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- Style-level Rating
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 6.8
/ 10
Overall Ratings
9.2 / 10
Dynamics
9.0 / 10 Engine Performance- The supercharged 1.8-liter engine makes plentiful torque and great top end. Compared to the weight of this vehicle, about 2,050 pounds, this is plenty of power.
8.0 / 10
Transmission Performance- The gears and gear spacing are excellent, as is the clutch and clutch pedal. The shift linkage drags the rating down a bit, as it’s a bit loose and clunky -- but it engages gears positively.
9.0 / 10 Brake Performance- The pedal is very firm, controllability is excellent, and it stops in short order. Very racecarlike.
10.0 / 10
Steering Perfomance- Wow! The steering is unassisted, but with the lightness of the front end, under 800 pounds, it doesn't need to be. As a result, feel and precision are excellent, as the driver can feel exactly what the front tires are experiencing.
10.0 / 10 Handling- This car carves corners with precision, stability and at very high speeds. It recorded our highest ever production car slalom speed, and returned skid pad numbers approaching 1.0g. It understeers a little, but can be effectively steered with the throttle. The limits are much higher than just about anyone will ever need on the street, and probably on the racetrack, too. A perfect track day car.
9.0 / 10 Fun-to-Drive- Yes, please! In addition to the raw performance numbers, this is the closest anyone without a helmet can get to racecar performance. Pure fun on the right roads. Not much of a commuter, though, but that's not the point with this one.
5.8 / 10
Comfort
5.0 / 10
Ride Comfort- This car isn't suited for segmented freeways or anything cracked or broken. It's hard to be too harsh, though, because these compromises were necessary to obtain the stellar handling. If ride comfort is important to you, do not buy this car.
7.0 / 10 Wind Noise- Wind noise is not too bad. The fixed roof is a huge advantage over the soft-top Elise in this area. But let's face it, the engine and road noise are so high that any wind noise is masked.
5.0 / 10 Road Noise- The track-oriented tires howl on certain surfaces, and are merely noisy on others. Again, this car willingly sacrifices such comforts so that it can have authentic racecar handling.
5.0 / 10 Front Seat Comfort/Space/Access- Drivers have to duck under the very low roof, and a extra-wide sill, which is the aluminum chassis, makes it awkward to get in. This is authentic racecar stuff, folks. Once inside, the barely padded racing-style seat is actually shaped well and there is plenty of space for our 6-foot 2-inch tester. Getting out is harder than getting in, and hard to do while maintaining your dignity.
7.0 / 10 Rear Seat Comfort/Space/Access
6.0 / 10 Driving Position- The steering is fixed, and neither tilts nor telescopes. It manages to be in the right place, however. The seat only slides fore and aft, and does not have a backrest angle. Still the position is good, and the sacrifices made in the name of light weight DO pay performance dividends. When on the gas, foot clearance to the brake pedal is tight, and heavily dependent on how wide one's shoes are. You'll want to own a specifc pair of shoes when you drive this.
6.1 / 10 Function
7.0 / 10 Headlight Illumination- The light is bright and well patterned. Push-buttons are used to operate them. Once you get used to this layout, it's pretty easy.
5.0 / 10 Visibility- You can't see out the rear window at all, as the supercharger sits there. The inside rearview mirror is therefore useless, included due to a quirk of British law. The outside mirrors work OK, but are hard to adjust. Rear blind spots are huge. Again, this is authentic racecar stuff.
7.0 / 10 Instrument Panel Layout- The gauge package is stripped down to bare essentials. The speedo and tach are large and easy to read. There is no redline on the tach, but there is a shift light. Water temperature is displayed digitally, and the fuel gauge is a bar graph. Odo and a tripmeter round out the rest.
6.0 / 10 Climate Control System Layout- The climate controls are simple knobs, and work well, with the following exceptions: 1) they are a bit too far away, and; 2) they are not illuminated at night.
7.0 / 10 Audio System Layout- This is a single DIN aftermarket-style stereo. The buttons are easy enough to figure out through trial and error (no audio manual is included) but they are small and hard to see. Kudos for the REAL iPod interface -- not simply an MP3 input jack.
5.0 / 10 Secondary Control Layout- This category almost isn't applicable, as there are few secondary controls apart from the wiper and turn-signal stalks, which work well. The traction control off switch, door lock switch, and trip odometer reset switch work well enough and, despite their unique locations, are easy to find when needed. Weird and quirky, however, describe the trip odometer reset and start sequence.
5.0 / 10 Interior Storage- There is no glovebox or door pockets. An underdash tray will hold a few items, but not very well. This isn't a travelling car.
6.0 / 10 Standard Cargo/Trunk Space- There isn't much room in the back at all. But if one uses duffel bags, a fair amount can be packed. Worse than a Miata, spacewise, but probably better than a Solstice with the top down.
7.0 / 10 Maximum Cargo Space (ease & amount)
6.0 / 10 Cupholders- None. This isn't the sort of car for that, so it's almost not applicable. When the goal is to make a 2,000-pound car, cupholders are one of those optional things that don't make the engineering cut.
6.5 / 10
Design/Build Quality
9.0 / 10 Exterior Design- The Exige S looks like no other car, and gets a lot of thumbs up. It manages to look like a cross between a high-performance racecar and a thoroughbred race motorcycle, which pretty much describes how it drives.
7.0 / 10 Interior Design- The design is simple, lightweight, and race derived. Here, too, the motorcyle impression is carried out in the look of the tightly bound instrument panel.
7.0 / 10 Interior Materials- The interior materials look correct for the Exige's identity. Extensive use of bare aluminum extrusions is both striking in appearance, and light weight.
6.0 / 10 Interior Control Tactile Feel- The buttons and knobs don't feel particularly precise or high grade.
5.0 / 10 Squeaks & Rattles- The suspension clunks, the doors thunk and a lot of interior parts buzz. They buzz because the engine is solidly mounted in the chassis, and the suspension bushings are mega-stiff.
5.0 / 10 Panel Fitment & Gaps- The suspension clunks, the doors thunk and a lot of interior parts buzz. They buzz because the engine is solidly mounted in the chassis, and the suspension bushings are mega-stiff.
Consumer Ratings are also available for this style.
See the 2007 Lotus Exige Consumer Ratings |
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