Ferrari vs. Lotus-- assistance please

I'm a little surprised at some of the responses regarding the way owners drive Ferraris.

That might be an interesting poll: Have you even gotten your Ferrari sideways?

(Despite the dire warnings about mid-mills, I've found that the 328 is quite manageable in oversteer -- provided you're paying attention.)

I've also found that the 328 takes bumpy surfaces without issues (properly aligned). (Far better than the EVO does.)

But that may be just another aspect of the same question: People who are buying a "dream" may pay more than they'd pay for a really good car. But if they're afraid to drive it, then just what was the "dream"?

And my old, unrestored Alfa spider still attracts more females than either the ricer or the Ferrari.

 

I drive both on the track and suprisingly the exige does quite well (the exige is my official track rat). I find I'm a little more cautious in the Ferraris, and a little more on-the-edge in the exige, which accounts for some of it. The fcar is prolly a tad faster due to its ability to make up lost time in the straights, but not as much as you would think considering the price difference.

 

Lotus and Ferrari mixing it up in Norway.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uOa8amXdAS4

 

That would be an interesting poll indeed since I have done that many times in my 360, although finding a safe place to do it is not easy.

As for Elise vs Ferrari, I much prefer to drive a Ferrari than any other car regardless of how much faster it is.

 

How about the Lotus Exige versus the F 430 Scuderia???

I say the Scuderia eats the Exige no matter what with the same quality of driver...

The Scuderia does 0-60 times in the 3.5 second range, handles better than anything short of the F2007
and will eat any Lotus for lunch not only in the corners but will certainly kill it in the straights...

In fact, with professional drivers the standard F430 kills the Lotus Exige... See the results for yourself...

http://www.fastestlaps.com/track1.html

 

Good thoughts. I've had the 430 step out on me at the track, but never all the way around. Ditto the 328 although that was more of 4 wheel drifts. Almost impossible to power oversteer a 328, and for that matter, I think you have to seriously overcook a turn and/or have abrupt inputs to spin a 328. I used to drive the snot out of my STI at tracks. Heck, if it went off, I just kept going. It liked dirt! However, an offtrack adventure in the 430 can be very expensive, so, although tracking the 430 is great fun, I am more careful.

Dave

 

I own both a Lotus 7 track car & and 308QV. My 7 only has 135 hp which provides good acceration on the low end, but the car is amazing in the turns. The difference between the cars is the transmissions. In the 7 you are constanly shifting gears in comparison to the slam gears of the 308. The 200hp version of the 7 with a 0-60 in the low 3s, is the car that beats the Enzo(EVO Magazine). Nothing corners like a 7.

 

Sorry, depends on the track. At a track like the Stig runs with some long straights, no doubt you are right. But once you start hitting corner after corner after corner on a tight track, the Lotus Exige will give a bigger hp car fits, simply because in part due to its smaller size it can carry so much more speed into a corner...and, as others have pointed out, the more expensive car, the less most owners are likely to push the limits. You can check out Car and Driver's ligtning laps at VIR for 2006 and 2007 and look at the speeds the Lotus Exige and Elise were pushing into the corners...very high!

 

430 Scuderia even on a short track with lots of corners. According to C & D and R & T it's the best handling car they have ever driven, even better than any Lotus... Their words, not mine.. Read the reports.

BTW, IMHO, any Lotus is just a Lotus, king of like owning a Ford Pinto in comparison.... When you say Ferrari it says the best... You say Lotus and you are saying has been.

 

Wow. Look, no one disagrees that the Scuderia is fantastic, possibly the best track car in the world! If you read what I wrote, I did not even imply that a Lotus could best a Scuderia on the track. I only mentioned that in a tight track the Lotus could give a Scuderia a "run for its money."
I am always impressed by posters who use the logic, "your brand car is just your brand car". My Ford is just a Ford, his Lotus is just his Lotus, etc. Do you realize how insulting this is??? Fortunately, virtually all Ferrari owners I know are true car guys that would never participate in such logic.

 

Not a Lotus chat board... Don't expect favorable opinions about Lotus on this board, that's why it's called ferrarichat.com...

 

Back to the original question: the Lotus will crush the Ferrari because it will be the one that actually runs

Who cares, both are great fun. There are always faster cars out there and this goes for both of the marques in question.

If anyone here is concerned about the rough ride of the Lotus just get one that has the track pack and sdjust the shocks. Thereafter it is a very livable daily driver.

ken

 

Note to Colin Chapman, while your cameo was a welcome surprise, the fact remains that we never formally invited you to our social club's annual table soccer tourney and BBQ. Technically that voids your results in the tournement but has no bearing on the amount of smoked ribs and beef skewers you helped yourself to. And the next time you plan on crashing any future gatherings, please don't bring that doctor friend of yours, Ferdinand along!

Your pals, Ettore, Enzo and Ferruchio.

 

My personal opinion is that a change to Ohlins shocks makes the ride much more tolerable without adversely changing the handling of the Elise. But for my 40 year old body, I do appreciate the refinement of the Mondial as I can use that 99% of the time.

 

A Lotus Exige is about the only car I would seriously consider other than the Ferrari I have. Based on all the comments I have heard and read on here, it seems the most fun any car can provide, basically a street legal go kart. Costs less to maintain than the Ferrari, killer looks (reminds me of a mini version of a F50 GT) and has the F1 pedigree. What's not to like?

Hopefully next year I'll get a chance to drive one.

 

Well written, but I'm looking forward to the next tourney!

Cheers,

Colin

 

Without even speculating on the results of this encounter... why don't we just toss a Veyron in the mix?

Seriously, a 50k car vs. a 300k car.

And lets not start debating about the electronic aids in the Scuderia. Between the E-diff, traction control and the F1, there is a lot of computer nannying helping out the lesser driver. The Lotus requires skill, and lots of it.

Of course, I'd trade my Lotus and probably my soul for a scuderia, but the you can buy an engine and transmission for the Lotus for the price of brake pads on the Scud. It's just not a fair match.

 

Lotus is known for its best handling car... never reliability.... but best handling car it sure is... For a $50,000 Lotus Exige to a $80,000 Lotus Esprit, you need at least a $200,000 car of other make to compare same level of superb handling.... My Esprit is rock dead solid at 170+ mph when my Testarossa starts to flow and feeling light at steering wheel at 160 mph....

 

Hey Chapman, if you're attending the next shindig, can you sneak me in also?


Your chum,

William Lyons

 

interesting .......



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XMsuPpAbT0U&NR=1

 

nuff said.
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True, in the past the "Lotus position" was to have the car on the back of a flat bed truck headed to the dealer...since the introduction of the Elise/Exige cars the term is associated with the contortion required to get in the car. I'm headed toward 14 K with my 2007, it has been bullet proof.

ken

 

ferrari vs. lotus
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That would be a more fair comparo. At least in the price range. Definitely in the power and handling range.


Hoping a friend with a lotus will chime in.

 

I, too, owned an Elise for a couple years and loved it. The magic ingredient: lightweight. For those of you who have pulled over two G's in a shifter kart, you already understand the appeal.

Why did I sell the Elise? Spending my time on the track on a vehicle with the most dynamic handling - a motorcycle.
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