed. This is a car that feels like it’s glued to the road. Hardly responsible for that sensation are the tires. The Exige is normally fitted with street legal racing tires. The rear wing provides the necessary downforce. Also the front spoilers gives us a hint of this car’s use in competition. The most likely place Lotus envisions this 45,000 Euro car is at the race track.
Still, since the Exige is a street legal car, the ride to the track should be an extraordinary one. A racecar for the road… that certainly defines the Lotus Exige.
