I’ve defected to the dark side….(NLC)

[Daveb99]

…..but still have my Elise S1, fear not - that’s going nowhere 👍🏻

The Evora was a mighty fine car, make no mistake.    And I put a huge amount of effort into making mine as good as it could be, in fairly short order.  It drove like a dream, with fabulous poise, steering and beautifully tuned ride and handling.   But my wife can’t drive manuals easily any more and we bought the Evora for trips and touring (as well as MLOC stuff!) - and yours truly isn’t doing all the driving 🤪

So after a couple of astonishingly good test drives a couple of weeks ago, this fine piece of German engineering is now in my garage. 

Other than the steering feel, it matches the Evora but gives so much more besides.   The Emira will need to bring a huge step up in quality to match it, although I concede that it’s a very pretty thing, which has surely accounted for 75% of the pre-orders, and will possibly be more engaging to drive due to the hydraulic helm.

I was determined to find a good example of the 981 Cayman with the factory Sports Exhaust (it’s very expensive to retrofit).  In my view it transforms the car, it goes from relatively quiet in full auto non-Sport mode, to sounding like a classic 911 with the Sport button pressed, in full manual, with the valves open.  It’s an absolute animal !

It’s a 2.7, I drove both this and an S and loved them both, but for me, a big part of the pleasure of these things is wringing them out and in the S I think you spend more time braking than accelerating…..!    The glorious flat six howl is heard way more often in the 2.7 too, because, much like the Evora NA, you have to drive it properly to extract the full potential….

Feel free to crack all the jokes you like and lambast me for going German, but it’s a very fine thing indeed.   Drive one and it’s clear to see why it has been the benchmark for so long (and sadly, why so few Evoras were sold, all at a loss).

Soon to be seen on a winter Midland Tick run / Peaks run near you - especially as I’ve now fitted winter wheels and tyres - I do believe I clocked a Merc, McLaren and Cayman GT4 at the last one!

[DeanB]

It's ugly! 

Only it's mother could love it*

 

 

 

*other opinions might be equally valid.

[martenr1975]

Love it Dave. Congrats. What winter rubber have you gone for?

 

 

[Daveb99]

20 minutes ago, DeanB said:

It's ugly! 

Only it's mother could love it*

 

 

 

*other opinions might be equally valid.

Thanks for your worthwhile input Dean 😂

[Daveb99]

8 minutes ago, martenr1975 said:

Love it Dave. Congrats. What winter rubber have you gone for?

 

 

Cheers Rich.  I got very lucky and picked up a brand new set of the nice 19” wheels (very easy to clean) for a very decent price - and they were shod with new Michelin Pilot Alpins.    Fitted them earlier and I’m still scrubbing them in - but they seem extremely good on the cold tarmac…

[Phil S1]

Looks very smart Dave, I'll look forward to having a nosey round it sometime.

[Elisemadray]

nice but I did prefer the Evora  

thank goodness for the little yellow demon

you and mark LRS7 will be starting your own sub category , the Darkside Boys😂

[Daveb99]

8 minutes ago, Elisemadray said:

nice but I did prefer the Evora  

thank goodness for the little yellow demon

you and mark LRS7 will be starting your own sub category , the Darkside Boys😂

So did I Ray, until I drove one of these……!

The Evora is a truly fantastic sports car.   And so is the Cayman.   It will be very interesting to see how things pan out with the Emira.   It’s a re-engineered Evora 400/GT410 with a (very) pretty frock and whole new interior really.   Personally I love the Evora looks as it is….but they’ve had to increase the quality and build in all the latest tech, toys, convenience features and cubbies/storage space to achieve volume sales and attract the masses, not just Lotus nerds like us.

I hope to own one in future.   In the meantime the Cayman has cost me less than 40% of a new Emira.   And as I need the DCT now - I also get the six cylinders.   Something that isn’t possible with an Emira….😬

[Elisemadray]

Hey just enjoy it  

[Luke Seagrave]

Dave, 

           Hope it puts a smile on your face just as much as Lotus does.

[PJT]

😴

[Daveb99]

2 hours ago, PJT said:

😴

🤣🤣🤣

If Lotus had made a decent auto for £30k I’d be all over it….

[CDM2018]

Lovely Cayman Dave

yes you get rock solid elements in all areas and I you can see why these cars have sold consistently over the years  
to be honest you look at aspects of the Porsche and are envious the finish etc 

but I still prefer the rarity of my Evora but still get frustrated with silly niggles the lotus throws up Love / Hate 

[PJT]

Porsche don’t make a decent car for £30k either…….😜

Truly through, it looks like a fantastic choice,  after all 🤓 you said you were looking for an automatic car that you wouldn’t want to drive……. , given those criteria, I’d not be looking at a Lotus either.🤣😂🤣

Joking/Mikey-taking aside, I am sure you’ll have many miles of enjoyment with your good lady.  In all honesty, they have been on my shortlist for over 20 years.

[Trebor_UK]

Bit of a fan of the Cayman myself and was pretty close to going down that route early last year but was struggling to find what I wanted with he budget I had set myself plus ultimately decided the time was right to go for a more raw low-tech experience and the Elise won.

Not to say that a Cayman won't come to the garage at some point in the future ....