Evora GT430

[anthonyyule]

42 minutes ago, andyj007 said:

i want a wing....  its just cool very cool

 

Great pic line up....... Cup 260/ GT430 and a lovely 410 in the background  

[Breeze]

The perfect Evora for me would be the look of the 430 Sport, fully equipped with all options, and rear seats, sound proofing etc, to make it a genuine long distance GT. I'd want glass in the rear windows, not a piece of plastic as well.  

On 10/28/2017 at 11:19, Michadams said:

My main purpose was the body color choice

Blue, Red, Green.... There were a lot of GT430 on production lines. I could see them in quite all colors available. Fire Red, Air Force Blue, Metallic Blue, Essex Blue, the new "light" Metallic Blue, Motorsport Green, Aspen White, Metallic Black, GP scheme, Dark Grey Metallic, Metallic Grey. .. I've seen old colors like the Nautilus Blue, even a Metallic Purple like the already seen Sport 410 (not my cup of tea). Battleship grey is also amazing, as a solid dark grey color (aka McLaren).

Mine will be 2+0 GT430 Sport, Fire Red, Alcantara Pack, Piano Black Interior Pack, Gold & Red Stitching, Infotainement, Subwoofer, AirCo, Insulation Pack, "diamond cut" like 10.5 wheels, Fire Red stripes on roof and access panel, black engine cover. Still on the fence regarding the transmission and seats. 

I was told at the factory that the auto gearbox will have a lower power and torque, but don't have the figures. 

I understood that the Aurobox has a higher torque, quicker acceleration but a lower top speed..as if that matters...where are you going to try and drive at 190+ mph?

[The Pits]

Version 2.0 of the GT430 article should be this afternoon. Very nearly there.

[The Pits]

Updated article with technical input from Lotus, finally ready here.

 

[cobwatch]

Thank you Jonny...felt i was there with you. Out of my reach new, but in a half decade if owners are foolish enough to move on, you never know, unless values hold or even rise. Thought you might emulate your Esprit with white/red but too much black for that to really work?

[Bibs]

[andyj007]

Now that is a stunning article...  out of my comfort zone for a car, but the article has ignited some fire... i find myself thinking madly thinking about what i can do / juggle things about, and if my wife would divorce me if i told here id blown 100k  plus on a new car.... 

fantastic bit of writing ....  

[geartox]

1 hour ago, The Pits said:

Updated article finally ready here

 

I have read your update. Thank you for the job and the article. If you compare to your V6 Cup, on track, what do you think ? 

 

[The Pits]

2 hours ago, cobwatch said:

Thank you Jonny...felt i was there with you. Out of my reach new, but in a half decade if owners are foolish enough to move on, you never know, unless values hold or even rise. Thought you might emulate your Esprit with white/red but too much black for that to really work?

Thanks. I had a Copper Fire Sport 410 on order at one stage, that was very much intended as a companion to the Esprit. Going for Motorsport Green was more to honour the Exige. I never tired of the colour nor the car which didn't miss a beat in 4.5 years of ownership. Not for a second! 

@geartox that's a whole article in itself! The V6 Cup has been my benchmark for everything since 2013. I compared it back to back with the Evora Sport 410 in the track test article, much of that applies here. That said the GT430 has quite a different feel to the Sport 410. I'd compare it to the difference between a regular supercharged Elise and a 250 Cup. Some might argue the less grippy car is a bit more fun. I can relate to that point of view but huge grip is fun too in a different way. There's no such thing as too much grip when you have one of the Evora's rivals behind you on a trackday!

With the huge privilege of being about to own a GT430, there will be plenty to come on how it compares on track throughout 2018. Will be very interesting to see how it fares against some of the Exiges here but it seems that upgraditis has taken hold lately, the modified Exiges are going to be hard to live with on track, I'm sure.

What do we think is a realistic target for Spa?

[Bravo73]

On 02/11/2017 at 09:36, Michadams said:

Yes, Air Force Blue is the GT430 Sport press car, and yes, it's a solid color. 

Ah, AKA 'Crab' blue. 

[The Pits]

PS if you haven't clicked on the photos in the article yet, do. They enlarge to lovely high res glory!

[SFO]

5 hours ago, The Pits said:

Updated article with technical input from Lotus, finally ready here.

 

Thank you. 

One of the best pieces of automotive journalism I have read this year. Absolutely superb. ????

[mik]

32 minutes ago, SFO said:

Thank you. 

One of the best pieces of automotive journalism I have read this year. Absolutely superb. ????

That was great Mr pits. 

I'll have one if the numbers come up on Sat.

[Michadams]

15 hours ago, The Pits said:

Updated article with technical input from Lotus, finally ready here.

 

If I didn't already order one, I would after your article, simply amazing write up !
Many thanx

For sure, it will be super fast in Spa, a regular Evora S is capable of sub 2'46, which is already really fast regarding the HP/weight ratio. 

Edited November 4, 2017 by Michadams

[NW76]

@The Pits great article! Thanks for writing it and sharing your experience!

[Cypriot]

Out of interest, how much would it cost to retro fit those dampers to a 400? Seems like biggest improvement in the car is there! Great article, and great review!

[The Pits]

Very expensive to retro fit unfortunately, best bet would be a race team I imagine, labour cost at a dealer would be large amount on top.

The GT430 uses Ohlins TTX36 which are available but as in the article Lotus developed and built them to a unique spec. I've been in an Exige 360 Cup with Ohlins TTX36 and it was very stiff, more so than the Nitrons I had in my V6 Cup. Certainly less compliant for road use.

[The Pits]

7 hours ago, Michadams said:

If I didn't already order one, I would after your article, simply amazing write up !
Many thanx

For sure, it will be super fast in Spa, a regular Evora S is capable of sub 2'46, which is already really fast regarding the HP/weight ratio. 

Much appreciated.

2.46 is a savage time at Spa, no-one has beaten than that in an Exige V6 Cup yet. My target would be to go under 2.50, to begin with anyway. I'm no Spa specialist and I never go all out on a trackday but I never went under 2.50 in the Exige which felt mighty fast at Spa.

I've done a 2.41 in a Caterham but that's a race car. Not many road cars go under 2.40 so I'd be very happy with a 2.46. Will be really interesting to find out. I'm expecting the downforce to come into play at Spa for sure.

[blindside]

23 hours ago, Bibs said:

Lotus Silverstone Facebook ad Black 430 ....

Your an evil man sharing this @BibsThis would be the exact colour & spec for me. I do not do facebook and would never have known this black beauty was out there already made. Crazy thoughts are entering my head..........that make no economic sense.

[Bravo73]

2 hours ago, Cypriot said:

Out of interest, how much would it cost to retro fit those dampers to a 400? Seems like biggest improvement in the car is there! Great article, and great review!

Approximately £5k + VAT + fitting. £7k++ if you want the Mechatronics system included. 

The ‘Lotus spec’ for the dampers is available outside of Lotus, btw. 

[SFO]

I went to drool over the Silverstone GT430 today. 

It’s starlight black with the carbon backed sparco seats. 

As many have said, the thing is very striking with amazing presence and demeanour. 

Build quality is pretty good too. 

I was transfixed by the very beautiful complex shaped rear wing ??

 

[NW76]

11 hours ago, Michadams said:

If I didn't already order one, I would after your article, simply amazing write up !
Many thanx

For sure, it will be super fast in Spa, a regular Evora S is capable of sub 2'46, which is already really fast regarding the HP/weight ratio. 

Is a regular road legal Evora S really capable of doing a 2:46?!? hard to imagine for me - is there anything on video? I would have guessed it should be capable of maybe a 2:55ish time.. 

 

[cobwatch]

How fast round Spa in a GT 430 can Jonny go? Math can help give us an indication. Around Hethel a GT 430 is 4.66 % faster than a Exige sport 350(1m 25.8 v 1m 29.8). Jonny has "estimated" that the 350 has almost identical performance to his Exige Cup, so lets proceed on that basis, bearing in mind Hethel is not Spa and this is just statistical fun. Jonny has never dipped under 2m 50 at Spa...so lets speed up that lap time by 4.66%, and we get....2m 42. Fast enough as a target for you Jonny! Jim Clarke must have been driving that 2m 46 Evora S.....

[Michadams]

 I made 2'48 with an Evora S MY12 IPS, Pirelli PZero Corsa. This was during the GT Days 2012, I was there for the belgian dealers (was working for Lotus at the moment). As I'm not a pro driver, was not alone in the car, IPS, I assume that a better driver, alone, could go under 2'46. 

[NW76]

@Michadams thats fast ... very impressive ... the target then certainly must be close to a low 2:40 in the GT 430 ... hope I will see some next year to have a comp to my EX460 ...