Lotus Sport Exige GT3 - www.robson.m3rlin.org

Lotus Sport Exige GT3 - www.robson.m3rlin.org

A prototype of the Lotus Sport Exige GT3 race car was unveiled at the annual FIA GT
Championship presentation ceremony outside the world famous Casino in Monte Carlo,
Monaco on 02 December, 2005. The following day (03 December 2005), the first test for the
car took place at the high speed Paul Ricard High Tech Test Track in Southern France under
FIA supervision, the first stage in the Lotus Sport Exige GT3 becoming eligible for FIA GT3
competition. This latest FIA series, which will start in 2006, is for race cars that have an equal
power to weight, and that have a direct lineage to their road going versions.

The Lotus Sport Exige GT3 entrant has been developed by Lotus Sport, the performance arm
of Lotus Cars and is a derivative of the standard Lotus Exige coupe model. Weighing in at
approximately 750 kg, it stays true to the performance through light weight core Lotus
philosophy. The car uses a race prepared 1.8 2ZZ-GE VVTL-i engine with a Roots type
supercharger and air to air intercooler which utilises the Lotus T4e Engine Control Unit to
produce 285 hp (289 PS) at 7,800 rpm. This gives an impressive power to weight ratio of 380
hp / tonne or 2.6 kg / PS.

Following a brief shakedown programme at the Lotus Test Track at Hethel, factory test driver
Gavan Kershaw carried out final chassis set up work on wet tyres in the morning session at the
Paul Ricard official FIA test. This was followed by an outing on slick tyres on a drying track by
FIA nominated test driver Christophe Bouchut.

Commenting on the encouraging test session, Chris Arnold, General Manager of Lotus Sport,
explained: were delighted to attend the official FIA test session. Considering the car was
still on the drawing board two months ago a fantastic achievement by the team to complete
the build in such a short time. We knew this test would be a first shakedown for the car on
slicks and I¡Ë¢çE¢®Ec?m very pleased with the results. Our winter development programme starts with a
wind tunnel test just before Christmas followed by further work in preparation for the next FIA
test in March.

Lotus Sport Exige GT3 - www.robson.m3rlin.org

The FIA has announced a five race European championship for the new GT3 class with rounds
in the UK, Germany, Belgium, France and Italy. Various national GT Championships are also
considering amending their regulations to include a GT3 class.
Basic prototype specification.

Like the standard Exige, the Lotus Sport Exige GT3 comes complete with the award-winning
light weight bonded aluminium chassis. This is complemented by low weight 5-spoke forged
alloy wheels, carbon body panels, and a revised high downforce aerodynamic package
incorporating a race front splitter and adjustable carbon fibre rear wing.

Lotus Sport Exige GT3 - www.robson.m3rlin.org

An FIA 6-point roll cage, ignition kill switches, and uprated braking and suspension systems
including Ohlins 3-way adjustable dampers also feature on the new race car. A 6-speed
sequential transmission system, and full data logging system have been fitted to the singleseater
prototype vehicle.

Availability, full specification, and price of the Lotus Sport Exige GT3 will be announced in early 2006.
According to Lotus, the Exige GT3 model has the following specifications:

Engine:
Toyota Supplied 2ZZ-GE, 1796 cc I-4, DOHC with VVTL-i and Lotus T4e engine mananagement system, supercharged and intercooled
Bore/Stroke 82.0 mm / 85.0 mm
271 bhp (203 kW) @ 8000 rpm
190 ft·lbf (258 N·m) @ 7000 rpm
Compression Ratio: 11.5:1

Transmission: C64-speed, Close Ratio with uprated clutch and cover, open differential

Gear Ratios I/II/III : 3.116:1 / 2.050:1 / 1.481:1
IV/V/VI : 1.166:1 / 0.916:1 / 0.815:1
R/Final Drive : 3.250:1 / 4.529:1

Exige GT3 Performance:

0-60 mph : 3.9 seconds
0-100 km/h : 4.0 seconds
0-100 mph (0-160 km/h) : 9.8 seconds
Top Speed : 160 mph (257 km/h) – electronically limited
Power to weight ratio : 276 bhp (206 kW)/tonne

Note: While the mass of the vehicle has yet to be disclosed, it can be estimated to be around 2170 lb (980 kg) from the disclosure of the power to weight ratio.

Lotus has announced that it will bring its Exige–a re bodied, hardtop version of the Elise–to the United States this fall. Mechanically, the Exige will be identical to the U.S. Elise, which means a 1.8-liter Toyota four making 190 hp and 138 lb-ft of torque. We won’t see the supercharged, 243-hp engine from the Europe-only 240-R.

The Exige will use the same firmer suspension tuning of the Elise with the optional sport package, but the hardtop Lotus will have a cornering advantage over its open-topped counterpart because the Exige’s unique bodywork creates approximately 90 lbs of down force at 100 mph instead of the Elise’s mere 12 lbs. To put that in perspective, most cars generate significant lift at 100 mph. The increased down force comes chiefly from four factors: the longer, reshaped nose; the front wind splitter; the rear wing; and the covered roof.

All the Exige’s body panels, save the doors, are unique, and these modifications help the Exige scoot around the 2-mile Lotus test track two seconds faster than the Elise.

Other changes for the Exige are limited to reshaped seats (bigger bolsters and cut-outs to fit a racing harness) and black wheels (either cast aluminum or the forged wheels from the Elise sport package). Only 200-300 Exiges will come to the States annually (compared to more than 2000 Elises) at a price Lotus estimates will be in the low- to mid-$50,000 range.

The yellow Exige shown in these photos is the only one in the U.S. at the time of this writing, and it is merely pit-stopping at the New York show on its way to crash testing, so keep your checkbooks at home for now.

Lotus Sport, the performance division of Lotus Cars Ltd., has developed the new Lotus Sport Exige, a direct motor sport derivative of the successful Lotus Exige.

The Lotus designed and engineered race car was part manufactured by RTN, the team responsible for the Le Mans winning Bentley, using the latest motor sport techniques and procedures to produce a lightweight yet strong carbon-fiber bodywork structure around the standard road-going Lotus Exige Aluminum extruded and bonded chassis.

The Lotus Sport designed fully adjustable suspension system with double wishbones all round was fabricated and manufactured by Pilbeam. Power is provided by a 400 hp Swindon Racing Engines tuned GM 3 litre V6 racing engine linked to a Hewland sequential six-speed gearbox, with AP-Racing providing the braking system.

This one-off race car has been built for a South East Asian client and is expected to race in selected sport scar races in Asia. There are no plans as yet to build further examples of the Lotus Sport Exige but the base structure has been carefully designed to comply with key motor sport regulations around the world. Adhering to the key Lotus philosophy of performance through lightweight, the Lotus Sport Exige weighs in at just 850kg.

The whole project, conducted in complete secrecy has taken less than 6 months and the car will run for the first time at the 2½ mile Hethel test track in mid January.

Chris Arnold, General Manager for Lotus Sport explains the philosophy behind the Lotus Sport Exige:

“The Lotus Sport Exige is a competition car developed directly from the road going Exige. The race car uses the existing tub with only minor modifications, and careful design has enabled Lotus Sport to package an upgraded power train assembly whilst maintaining an equivalent weight to the existing road car. When this package is combined with further improvements to suspension and bodywork, it produces a fantastic looking car with great track potential.

The car has been taken from concept to reality in only six months and I thank all our engineering partners and the staff at Lotus who have worked so hard on this fantastic project.”

As the Lotus Sport Exige is, at present, a one-off race car, a price cannot be given for the racecar package.

The Lotus Sport Exige is directly developed from the road-going Lotus Exige that was unveiled at the Geneva Motorshow in 2004. The heart of the Sport Exige is the bonded and extruded Aluminum Chassis, the technology for which was first introduced in the Lotus Elise in 1995. The Exige chassis, which is also used in the Lotus Elise 111R, is the latest development of this award winning structure and weighs 68kg and has a torsional stiffness of 10500 Nm/degree. Made up of 25 separate extrusions, and bonded with an epoxy adhesive, the chassis in the Lotus Sport Exige is an exceptionally stiff, strong and lightweight structure. This Lotus technology is so world-leading that it has been used on other non- Lotus products including high performance production front-engined V12 and V8 GT cars.

An FIA approved 8-point roll cage has been bolted to the chassis, prior to the bodywork being fitted.

Double wishbone front suspension is mounted to the same suspension hard points as the road-going Lotus Exige, whilst the rear suspension picks up to a revised rear sub frame. However, being a full race car, there is adjustment for ride height, camber and castor, as well as adjustable front and rear anti-roll bars. Coil springs are mounted over O’hlins ST44 3-way adjustable dampers front and rear.

Lightweight “Z-Preg.” carbon fibre bodywork was specially manufactured for Lotus by RTN, the team responsible for the Le Mans winning Bentley. These panels (front clam, “A” panel, body side and sill, roof, engine cover and rear clam) have been made using an innovative low temperature curing process. The moulds were taken directly from the Sport Exige styling “clay” and the resulting carbon fibre panels are race-ready without having to rely on the costly tooling process used in current carbon fibre technology. This is thought to be the first time that this technology has been used on such large carbon fibre panels.

An aerodynamically developed front splitter, carbon fibre rear diffuser and an adjustable carbon rear wing provide increased levels of down force. The interior of the Lotus Sport Exige is similar to the standard Exige, but the standard road car wiring harness is replaced with a full Raychem 25 system incorporating Mil-spec connectors from Beru Formula 1 Harnesses. Conventional fuses are replaced with circuit breakers, and a Stack display with integrated data recording is fitted as standard.

A racing bucket seat (driver side only) is mounted as right hand drive to optimise weight balance through right hand corners (most circuits run clockwise). A six-point seat belt, prepared for using HANS Safety System, and a removable steering wheel (with quick-connect coupling) is included in the interior package.

The composite energy absorbing crash structure used on the standard road cars is also carried over to the Lotus Sport Exige. This glass fiber composite structure, around five times more energy absorbing than the equivalent steel component, also houses the larger water radiator and provides efficient cooling and air ducting over the carbon front clamshell.

A 100 liter FT3 safety fuel cell (with quick refueling system) is mounted behind the driver and in front of the engine (as with the road-going Exige). A fully plumbed in electrical fire extinguishing system completes the body package.

AP Racing provides the non-ABS braking system, which includes the pedal box (with brake balance bar and cylinders). AP Racing also provides the powerful six piston brake calipers at the front and four piston brake calipers at the rear. These calipers are mated to vented discs (344 mm diameter at the front and 330 mm diameter at the rear).

Ultra lightweight OZ Racing Chrono single-piece cast magnesium rims (8.8J x 17 ET40 at the front and 11.25J x 18 ET50 at the rear) are shod with Yokohama tires (250/610-17 at the front and 280/650-18 at the rear).

A narrow angle V6, 2,998 cc Swindon Racing Engines tuned GM racing engine is mounted longitudinally in the Lotus Sport Exige. The naturally aspirated 24-valve engine produces 400 hp (296 kW or 405 PS) at 7,750 rpm and 294 lb.ft (398 Nm or 40.6 kg/m) of torque at 6,500 rpm and has a maximum engine speed of 8,250 rpm. When the light weight of the Lotus Sport Exige is taken into consideration, the power to weight ratio is a phenomenal 470 hp / tonne (0.351 kW/kg or 476 PS/tonne). The engine itself weighs 157 kg.

Breathing is via an F1-style air box and air snorkel from the roof panel of the Sport Exige directly into the six carbon fiber air trumpets.

The dry-sump engine, with a bore of 86 mm and stroke of 86 mm is water cooled and also uses an oil-water heat exchanger to efficiently cool the oil. The whole engine is controlled by a Motec M600 electronic engine management system fitted inside the cockpit.

The power is transferred from the engine to the rear wheels via a single mass stepped flywheel, AP Racing twin-disc cerametallic race clutch and Hewland NLT sequential six-speed dog type transmission (with in-line shift mechanism). The gearbox itself is cooled through an oil-water heat exchanger. A limited slip differential (separate power and brake ramp angles) completes the power train package.

The one-off race car has been designed by Barney Hatt (Principal Designer for Lotus Design), under the direction of Russell Carr (Chief of Design). Taking the already aerodynamic road going Exige, Hatt designed the Lotus Sport Exige with the requirements to carry the design of the Exige and the brand attributes of Lotus into a competitive race car.

Russell Carr explains the work needed to design the Lotus Sport Exige: “The objective was to create a dramatic design and to take into account aerodynamic criteria to produce a race car that was not only competitive but also stunningly good looking. General motors port regulations also had to be adhered to so the fact that the resulting race car looks like a natural competition evolution of the road going Exige is a testament to the purity and effectiveness of the original design.”

The Lotus Sport Exige is slightly longer (350 mm) and wider (100 mm) than the road-going Exige to accommodate the larger engine, wider track, longer wheelbase and to optimize the aerodynamics. The length is mainly from the cockpit rearwards but the short rear overhang design of the road-going Exige is maintained.

• Narrow (56°) angle V6 engine, water-cooled
• 2,998 cc, stroke 86 mm, bore 86 mm.
• Max. power: 400 hp (296 kW or 405 PS) at 7,750 rpm
• Max. torque: 294 lb.ft (398 Nm or 40.6 kg/m) at 6,500 rpm
• Max. rpm: 8,250 rpm
• Four valve technology
• Oil-cooler (oil-water heat exchanger)
• Dry-sump lubrication
• SRE Multi-roller barrel throttle bodies
• F1 style air box and air snorkel
• Motec M600 electronic engine management system
• Required fuel quality: 98 octane super unleaded
• Race exhaust: multiple pipe manifold, open exhaust
• No catalytic converter

• Hewland sequential six-speed dog type transmission, straight cut gears
• In-line shift mechanism
• Gear ratios: Crown wheel & pinion gear 9:35
– 1st gear 12:36
– 2nd gear 15:33
– 3rd gear 18:30
– 4th gear 20:26
– 5th gear 24:26
– 6th gear 26:24
• Oil-water heat exchanger
• Single-mass flywheel
• AP Racing twin-disc cerametallic race clutch
• Limited slip differential (separate power and brake ramp angles)
• Rear-wheel drive

• RHD race vehicle developed from Lotus Exige road car
• Lotus bonded aluminum chassis and composite crash structure
• Bolted on 8-point roll cage (in accordance with FIA-Regulations 2004)
• Three-point AP Racing air jack system

• Weight optimized and widened Exige
• Lotus Design RTN “Z-preg.” carbon fiber bodywork
• Aerodynamically developed front splitter and rear diffuser
• Adjustable carbon rear wing
• Racing bucket seat (driver side only)
• Six-point seat belt, prepared for using HANS Safety System
• Removable steering wheel (with quick-connect coupling)
• Electrical fire extinguishing system
• 100 liter FT3 safety fuel cell with quick refueling system
• Total weight of bodywork excluding doors ~ 44 kg

• Double wishbone front suspension with spherical bearings
• Adjustable front anti-roll bar
• Non-PAS
• Double wishbone rear suspension with spherical bearings
• Adjustable rear anti-roll bar
• O’hlins ST44 3-way adjustable dampers
• Coil over damper springs front and rear
• Suspension adjustable for ride heights, camber and castor

• Non-ABS system
• AP Racing pedal box with brake balance bar and AP Racing cylinders
• Aeroquip style brake lines
• Front AP Racing six piston brake calipers
• AP Racing vented discs diameter: 344 mm
• Aluminum disc bells, race brake pads
• Rear AP Racing four piston brake calipers
• AP Racing vented discs diameter: 330 mm
• Aluminum disc bells, race brake pads

• OZ Racing Chrono single-piece cast magnesium rims:
• F – 8.8J x 17 ET40
• R – 11.25J x 18 ET50
• Yokohama tyres
• F – 250/610-17
• R – 280/650-18
• Single central wheel nuts with locking device

• Motec M600 engine management
• Stack display with integrated data recording
• Raychem 25 system wiring looms and Mil spec connectors
• Red Top battery: 12 Volt, 50 Ah
• Twin Bosch fuel pumps with change over switch
• Floor mounted carbon fiber center switch console
• Circuit breaker switches (no fuses)
• 120 Ah Alternator

Lotus Sport, the performance division of Lotus Cars Ltd., has developed the new Lotus Sport Exige, a direct motorsport derivative of the successful Lotus Exige.
The Lotus designed and engineered racecar was part manufactured by RTN, the team responsible for the Le Mans winning Bentley, using the latest motorsport techniques and procedures to produce a lightweight yet strong carbon-fibre bodywork structure around the standard road-going Lotus Exige Aluminium extruded and bonded chassis.
The Lotus Sport designed fully adjustable suspension system with double wishbones all round was fabricated and manufactured by Pilbeam. Power is provided by a 400 hp Swindon Racing Engines tuned GM 3 litre V6 racing engine linked to a Hewland sequential six-speed gearbox, with AP-Racing providing the braking system.

This one-off racecar has been built for a South East Asian client and is expected to race in selected sportscar races in Asia. There are no plans as yet to build further examples of the Lotus Sport Exige but the base structure has been carefully designed to comply with key motorsport regulations around the world. Adhering to the key Lotus philosophy of performance through lightweight, the Lotus Sport Exige weighs in at just 850kg.

The whole project, conducted in complete secrecy has taken less than 6 months and the car will run for the first time at the 2½ mile Hethel test track in mid January.

Chris Arnold, General Manager for Lotus Sport explains the philosophy behind the Lotus Sport Exige:

“The Lotus Sport Exige is a competition car developed directly from the road going Exige. The racecar uses the existing tub with only minor modifications, and careful design has enabled Lotus Sport to package an upgraded powertrain assembly whilst maintaining an equivalent weight to the existing road car. When this package is combined with further improvements to suspension and bodywork, it produces a fantastic looking car with great track potential.

The car has been taken from concept to reality in only six months and I thank all our engineering partners and the staff at Lotus who have worked so hard on this fantastic project.”

As the Lotus Sport Exige is, at present, a one-off racecar, a price cannot be given for the racecar package.

The Lotus Sport Exige is directly developed from the road-going Lotus Exige that was unveiled at the Geneva Motorshow in 2004. The heart of the Sport Exige is the bonded and extruded Aluminium Chassis, the technology for which was first introduced in the Lotus Elise in 1995. The Exige chassis, which is also used in the Lotus Elise 111R, is the latest development of this award winning structure and weighs 68kg and has a torsional stiffness of 10500 Nm/degree. Made up of 25 separate extrusions, and bonded with an epoxy adhesive, the chassis in the Lotus Sport Exige is an exceptionally stiff, strong and lightweight structure. This Lotus technology is so world-leading that it has been used on other non- Lotus products including high performance production front-engined V12 and V8 GT cars.

An FIA approved 8-point roll cage has been bolted to the chassis, prior to the bodywork being fitted.

Double wishbone front suspension is mounted to the same suspension hard points as the road-going Lotus Exige, whilst the rear suspension picks up to a revised rear subframe. However, being a full racecar, there is adjustment for ride height, camber and castor, as well as adjustable front and rear anti-roll bars. Coil springs are mounted over Ohlins ST44 3-way adjustable dampers front and rear.

Lightweight “Z-Preg.” carbon fibre bodywork was specially manufactured for Lotus by RTN, the team responsible for the Le Mans winning Bentley. These panels (front clam, “A” panel, body side and sill, roof, engine cover and rear clam) have been made using an innovative low temperature curing process. The moulds were taken directly from the Sport Exige styling “clay” and the resulting carbon fibre panels are race-ready without having to rely on the costly tooling process used in current carbon fibre technology. This is thought to be the first time that this technology has been used on such large carbon fibre panels.

An aerodynamically developed front splitter, carbon fibre rear diffuser and an adjustable carbon rear wing provide increased levels of downforce. The interior of the Lotus Sport Exige is similar to the standard Exige, but the standard roadcar wiring harness is replaced with a full Raychem 25 system incorporating Mil-spec connectors from Beru Formula 1 Harnesses. Conventional fuses are replaced with circuit breakers, and a Stack display with integrated data recording is fitted as standard.

A racing bucket seat (driver side only) is mounted as right hand drive to optimise weight balance through right hand corners (most circuits run clockwise). A six-point seat belt, prepared for using HANS Safety System, and a removable steering wheel (with quick-connect coupling) is included in the interior package.

The composite energy absorbing crash structure used on the standard road cars is also carried over to the Lotus Sport Exige. This glass fibre composite structure, around five times more energy absorbing than the equivalent steel component, also houses the larger water radiator and provides efficient cooling and air ducting over the carbon front clamshell.

A 100 litre FT3 safety fuel cell (with quick refuelling system) is mounted behind the driver and in front of the engine (as with the road-going Exige). A fully plumbed in electrical fire extinguishing system completes the body package.

AP Racing provides the non-ABS braking system, which includes the pedal box (with brake balance bar and cylinders). AP Racing also provides the powerful six piston brake calipers at the front and four piston brake calipers at the rear. These calipers are mated to vented discs (344 mm diameter at the front and 330 mm diameter at the rear).

Ultra lightweight OZ Racing Chrono single-piece cast magnesium rims (8.8J x 17 ET40 at the front and 11.25J x 18 ET50 at the rear) are shod with Yokohama tyres (250/610-17 at the front and 280/650-18 at the rear).

A narrow angle V6, 2,998 cc Swindon Racing Engines tuned GM racing engine is mounted longitudinally in the Lotus Sport Exige. The naturally aspirated 24-valve engine produces 400 hp (296 kW or 405 PS) at 7,750 rpm and 294 lb.ft (398 Nm or 40.6 kgm) of torque at 6,500 rpm and has a maximum engine speed of 8,250 rpm. When the light weight of the Lotus Sport Exige is taken into consideration, the power to weight ratio is a phenomenal 470 hp / tonne (0.351 kW/kg or 476 PS/tonne). The engine itself weighs 157 kg.

Breathing is via an F1-style airbox and air snorkel from the roof panel of the Sport Exige directly into the six carbon fibre air trumpets.

The dry-sump engine, with a bore of 86 mm and stroke of 86 mm is water cooled and also uses an oil-water heat exchanger to efficiently cool the oil. The whole engine is controlled by a Motec M600 electronic engine management system fitted inside the cockpit.

The power is transferred from the engine to the rear wheels via a single mass stepped flywheel, AP Racing twin-disc cerametallic race clutch and Hewland NLT sequential six-speed dog type transmission (with in-line shift mechanism). The gearbox itself is cooled through an oil-water heat exchanger. A limited slip differential (separate power and brake ramp angles) completes the powertrain package.

The one-off racecar has been designed by Barney Hatt (Principal Designer for Lotus Design), under the direction of Russell Carr (Chief of Design). Taking the already aerodynamic road going Exige, Hatt designed the Lotus Sport Exige with the requirements to carry the design of the Exige and the brand attributes of Lotus into a competitive racecar.

Russell Carr explains the work needed to design the Lotus Sport Exige: “The objective was to create a dramatic design and to take into account aerodynamic criteria to produce a race car that was not only competitive but also stunningly good looking. General motorsport regulations also had to be adhered to so the fact that the resulting racecar looks like a natural competition evolution of the road going Exige is a testament to the purity and effectiveness of the original design.”

The Lotus Sport Exige is slightly longer (350 mm) and wider (100 mm) than the road-going Exige to accommodate the larger engine, wider track, longer wheelbase and to optimise the aerodynamics. The length is mainly from the cockpit rearwards but the short rear overhang design of the road-going Exige is maintained.

Technical Specifications

Engine
• Narrow (56°) angle V6 engine, water-cooled
• 2,998 cc, stroke 86 mm, bore 86 mm.
• Max. power: 400 hp (296 kW or 405 PS) at 7,750 rpm
• Max. torque: 294 lb.ft (398 Nm or 40.6 kgm) at 6,500 rpm
• Max. rpm: 8,250 rpm
• Four valve technology
• Oil-cooler (oil-water heat exchanger)
• Dry-sump lubrication
• SRE Multi-roller barrel throttle bodies
• F1 style airbox and air snorkel
• Motec M600 electronic engine management system
• Required fuel quality: 98 octane super unleaded
• Race exhaust: multiple pipe manifold, open exhaust
• No catalytic converter

Transmission
• Hewland sequential six-speed dog type transmission, straight cut gears
• In-line shift mechanism
• Gear ratios: Crown wheel & pinion gear 9:35
– 1st gear 12:36
– 2nd gear 15:33
– 3rd gear 18:30
– 4th gear 20:26
– 5th gear 24:26
– 6th gear 26:24
• Oil-water heat exchanger
• Single-mass flywheel
• AP Racing twin-disc cerametallic race clutch
• Limited slip differential (separate power and brake ramp angles)
• Rear-wheel drive

Chassis
• RHD race vehicle developed from Lotus Exige road car
• Lotus bonded aluminium chassis and composite crash structure
• Bolted on 8-point roll cage (in accordance with FIA-Regulations 2004)
• Three-point AP Racing air jack system

Bodywork
• Weight optimised and widened Exige
• Lotus Design RTN “Z-preg.” carbon fibre bodywork
• Aerodynamically developed front splitter and rear diffuser
• Adjustable carbon rear wing
• Racing bucket seat (driver side only)
• Six-point seat belt, prepared for using HANS Safety System
• Removable steering wheel (with quick-connect coupling)
• Electrical fire extinguishing system
• 100 litre FT3 safety fuel cell with quick refuelling system
• Total weight of bodywork excluding doors ~ 44 kg

Suspension
• Double wishbone front suspension with spherical bearings
• Adjustable front anti-roll bar
• Non-PAS
• Double wishbone rear suspension with spherical bearings
• Adjustable rear anti-roll bar
• Ohlins ST44 3-way adjustable dampers
• Coil over damper springs front and rear
• Suspension adjustable for ride heights, camber and castor

Braking system
• Non-ABS system
• AP Racing pedal box with brake balance bar and AP Racing cylinders
• Aeroquip style brake lines
• Front AP Racing six piston brake calipers
• AP Racing vented discs diameter: 344 mm
• Aluminium disc bells, race brake pads
• Rear AP Racing four piston brake calipers
• AP Racing vented discs diameter: 330 mm
• Aluminium disc bells, race brake pads

Rims/Tyres
• OZ Racing Chrono single-piece cast magnesium rims:
• F – 8.8J x 17 ET40
• R – 11.25J x 18 ET50
• Yokohama tyres
• F – 250/610-17
• R – 280/650-18
• Single central wheel nuts with locking device

Electrical System
• Motec M600 engine management
• Stack display with integrated data recording
• Raychem 25 system wiring looms and Mil spec connectors
• Red Top battery: 12 Volt, 50 Ah
• Twin Bosch fuel pumps with change over switch
• Floor mounted carbon fibre centre switch console
• Circuit breaker switches (no fuses)
• 120 Ah Alternator

Lotus Exige

Also in 2000, Lotus introduced the Exige — a hardtop version of the Elise with the 177 bhp (131 kW) engine from the 340R — as well as different front and rear clams, larger wheels, and a rear wing. Many models received an upgrade to 190 bhp (142 kW) with better driveability due to changes to ECU and cam timing.