2015 Lotus Evora 400 review

Hardcore Lotus Evora takes some getting used to, but keen drivers are rewarded with a fun and involving experience It’s newer than it appears. It’s the Lotus Evora 400, and although it might look like it has just had a nip at either end, apparently more than two thirds of its parts are new or revised.Most notable among those are the addition of a charge cooler for the 3.5-litre Toyota V6 engine, allowing the motor a power peak of 400bhp – up 50bhp from the model it replaces. There’s a weight reduction of 42kg too (which is actually about 60bhp given the new cooling adds 20kg), making the kerb weight a gnat’s under 1400kg.Less obvious but more significant is what has gone on elsewhere. Lotus has revised the extruded and bonded aluminium tub, reducing the width of the sills by 56mm and narrowing them by 43mm, to make getting in and out of the car easier, without affecting the 27,000Nm/deg torsional rigidity. There’s a touch more space in the footwell, too, while the cabin has been revised to make it not just easier to use, but also more attractive.Then there are the even grubbier, even more detailed changes which, this being a motoring piece about a Lotus, I’ll assume you’re interested in.Mechanically, the AP Racing brakes are similar to the old Evora S’s but are now larger in diameter (370mm front, 350mm rear), the steering rack is the same 2.8 turn one that gave such exquisite feel before, but is mounted lower to reduce bump-steer, at the expense of some steering feel. Apparently it’s important though because the Evora 400 has been given more toe-in, to make it feel more agile, and if you didn’t also reduce the bump-steer it would tramline too much.Springs and dampers are firmer because the performance has increased and Lotus would like to make the Evora a little harder-edged, so with the power increase too comes a Quaife-sourced mechanical limited-slip differential, so prevent excess power being wafted away by a spinning inside wheel.Tyres are now from Michelin and they’re Pilot Supersports; and although they have the same dimensions at the front as before (235/35 ZR 19), they’re wider by 10mm at the rear (now 285/30 ZR20), to increase traction.Around Lotus’s Hethel test track (once pockmarked like the bits of road your local council have ignored the longest but, post-Bahar, a worktop smooth handling circuit) the Evora 400 is seven seconds faster than the previous supercharged Evora, and as fast as a Lotus Exige S. Albeit, Lotus reckons, rather less tiring than the latter. It also now costs about £73,000 (£72k plus on the road costs).

Source: Autocar RSS Feed http://bit.ly/1RRmZdZ