“This is a stunning achievement,” says Glen Sealey, General Manager of the Australian Lotus distributor. “Despite costing more than ten times as much money, the Italian supercar couldn’t pull a lead out over the Lotus Exige S. It is the epitome of giant-killing and something for which Lotus have always been famed. We already have a waiting list for the Exige S and this will only add to it!”
Weighing-in at 1176 kg, capable of reaching 100 kmh from standing in just four seconds, with a power to weight ratio of 293 bhp/ton, brimming with 400 Nm of torque at just 4500 rpm – the Exige S really is something special! Scrutinised by evo’s panel of experts and pitted against the best offerings to the sportscar market this year, the Exige S tied with the Pagani Huayra for first place in the toughest test in the UK car industry.
Battling against nine opposing candidates to make the top six selection in a high octane shoot-out on road and track, and then taking on the giants in the final round on some of Scotland’s finest driving roads, this couldn’t be a more exciting win for the “gorgeous Exige S”.
Richard Meaden, motoring guru and evo contributing editor remarked on the Exige S “I adore its looks, its presence. It’s like a little shrunk-down, condensed, distilled supercar. And I love the fact that when you’re on the road and going for it, it just takes off.”
The evo team clearly felt the spirit of the Exige S, and in turn waxed lyrical about its attributes. Lotus is incredibly proud of the Exige S, and even though the calibre of this year’s competition was immense, it could not top the Exige S.
The Alpina B3 GT3, Toyota GT86, Mercedes C63 AMG Black and Morgan 3 Wheeler were also entered, but were eliminated in the first round. The Lotus then went on to demolish the new Porsche Boxster and 911, the McLaren MP4 12C and the BMW M135i to join the Pagani on the top step of the podium.
The Lotus Exige S arrives in Australia early in 2013 when it is expected to have a price around $120,000 plus statutory charges delivery and dealer costs. The Pagani is £820,000 in the UK, which is $1.259 million, and should it ever become available in Australia, would cost considerably more than that figure.
