Lotus Elise 111R (2ZZ-GE equipped)

[ZEEROLLA]

:( I was watching the latest Best Motoring International DVD which had the Lotus Elise 111R and was a little disappointed with its performance. It took on cars like the Nismo 350Z S-Tune GT (300bhp), Mazdaspeed RX8 (Non-turbo, 250bhp), Lancer Evo 8 MR GSR, Renault Clio V6 RS, DC5 Integra Type-R, and the BMW M3 CSL SMG.

The Elise weighing 800kg with the 2ZZ-GE's 141kw was quick in the corners and late braking but the straight line speed and gearbox is a disappointment. The gearbox seemed very notchy and the shifter was slow. The driver commented the engine felt great over 7000rpm but it was slightly slower than the 300bhp 350Z S-Tune, while the Evo 8 MR and the BMW M3 CSL SMG gave it a whopping down the straight. At the start, the Elise spun the wheels so much in 2nd gear i instantly felt that the car is not worth $100grand. Maybe just needed fatter rear tyres. The corner speed was fast but weighing 800kg it should anyway.

Needless to say, the BMW M3 CSL SMG came tops performance wise with a $200K price tag its supercar territory. The car seemed so easy and smooth to control with the SMG transmission and superb traction in all 4 wheels. This car would be so comfortable to drive leisurely and so wild on the track. Amazingly, the carbon fiber roof, door trims and other interior modifications over the normal M3 were superbly crafted and looked marvelous. Not rice at all, looked very high quality. The intake box is also carbon fiber and the roar at full throttle is simply seductive!

The Renault Clio V6 is quick but not that quick, and i never liked the car in the first place so i am biased. The engine is actually midmounted and situated in the cabin!! The rear seats have given way for the big V6, now that's something different ;) Probably no need for heater during winter.. But the RX8 and TypeR came very close to catching the Clio, maybe because this track is Tsukuba which is a low speed track. But the Clio has grunt out of corners but taking the corners itself wasn't impressive.

The TypeR being the cheapest car is amazingly competitive and lapped around the same lap times as the RX8 and Clio V6. ALthough it came last it showed that a FWD car can also be a quick track car. But again the TypeR was built for this tight circuits so everything matched that particular track from gear ratios to suspension.

The 350Z's performance was expected to be good with 3.5 liter V6 280bhp stock, this S-Tune is heavily modified by Nismo and makes 300bhp with much better looks and handling. It came 2nd in the race.

The EVO 8 MR came 3rd and is a 10 kgs lighter than standard Evo8 with aluminium roof and some extra aero parts. It also has shorter gear ratios and lighter alloys. It was quick as usual with AWD blasting out of corners having gas paddle to the floor most of the time.

The Mazda Speed RX8 looked really nice with bodykit and new mags but basically unchanged performance from stock. Cornering was slightly improved with less understeer.

So the Lotus, Yamaha, Toyota, Beams etc. tuned Elise 111R imo is not great value at slightly over $100,000 as there are cars like the 350Z, RX8 and AWD turbo cars with as much straight line poke and much more refinement. The Elise 111R looked really fun and challenging to drive but as a whole the car didn't impress me much.

Zee

Edited December 3, 2004 by ZEEROLLA

[saintz01]

hey zee,

how bout a Technopro Spirit MR-S. :D pretty much same setup as the "pro-tus" but heck i'll take the MR-S anyday.

[ZEEROLLA]

hey zee,

how bout a Technopro Spirit MR-S.  :D  pretty much same setup as the "pro-tus" but heck i'll take the MR-S anyday.

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Oh yeah, that car is beautiful! :D Looks better than the Elise too imo and the interior is way better equipped than the bone bare Elise!

[saintz01]

i second that opinion. :D