2005 Lotus Elise

A very important post is developing. But in the meantime, check out the specs of the fantastic Lotus Elise:

Weight: 1950lbs! My M3 weighs in at 3200lbs, as does the new MK V GTi. A top of the line Excursion weighs in at over 7700lbs, or roughly 4 Elises!

Horsepower: 190hp. My M3 has 240hp. The new GTi has 200hp. The Excursion has 325hp.

Power to Weight Ratio: Here’s where it gets good. The M3 has 13.3 pounds to carry around per horsepower, the GTi has 16, the Excursion has 23. The Lotus has 10.

Performance: How about a 0-60 of under 5 seconds, and a quarter in 13.4 on the way to a top speed of 150mph.

Construction: Aluminum tub chassis, that basically translates to the frame of the car weighing 150lbs total! Actually, nearly everything on this car is made from Aluminum, including the pedals, dashboard, shiftknob.

Details: How about exotic Stack gauges, Yokohoma A048 track spec tires, OZ wheels.

I could go on and on, but suffice it to say, this is a very special car. Check out this Elise article in Road and Track for a good review, paying special attention to the chart on page 4 showing the Elise’s best party piece: It’s supercar strength to price ratio!

dc