Lotus Elise

[PuShAkOv]

good word too. i think you are right, that it is not the look that makes the car so amazing and attractive but the performance and furthermore the purist concept. it is just a racers car.

Thats great an all.. but it may not be street-legal in U.S.

 

[ILuvBMW]

The reason of this thread was to point out that they are finaly making a street legal version for the U.S.

 

[frolf]

i'm so happy that the elise is coming. although my 3er ways around 3100, i think a pure sports car should weigh no more that 2700, and even thats a little high. the elise is an amazingly nimble car from all i have read.

@push: wait until it comes to the us, then drive it. THEN tell us if the car is out there just for "design." You will see that a car of that caliber is not to be reckoned with unless you are on long straights in a car with an assload of bhp.

 

[PuShAkOv]

It would be so much fun on snow thought since it is so light. I just think that it is designed for smooth roads since it is a sports car, bumpy roads would set it "flying" on every major bump, especially with all that HP. We will see when it gets here.

 

[cea]

Will Lotus have to put bumpers on it? Skidpad?

 

[cea]

@ 190 HP 0-62 4.4 seconds

 

[frolf]

@ 190 HP 0-62 4.4 seconds

good bye m3

good bye a lot of cars


good bye STi (OMG, i said it)

 

[PuShAkOv]

what about insurance rates on those things?

 

[frolf]

probably pretty out there. but who cares, you'd be driving an Elise

 

[Wadula]

exactly and tell me why a bump should make the elise fly??? indy cars, F1 cars, Touring cars....they all are trimmed for light weight and high power. have you ever seen one of those flying away? you are looking for some irrational causes to defend your negative position. think about it push. if light weight was negative, why the heck does every performance car builder try to lower the weight as much as possible??? jeeez....

 

[frolf]

exactly and tell me why a bump should make the elise fly??? indy cars, F1 cars, Touring cars....they all are trimmed for light weight and high power. have you ever seen one of those flying away? you are looking for some irrational causes to defend your negative position. think about it push. if light weight was negative, why the heck does every performance car builder try to lower the weight as much as possible??? jeeez....

porsche and mercede's did fly away, but i'm on yourside, that was poor wing setup for a race.

 

[ooo000HITMAN000ooo]

"look mom there is a flying mercedes"

 

[Wadula]

porsche and mercede's did fly away, but i'm on yourside, that was poor wing setup for a race.

i admit you got me there, but yes everybody knows the circumstances.

 

[Kirby]

I just think that it is designed for smooth roads since it is a sports car, bumpy roads would set it "flying" on every major bump, especially with all that HP.

A performance motorcycle has 130 - 200 hp with a weight of 400 - 600 lbs. By your logic, all motorcycle riders should need pilot's licenses.

 

[bahnstormer]

heheh poor push...everything in this thread u've said is wrong...but its ok now u know better i hope.

bumps won't be a problem with a properly dampened suspension. and the lighter the car the
better everything is. its a very simple fact to grasp...all car designers STRIVE to lose as much weight as possible off thier cars. u ever see an agile fat guy? nope...same thing with a car. faster acceleration, braking, handling

the lotus and the aston AMV8 are the best things coming to america next year.

 

[Kirby]

bahnstormer makes an excellent point. And they work hard at reducing UNSPRUNG weight to improve performance. That is the weight of wheels. tires. rotor, caliper, rear axle, etc. Anything that is not supported by the vehicle's springs.

Heavy massive suspension wants to "float" over a bump ( remember that "a body in motion wants to stay in motion in the same direction and speed") where as lightweight suspension is easier to make follow the road. The springs can push the wheels back down on the road faster, so to speak.

The more I think about it, I'll bet that this sucker handles like an F1 car!!

 

[PuShAkOv]

I just tihnk that because my car always swings to the side when I am going fast on a bumpy road. I would just imagine that if the car was 1000lbs lighter that swing would be dramatically increased.

 

[frolf]

heheh poor push...everything in this thread u've said is wrong...but its ok now u know better i hope.

 

[Wadula]

I just tihnk that because my car always swings to the side when I am going fast on a bumpy road. I would just imagine that if the car was 1000lbs lighter that swing would be dramatically increased.

dude, don´t you read what everybody wrote? and don´t you learn?
first, it is a question of suspension how a car reacts. take a s55 amg. that is a heavy weight baby delivering excellent driving. than take the c32 amg. much less weight but excellent driving.
then think about M3´s regular m3 to m3 csl. why the heck would they build that car if it would be worse for driving?

second the physical approach.

energy = W
mass = m
velocity = v

W = 1/2m x v²

W is equal to the product of the mass moved and the speed it is moved at. that energy than has to be equalized by the suspension and in the end kept on the street by the tires. less weight = less energy that is produced. this is a very very bare bone start and there are lots of factors involved but i hope this gives you a basic picture.


push drop that issue and stop defending your senseless concern. just take it as a given fact proven through out history that the lighter the better for performance in general is valid!

 

[epj3]

Push you're being ignorant. Lotus has superior handling and can not be touched easily or cheaply by anything else.