CONFLICT!! WHAT TO DO: 370z or Lotus Exige S
 

You read it.. I am very confused now and do not know what I should get!!! I went for a ride in an Exige S and was VERY impressed!!

I am now not sure what I want to do!?!? The Exige is a pure track monster and would be a rough DD, but since I do not drive that much, it would not be too much of a hardship.....

Can anyone offer any points of consideration for me?!?!

Exige S, people not in the know (most people) will think you dropped serious money on it (not that it's not serious money, but you know what I mean.)
Rarity alone would be enough for me to buy.

Lotus ain't a good DD imo... But amazing track car.
370z is probably a better dd and will save you a ton.
Good luck mate.

are you going to track it a lot? IF so, go for the lotus, otherwise the Z.

Do you have any back problems already? If not, I'd go for the Lotus in a heartbeat. It's so sexy. If you really do NEED the better quality ride though, I'd go 370.

I've heard of some quality issues with the Lotus and saw one's transmission crap out my last track day. That being said, it's a sweet looking, sounding, and driving car. I'd love to have one, but it looks more like a toy than a primary vehicle.

If I got the Lotus, I would make it a point to be at the track more. No back problems and I do not NEED a smooth driving car...

I am not too concerned about quality as it has the Toyota engine and tranny. Hmmmm.. I will keep reading the responses as they come in and keep thinking on this one.... I am very confused at this point...

The Exige is a beautiful ride, So is the Elise. Unfortunately the Exige is just not feasible for a DD.

Enjoy your Z! :tup:

I'm in love with the Z bruh... n I will tell u. Go with the LOTUS. Lol there's just no comparison imo.
Its as pure sports as u can get for that money. If I were to choose between porsche cayman or lotus?
Id probably still go lotus.

I would love to have a Lotus also. But the replacement parts cost scared the crap out of me. If you visit the track you will need new parts...

I'm in love with the Z bruh... n I will tell u. Go with the LOTUS. Lol there's just no comparison imo.
Its as pure sports as u can get for that money. If I were to choose between porsche cayman or lotus?
Id probably still go lotus.

I wouldn't go lotus if its your only car. If its not then hell's yeah, go lotus.

pass on it. the way i look at it when you are driving around town, you're probably not gonna be taking turns and exit ramps at 120, so the lightweight cornering abilities of the lotus would never be used, making the power of the Z from stop lights, and acceleration would be utilized more, therefore making it more fun of a DD

If it's your only car, I'd choose the Z. If it's a fun, weekend car you're looking for, I'd choose the Lotus.

Go with the Evora. Good for track and as DD? So sexy looking.

Dude... the Exige will blow the Z's doors off! 0-60 in 4 seconds....

I didnt know the price was so close.. man this makes me think twice... not a big fan of the roots style SC. rather have a turbo.. HP is a little weak.. nothing some aftermarket cant fix.. 400whp and 2000lb would be perfect

did they even build the bottem end of the 1.8L or did they just throw a SC on the N/A engine?

You can't just compare the HP numbers. A lotus is like a 1000 pounds less then 370z--its 0-60 in 4 seconds car.


Back to the OP: Not sure what your budget is like but I have heard that insurance on the Lotus is incredibly high due to the cost to get the body repaired. You may want to call your insurance company and ask, they may make the decision for you!

not necessarily... go check out my "track videos" through sig... at Miller Motorsports video you'll find one where I kept an exige behind me for a 15 minute session... he was on slicks, mine was on street tires... experienced and aggressive driver in the exige... if it is a better track car as you suggest, not a big margin

both are great cars... I understand why you're torn

overall, i have to agree with the earlier comment that the lotus seems like a toy... Z is a man's car ! :tiphat:

Right.. the Exige is about 2000 pounds, thus the power to weight ratio is similar to a Viper.

GOOD point about insurance, I will check into that....

Now this is Z firepower that I was looking for..... Keep in mind the Exige is about the cost of a Cayman S.... But, a few questions:

Was the Exige you kept at bay a Exige S? 240 or 260 HP?? It looks like an Elise and not an Exige.... I doubt you would be able to keep up with an Exige like that. Although your driving was pretty good.

Also, your Z is MUCH lighter than a standard Z... How much weight did you drop again??

at the time, i had the following mods:

"Mods: Stillen (G3 Intake/Headers/HFCs/Cat-back/UD Pulley/Sway Bars), BC Racing ER Series Coilovers, JWT Flywheel and Clutch... dual core Redline oil cooler... AP Racing Big Brake kit... Wheels & Tires: Stock/Street"

I was probably about 150-200 lbs lighter than stock, including no spare/jack, and some plastic and stuff removed.

here's the vid

[YOUTUBEHQ]THz-0saJiv0[/YOUTUBEHQ]

It's the track where ALMS ran this last weekend. Lotus gets by me at the end due to fuel starvation on my Z. can see that ~4:58. Lotus passing at 5:15. If you run it at HQ you might be able to tell the exact model. Otherwise, I'm not sure.

I updated my post JUST after you responded. Yeah.. that is an Elise not an Exige S.

yeah, whatev ! :)

how much different can they be ?

what program is that with the overlay from the track, speed, etc? pretty neat

traqmate with chasecam

LOL!! Only 50 more HP and more torque!! Going from.. what a 5.5 second 0-60 time to a 4 second 0-60 time and better suspension.. Other than that, not too much!!

Unless... Does that guy have a supercharged Elise?? That would be key...

alrighty then !

no idea if it is supercharged... guessing not... he said it was stock except for the stickies and I don't remember hearing a supercharger

I know its light but it still lacks even with its lightness it still only turns the 1/4 mile at 12.8 at 107.. theres already a 370 doing that at 110!! with boltons. the problem i think is the roots S/C ya it gets the car to 60 in 4 secs then starts crapen out.. it really needs at least 300whp to compete with the z06

YouTube - Chevy Corvette Z06 vs. Lotus Exige S vs. Porsche 911 GT3 - Car and Driver

go with what you want, either one it's you driving it as a dd.

good dialog guys.... good point on the quarter mile. i think it is funny that some of the reviews i read stated the car was too loud and the engine note was not pleasing. sound like the z!!!!! LOL!!!

and, to answer one of the previous posters; lotus just slapped the s/c on and retuned the car for the most part; they did not strengthen the bottom end of the engine..

the vids were great also...

If i was looking at the price range...id be on a Corvette Z06. :stirthepot: LOL...but thats just me...

To me the Z doesn't feel too sporty when your obeying all traffic laws...so i drive my S2k most of the time around town..and track Z..or go breaking laws in the Z...or useing it to take my tahoe/truck luvin friends places because they can't ride around in my S2000 cuz it makes them sick. (S2K has a more communicative suspension, and the Z is comfy when your settled down)

The Z and the Exige are different flavors.

The exige is more pure, and has lots of compromises for some. To me i could live with them, and would choose the exige over the Z.

The Z has the handling, but not the purity, and with a bit of mods, net you the simular performance, but with a total different feel. But it will still be a blast and save you money to track more events and such...

I hate that I cant find a good track tire for the 19" Z wheels yet. If someone reads this and knows of one...please PM me.

hey by the way, looks like you can pick this one up for prob about $35k

2006 Lotus Exige SC Spec Sheet

http://www.race-cars.com/carsales/lo...50120794pa.jpg

wow thats sad they dont upgrade the bottem end :mad:
I think i would get the non-S/C version build it and turbo it.
I found a few sites that turbo them putting out 400whp. but its exspensive.
I found one video with a guy that swaped the toyota for a S2000 motor and then turboed it.. thats the way i would goo it i had one..
YouTube - Lotus Honda Turbo 500PS from Warsaw!!!!!! FOR SALE !!!

The Elise/Exige has never impressed me on the track. Regardless of how much fun they are, they are highly overrated and not as fast as everyone thinks.

It will be fun after about the first week. Then you realize you're driving a tin can. Get the Z.

Power/weight ratios tell you absolutely nothing about how fast a car is...actuall acceleration numbers do. There is no Elise or Exige which has come from the factory anywhere near as fast as a Viper.

The early Elise models were very slow. They fell flat on their face after about 80 MPH. The flagship supercharged versions are quick, but by no means "fast" in any stretch of the imagination in terms of acceleration.

Brazilbro - I also saw that Exige with the S2k motor. That was interesting!!

JoeyD - I hear ya on the power to weight not being a true indication of how fast a car is.... However, what are you comparing it to fast wise? I compare the Exige to a Cayman S in which case it is much faster even with the PDK and much better looking to boot.

Trav - How did you find that one?!?!?

I am in a similar situation. I have bought Z hoping to drive it daily but that didn't work out well, so I had to end up buying a second car to be my daily driver. If I knew up front that I was going to have to do that, I would have a different car, Exige or maybe even something more ridiculous. You already drove the cars so you already know how they behave. You should know one thing though. Lotus elise and exige are extremely unreliable cars. They are not even good weekend drivers. Everything has to be perfect for me to actually want to drive one after the novelty factor. That being said, there's nothing out there that can quite compare to a lotus on a track. It really is amazing. But don't forget that you can get a low milage Maserati for 35k if you desire to have an unreliable fun car. Not a track car though.

What??!?! So many of the Lotus guys I talk to have not had ANY problems with their cars. Of course, they will defend their cars, but I would not think they would have many issues as they are Toyota engines and trannies.

Help me out here Awesomz, what type of problems have you heard of them having??

I would go with the Lotus, if you don't drive very often and you are going to track it. If you are looking for a DD go with the Z.