Lotus Evora – A Lotus That is More Than a Weekend Car
Enter the Lotus Evora – easier to get in and out of, quieter on the inside, with an automatic transmission – now you can get a Lotus that you can use as a daily driver, one that you can get in and out of easily, and one that you can use to carry more than one passenger, should you need to. This was the great car I tested, courtesy of Mr. Oh Kah Beng, head of Lotus, Malaysia
Lotus has traditionally been regarded as true-blue sports cars for the driving enthusiast – models like the Elise and Exige are great cars – with only 1.8 litre engines of relatively low horsepower, but put into fibreglass bodies built around the famous aluminium tub, and with a total weight of around 700 to 800 kilograms, these cars are little pocket rockets. They come with a very still chassis, and with the legendary suspension tuning by Lotus Engineering’s immense experience in building racing cars, they will out-corner just about any car on the road, and what they lack in top speed, they make up for in agility. These are really fun cars to drive, but unless you really didn’t mind the raw noise from all over, and the fact that they are all manuals, they are quite impractical for daily use, and I would say that most of the owners of these cars do have another car for daily commuting. In short, these are great weekend toys for one to let off steam.
Now with the Evora, Lotus have opened up a whole new world – available with either a manual or automatic transmission, and a ride that is very comfortable yet doe not compromise on handling, the Evora is now a sports car that can give as good as it gets when it is on the road, yet is docile enough to be driven to a shopping centre by my grandmother. Seating is now a 2 plus 2, which means you can carry some small-sized people behind if necessary.
With a 3.5 litre V6 engine from Lexus, there is 280 horses sitting behind the driver in this mid-engined car. Weighing in at under 1,500 kilograms, what it loses in weight is made up with the additional horses, and on the road, it accelerates as quickly as the Elise. Fuel economy is quite reasonable too, with me clocking 12.9 litres per 100 kilometres (as shown on the on-board display), and that was with consistently high speed driving. The fuel tank capacity is 60 litres, but the light comes on when there is around 15 litres left, and 45 litres will yield around 300+ kilometres.
I had the privilege of driving the 6-speed automatic, and mixing it with the other lads from the Lotus Club in their Elises and Exiges, the Evora could stand on its own. Driving slowly with the auto, especially in Kuala Lumpur traffic conditions is a cinch – just put it into ‘D’ – and it’s done. Passing through the little towns on the back roads, I could afford to relax without worrying about clutching and de-clutching at the traffic lights and when following politely behind the weekend traffic. The enormous torque from the 3.5 litre allows you to crawl at bumper to bumper speeds, and the moment you see a gap, just step on it, and you leave everybody else behind. On twisty roads all you have to do is push a button to put it into ‘Sports’ mode, and use the paddle shifters. In auto mode, you can use the paddles anytime too, except that after about 30 seconds, it reverts back into auto mode. In short, you can evoke manual gear changes even while in auto mode, a feature very good for temporary overtaking manoeuvres, and go back to auto mode automatically, or if you feel like letting your hair out, turn on the Sports mode, and go raw.
Handling, despite the additional weight from the engine and transmission, and larger body, is excellent. The Evora, shod with 18-inch wheels and P-Zeroes, will take just about any corner without any problems – true to its Lotus heritage, the Evora is just another larger go-kart on wheels (minus the rough edges and noises), handling-wise. Throw it into a corner at speed, and it will respond to your steering input without any protest – I had no problems staying with the others, and where space permitted it, I could even pass some of them – running away was not that easy, as there were some pretty good drivers there that day too.
Interior noise is minimal, and the overall feel is like that of a luxury sports car. This is one car that would be ideal for a weekend of exuberant driving, and for the rest of the week, it will serve one well as a day to day commuter – literally the best of both worlds.
Kah Beng and I drove through the city to meet up with the Lotus Club boys (and girls too) at the BHP station on the Karak highway sedately, with me being so impressed by the smoothness of the car, and how it can be driven so easily. When the drive started, it started in earnest – all the pent up frustrations of the week were being let out, but we were relatively relaxed, maintaining pace even though we were in auto mode. When we started on the stretch from Bentong to Raub, traffic was heavier, and I had to push a little harder to keep up with the nimble Elises and Exiges, but overall, it was more relaxed than being in the smaller cars. What I did find out was that the lighter weight of the smaller Lotuses made them a little faster on initial acceleration, but the cubic centimetres of the 3.5 litre made up in torque what we lost in acceleration. In short, the Evora can do the same as the smaller Lotuses, but the pace is not as urgent.
At the end of the day, I was totally impressed with the Lotus Evora. On long journeys, the Evora is less exhausting to the driver – this would make a great touring car. The Evora is one car I wouldn’t mind having, if I could afford one. The asking price of RM466k, is high, and out of reach for many, but if you compare this price to a Ferrari, then it seems quite affordable – you can have a His and Hers Evora for the same amount of money.
Footnote: Mr Oh, Please get me the Evora Manual…..
