I’m looking to buy another new/nearly new Exige. I’d welcome some honest feedback about the Exige S vs. a normally aspirated S2. Is the extra initial outlay/depreciation worth it? I enjoyed my previous S1 and the high revving nature of the engine, however I can understand that additional torque would be welcome.
The ‘S’ models seem to be depreciating very rapidly but are still �30-32K used, whereas an 2005/6 S2 looks good value at around �22-25K.
Your thoughts on pros and cons would be much appreciated.
Got to agree having had 2 Elise 111R’s and now an Exige S there is no comparisson. The price you quoted would actually mean the NA version has probably depreciated more that the S version (depending on spec obviously)!
I’m not so sure. I’m pretty happy with my N/A car. I enjoy having to thrash the balls off the engine to get the best out of it I think the S is great, but it lack the challenge of keeping it on the boil.
Plus, I really don’t like the noise of the supercharger.
If the cars were the same price, I’d be unsure which way to go. Given a substantial price difference, the choice is easy for me.
I would suggest a couple of test-drives may be in order.
Personally, I’d pass on the ‘S’. IMO it’s too expensive for what it delivers, not last because of the cooling issue it has (check around for topics on the issue). The torque is certainly much better than on the NA Exige and very welcome - though if you ever find yourself wanting more power, I see a NA Exige and a later upgrade as better proposition.
Out-of-the-box though, no doubt the ‘S’ is probably more favourable to most. Best to just test-drive them both!
I’m with Brendan: altough the S is relatively torquey, I love the feel of the n/a 'Yota coming on cam, and dont struggle keeping it on the boil on the track or on roads I’m familiar with.
I expected the S to monster the straights but as its only 25 or 30 brake up on standard, plus it weighs more, that isn’t going to happen, and when you throw price differnce into the mix, the S doesn’t look such good value used.
Many thanks to everyone for their input so far - I thought that the subject matter would get a stronger reaction. Many people believe that they have chosen the best variant and will often have strong cviews about their choice.
It would be great to get a few more comments from owners of ‘S’ models as I have to get off the pot in the next 24 hours.
…for whats its worth I recently came up against the decision to either swap my car for an S with sport pack or keep my n/a S2 and enjoy modding it to perfection myself in the coming year.
It just didnt make financial sense to swap in the end when I totted up deposit, extra monthly and depreciation on the new car. For the same money Plans Motorsport or similar will create a far superior track/fast road tool.
On track the extra grunt of the S counts for very little indeed if anything on the shorter circuits, however, on the road the extra torque makes the S easier to live with and quicker in every day driving conditions. IMO
So I would say ask yourself how you drive and what the primary use of the car is ie. trackdays and high days only or everyday transport?
As for me, I’m looking forward to a year of modifying my already excellent n/a S2. Although how long it stays n/a for I’m not sure…
Well, I tested both and bought the N/A version. The “S” is great but I just decided the N/A version would be much easier to live with…They’re both great cars
Well, I tested both and bought the N/A version. The “S” is great but I just decided the N/A version would be much easier to live with…They’re both great cars
I got the S. I love the push that starts at 3/4000 rpm and goes all the way to the limiter. The engine is still high revving it just starts pushing earlier. I personally love the whine of the supercharger, when you give more throttle the whine starts and its like the caracter of the engine has changed, as if its saying “ok, no we are getting serious”
I also think that with all the higher output versions of the toyota engine that Lotus are bringing to the market, the S is a good base for future upgrades. You would, in the future, be able to upgrade to 240,255 or 270hp and still be using Lotus parts and know-how.
For me the S is a no brainer as someone with a very bright car said.
It’s not the power or the weight though that gives the ‘S’ an advantage - it’s the fact that there is a lot more torque available lower down compared to a NA Exige. It would be interesting to see a dyno graph of a car with an upgraded ECU, but at this point, I would think that the ‘S’ would be quicker in a straight line, if only because the engines delivers a higher percentage of its power in the relevant rev range (being 5500-8500 rpm).
Even if the power/weight ratio would be identical between both cars, the car with more torque lower down would have an advantage…
Assuming of course the ‘S’ isn’t in a state of overheating though.
I spent the money with Plans and had my supension, brakes, oil system etc done and I regulary overcome “S” cars on track days. If you were starting from scratch get an “S” but if you have a “n/a” already my advice would be to invest in your current car.
it is so much more fun to have a sorted car than a bit more power some of the time !
![http://i86.photobucket.com/albums/k116/Exige77/614681132_FB.jpg[/image]](http://i86.photobucket.com/albums/k116/Exige77/614681132_FB.jpg%5B/image%5D){kind=link}