La Dolce Veloce

Lotus has announced a successor to the radical 340R. Currently known as the ‘Circuit Car’, this open top racer will be based on the Elise chassis and feature an optional supercharger to go with its Toyota engine. It will weigh about 33% less than the Elise (600kg), and you can bet on it costing probably that much more than the Elise (though pricing will not be announced until later this year).
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California car tuner Forced Fed is nearly complete with development of their turbocharger system for the Toyota-powered Lotus Elise. The test mule has undergoing hardcore testing by a number of magazines, with the first article appearing in the recent edition of AutoWeek. Unlike many turbo kit companies, Forced Fed is taking a system-wide approach to their kit – intake, exhaust, everything. Also, you can’t install it yourself, it can only be purchased and installed by an authorized dealer (they’re signing up Lotus dealers across the country and shops in foreign countries as well). I’ve seen their test car and talked to Brett Payne about the car, and was really impressed. The quality of the work is top notch, it really looks like a factory turbo installation. They’re not stopping with the engine though, but are working on suspension and brake upgrades as well. The only downside is that they’re not currently planning on seeking CARB approval, meaning the kit is not legal for us in California and some other states (though the car passes the tailpipe emissions test).
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Lotus is going to be announcing a Limited Slip Differential (LSD) option for the US Elise (111R in the rest of the world) sometime soon. This is just a rumor, but comes from a very connected source so I expect it’s true. This LSD will appeal to two types of people – those who think they need every option possible for their car, and those who autocross their Elise and actually DO need an LSD. For the rest of the Elise owners, it’s likely to be a waste of money based on news of preliminary testing.

Lotus confirmed that it will indeed be bringing the Exige to the US, going on sale this fall. While the powerplant is said to be the same 190hp Toyota four cylinder found in the Elise, insiders say that a dealer-installed supercharger (like found on the limited edition 240R) is almost a certainty. The Exige, as it will be sold in the US, is basically a Lotus Elise with the sport suspension and different bodywork (hand laid fiberglass clamshells front & rear and a fixed, though removable, roof). Oh, except that bodywork will demand around a $10k premium over the cost of an Elise. While its bodywork does generate more downforce at high speeds, at less than 100mph expect performance to be comparable to the Elise. More info can be found at Automobile Magazine. You can download a copy of the Exige brochure here.

A Lotus Exige is on display at the NY Auto Show, and while no official announcement has been made yet, sources confirm that Lotus WILL make an announcement about this any day now. The car is fully US legal, supposedly (though the lack of bumpers makes me question ‘fully’). To speed up the legalization process, the engine is the same as in the Elise and the air scoop on the roof is non-functional (it’s a real scoop, just not directing the air anywhere in particular). A dealer-installed supercharger is almost certainly an option. Pictures of the car at the show seem to imply that the Exige will not have power assisted brakes or ABS, which is sure to please the target market for this car, the die-hard track day folk.

A dealer confirmed that, on Friday, March 25th, Lotus will announce the availability of a 2006 Lotus Exige in the US! The Exige will feature the supercharged engine currently found on the limited edition 240R sold in Europe, and be available in a variety of colors (until the yellow or black options on the 240R).

Lotus Sport, the performance division of Lotus Cars Ltd., has developed the Lotus Sport Exige 240R, a limited edition high performance sportscar with total global build volumes kept strictly to 50 cars.

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