Lotus Exige S Review: 'Say Hello To My Little Friend'

The Lotus Exige S is heroically fast, physics-defying agile and just bloody good fun

18 May 2015

Pros

Cons

Under the hood

Remember that outrageously rapid Lotus Evora S we reviewed a while back? It featured a fire-breathing 345bhp, supercharged 3.5-litre engine as means of propulsion. So what do you think you’ll find tucked into the middle of this much smaller, far lighter, but more intimidating Lotus Exige S?

Yup, you got it in one. Crammed into the Exige S’s 1175kg flyweight body is the same 345bhp 3.5 V6 you’ll find in its bigger brother. But where the Evora hits 62mph in a respectable 4.8sec, the Exige smashes through that marker in 4.0sec dead. Wind both cars up to their respective top speeds and you’ll see 172 and 170mph. Respect.

Watch our full-length Exige S track day video

Behind the wheel

The Lotus Exige S is to the car world what Tarantino is to the big screen; it’s raw, brutal, exciting, desperately cool and a little bit mental.

The interior, for example, is non-existent (save for a couple of bucket seats, a steering wheel and a numbered stick to make it go faster), while the exterior is cloaked in a cloud of spoilers, air vents, diffusers and menace – this is no ordinary daily driver, rather a track-focused weapon of small production. Handy then that we’ve got the Lotus test track to ourselves for a whole day…

"You feel every bump and every minute slip of the rubbers through the steering wheel. It's a raw but wholly inspiring driving experience"

As you’d expect, the Lotus Exige S is heroically fast, and not just because of THAT engine. The Exige’s slippery body cuts through air like Puss In Boots, while masses of downforce help press this hardcore hooner firmly onto the asphalt.

Where these two characteristics begin to defy physics, however, is through tight turns, hairpins and sweeping corners. Remember hammering your Scalextric F1 race car around a corner when you were 10? Yeh, it’s a bit like that, except that you’re inside the car, not towering above it while your mum makes you a cup of Cocoa.

The car’s unassisted steering – predictably – is pin sharp, only requiring small driver inputs for immediate changes in direction. You feel every bump and every minute slip of the rubbers through the steering wheel, while the notchy manual six speeder and race-heavy pedal weights complete the raw but wholly inspiring driving experience. And lest we forget that lairy supercharged noise that breathes down your neck with every stab of the accelerator.

Splash the cash?

With prices kicking off at £53,850 (Porsche Cayman S money), the Lotus Exige S certainly ain’t cheap. What it is, however, is the best, no-nonsense British sports car money can buy today. It’s as effective to drive on track as it is impressive to look at, and while its power-to-weight ratio should make this an uncontrollable animal, its superb suspension, masses of grip and utter poise make this engine and body combination a match made in Hethel.

Would I buy one? Damn straight.

Watch our full-length Exige S track day video