Sports Car Blog

32,942 GBP buys you a big boofy V8 petrol guzzling monster, weighing nearly two tonnes with a loud exhaust and get-out-of-my-face looks.

It will also buy you a sleek, light-weight 1.8 litre, Lotus Elise S two seater-with race nred dynamics, a removable soft top and enough poke to see off most of the boofy V8s. Come to a set of curves and it’s definitely all over.

Weighing in at 860kg give the Elise S an impressive power-to-weight ratio while explains why the naturally aspirated 100KW/173Nm, 1.8 litre Toyota engine pushes it from 0-100km/h in 6.1 seconds. It is tiny even compared with most other sports cars and is spartan inside though better than before.

It’s designed to scythe through the air while the flat undertray with rear diffusers helps aerodynamics. Large vents funnel air to the engine’s radiators in the rear quarters, and the entire car stands barely more than a meter high.

The Elise S is more of an everyday car than its hard-top stablemate - the supercharged Exige S. Though still challenging to get into with the roof on, the Eclipse will happily trundle along in city traffic with the air conditioner cooling its occupants and the Alpine audio blazing away.

Interior enhancements include splashes of pukka carbon fiber texture leather and a new instrument pod. It has key remote central locking and dual airbags along with AB. The soft top is easily removed and stowed in the “boot” behind the engine. This is Lotus’s entry-level model but is available with two option packs, not that you’ll need them. There are also some new colours. (more…)