Lotus Elise: Road and Track: Get a Grip
updated November 2003
The Results
Two sections of Buttonwillow Raceway Park's East Loop were chosen for analysis: An increasing-radius hairpin and a quick right/left that tests a car's transitional composure and lateral grip. The track is run clockwise. Only the best segment times for each car are reported.
Note that for the Hairpin Turn analysis below, the speed at the end of the straight (6 )is taken at the braking point leading into the Transition Segment.
Hairpin Turn
The Hairpin of Buttonwillow’s East Loop is made tricky by a left-hand kink that occurs in the braking zone immediately preceding the increasing-radius right-hander. Exit speeds are largely influenced by vehicle power.
HAIRPIN
TURN RESULTS |
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| Map Key | BMW M3 Coupe | Chevrolet Corvette Z06 | Ferrari 360 Modena | Lotus Elise | Mazda MP3 | Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution VII | Porsche Boxster S | Porsche 911 Turbo | |
| Speed at Braking Point, mph | 1 | 88.8 | 90.9 | 89.7 | 82.7 |
77.6 | 86.8 | 85.5 | 92.7 |
| Corner Entry Speed, mph | 2 | 50.4 | 45.5 | 48.8 | 52.8 | 49.6 | 50.1 | 44.4 | 46.2 |
| Apex Speed, mph | 3 | 33.8 | 35.7 | 34.1 | 40.4 | 35.2 | 29.5 | 32.0 | 35.1 |
| Apex Lateral Acceleration, g | 4 | 1.08 | 1.28 | 1.22 | 1.34 | 1.15 | 0.99 | 1.11 | 1.19 |
| Corner Exit Speed, mph | 5 | 74.1 | 80.2 | 79.9 | 69.3 | 60.3 | 73.7 | 69.2 | 79.3 |
| Speed at End of Straight, mph | 6 | 94.5 | 102.2 | 100.7 | 85.7 | 77.6 | 92.0 | 82.7 | 100.6 |
| Segment Time, sec | 11.785 | 11.115 | 11.016 | 11.605 | 12.642 | 11.591 | 11.741 | 11.267 | |
BRYAN
HERTA'S COMMENTS |
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| BMW M3
Coupe I’d like to see it have a little more grip coming off the corner where I can really put some of that M power down to the ground. |
Chevrolet
Corvette Z06 I don’t feel like I can brake as late as I want to going into the corner. It turns in fairly well. It is a lot of fun accelerating off the corner. |
Ferrari
360 Modena It is quick, though it doesn’t have an over-whelming amount of power. The tight suspension gives you a lot of feedback. |
Lotus
Elise The brakes are easy to modulate before turning in. The front tucks in nicely. I have enough grip to go faster if I had more power. |
Mazda
MP3 The car picks up some understeer and a little wheelspin. I would like to see a little more ride and damping control. |
Mitsubishi
Lancer Evolution
VII This is one place to me where it still feels like a front-wheel-drive car. I pick up that power understeer. |
Porsche
Boxster S Once the car starts to understeer, it is locked in that mode and I can't balance it the way I want. |
Porsche
911 Turbo It has a lot of power and it's a fast car. There is a lot of understeer through the hairpin and on-power coming off. |
|
Transition Segment
The Transition Segment requires the driver to compromise the ideal line in the right-hander to get the car up properly for the more important left turn.
TRANSITION
SEGMENT |
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| Map Key | BMW M3 Coupe | Chevrolet Corvette Z06 | Ferrari 360 Modena | Lotus Elise | Mazda
MP3 |
Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution VII | Porsche Boxster S | Porsche 911 Turbo | |
| Speed at Braking Point, mph | 1 | 94.5 | 102.0 | 99.3 | 85.7 | 77.4 | 92.6 | 86.7 | 98.9 |
| Corner Entry Speed, mph | 2 | 61.6 | 66.0 | 63.4 | 58.9 | 53.9 | 63.3 | 60.9 | 67.1 |
| Apex Speed 1, mph | 3 | 52.8 | 53.3 | 55.6 | 54.5 | 47.2 | 53.7 | 53.3 | 53.0 |
| Apex Speed 2, mph | 4 | 43.6 | 47.5 | 48.3 | 50.0 | 47.0 | 47.0 | 47.7 | 40.1 |
| Max Lateral Accel in Segment, g | 5 | 1.13 | 1.35 | 1.31 | 1.41 | 1.16 | 1.25 | 1.38 | 1.23 |
| Corner Exit Speed, mph | 6 | 58.5 | 61.8 | 61.7 | 60.4 | 56.8 | 61.7 | 59.8 | 61.7 |
| Segment Time, sec | 10.020 | 9.687 | 9.656 | 9.595 | 10.276 | 9.617 | 9.873 | 9.924 | |
BRYAN
HERTA'S COMMENTS |
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| BMW M3
Coupe To drive this car hard, I have to accept the fact it needs to be sideways. It is almost a rally style of driving. |
Chevrolet
Corvette Z06 The steering has a positive turn-in and nice feedback. The suspension has a lot of movement and feels soft. |
Ferrari
360 Modena The car’s suspension gives you feedback early and it is more reactive to driver input. |
Lotus
Elise I can carry a lot of speed into the corner, but once I start to scrub it off, I don’t have enough power to pull through. |
Mazda
MP3 Once the car loads down and I try to build speed, it has no problem accom-modating. It has more grip than power. |
Mitsubishi
Lancer Evolution
VII The same thing that helps the car to have positive turn-in also makes it good for transitioning from one direction back to the next. |
Porsche
Boxster S The car carries some understeer on power, which is a nice tendency when I am coming off the corner. |
Porsche
911 Turbo Definitely a car that’s loose on entry and then has too much understeer on exit. |
|
Performance
PERFORMANCE |
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| BMW M3 Coupe | Chevrolet Corvette Z06 | Ferrari 360 Modena | Lotus Elise | Mazda MP3 | Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution VII | Porsche Boxster S | Porsche 911 Turbo | |
| Skidpad, g | 0.89 | 0.98 | 0.95 | 0.97 | 0.90 | 0.92 | 0.92 | 0.96 |
| Hairpin Segment Time, sec | 11.785 | 11.115 | 11.016 | 11.605 |
12.642 | 11.591 | 11.741 | 11.267 |
| slalom, mph | 67.4 | 67.3 | 69.7 | 73.0 | 70.2 | 68.7 | 69.7 | 70.2 |
| Transition Segment Time, sec | 10.020 | 9.687 | 9.656 | 9.595 | 10.276 | 9.617 | 9.873 | 9.924 |
Specifications
SPECIFICATIONS |
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| BMW M3 Coupe | Chevrolet Corvette Z06 | Ferrari 360 Modena | Lotus Elise* | Mazda MP3 | Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution VII* | Porsche Boxster S | Porsche 911 Turbo | |
| Price as tested | $49,909 | $49,996 | $171,243 | $35,000 | $18,500 | $36,000 | $53,360 | $120,036 |
| Test weight | 3495 lb | 3260 lb | 3370 lb | 1900 lb | 2865 lb | 3260 lb | 3145 lb | 3670 lb |
| Weight dist (w/driver), f/r, % | 52/48 | 56/44 | 44/56 | 44/56 | 62/38 | 61/39 | 47/53 | 41/59 |
| Wheelbase | 107.5 in. | 104.5 in. | 102.3 in. | 90.6 in. | 102.8 in. | 103.3 in. | 95.2 in. | 92.5 in. |
| Track, f/r | 59.4 in./ 60.0 in. | 62.4 in./ 62.6 in. | 65.7 in./ 63.6 in. | 57.0 in./ 59.0 in. | 57.9 in./ 57.9 in. | 59.6 in./ 59.6 in. | 57.7 in./ 59.2 in. | 57.7 in./ 59.9 in. |
| Length | 176.9 in. | 179.7 in. | 176.3 in. | 149.0 in. | 175.3 in. | 175.4 in. | 171.0 in. | 174.6 in. |
| Width | 70.0 in. | 73.6 in. | 75.6 in. | 67.7 in. | 67.1 in. | 69.7 in. | 70.1 in. | 72.0 in. |
| Engine type | dohc 4-valve/cyl inline-6 | dohc 2-valve/cyl V-8 | dohc 5-valve/cyl V-8 | dohc 4-valve/cyl inline-4 | dohc 4-valve/cyl inline-4 | turbocharged dohc 4-valve/cyl inline-4 | dohc 4-valve/cyl flat-6 | twin-turbo dohc 4-valve/cyl flat-6 |
| Displacement | 3245 cc | 5665 cc | 3586 cc | 1796 cc | 1991 cc | 1997 cc | 3179 cc | 3600 cc |
| Horsepower (SAE) | 333 bhp @ 7900 rpm | 405 bhp @ 6000 rpm | 395 bhp @ 8500 rpm | 122 bhp @ 5600 rpm | 140 bhp @ 6000 rpm | 276 bhp @ 6500 rpm | 250 bhp @ 6250 rpm | 415 bhp @ 6000 rpm |
| Torque | 262 lb-ft @ 4900 rpm | 400 lb-ft @ 4800 rpm | 275 lb-ft @ 4750 rpm | 124 lb-ft @ 4500 rpm | 142 lb-ft @ 4500 rpm | 275 lb-ft @ 6500 rpm | 225 lb-ft @ 4500 rpm | 413 lb-ft @ 2700 rpm |
| Transmission | 6-sp manual | 6-sp manual | 6-sp manual (progressive) | 5-sp manual | 5-sp manual | 5-sp manual | 6-sp manual | 6-sp manual |
| Layout | front engine/ rwd | front engine/ rwd | mid engine/ rwd | mid engine/ rwd | front
engine/ fwd |
front engine/ awd | mid engine/ rwd | rear engine/ awd |
| Body/ frame | unit steel | fiberglass/ unit steel | aluminum/ aluminum space frame | fiberglass/ aluminum space frame | unit steel | unit steel | unit steel | unit steel |
| Brake system, f/r | 12.8-in. vented discs/ 12.9-in. vented discs | 12.6-in. vented discs/ 11.8-in. vented discs | 13.0-in. drilled & vented discs/ 13.0-in. drilled & vented discs | 11.1-in. drilled & vented discs/ 11.1-in. drilled & vented discs | 10.2-in. vented discs/ 10.3-in. discs | 14.0-in. vented discs/ 12.0-in. vented discs | 12.5-in. drilled & vented discs/ 11.8-in. drilled & vented discs | 13.0-in. drilled & vented discs/ 13.0-in. drilled & vented discs |
| Wheels | alloy 18 x 8J f, 18 x 9J r |
alloy 17 x 9 1/2 f, 18 x 10 1/2 r |
alloy 18 x 7 1/2 f, 18 x 9 1/2 r |
alloy 16 x 5 1/2 f, 17 x 7 1/2 r |
alloy 17 x 7 |
alloy 17 x 8 |
alloy 18 x 7 1/2 f, 18 x 9 r |
alloy 18 x 8 f, 18 x 11 r |
| Tire maker | Michelin | Goodyear | Pirelli | Brigestone | Pirelli | Yokohama | Dunlop | Pirelli |
| Tire model | Pilot Sport | Eagle F1 Supercar | P Zero Asimmetrico | Potenza RE04 | P Zero Asimmetrico | AVS Sport | SP Sport | P Zero Asimmetrico |
| Tire model | Pilot Sport | Eagle F1 Supercar | P Zero Asimmetrico | Potenza RE04 | P Zero Asimmetrico | AVS Sport | SP Sport | P Zero Asimmetrico |
| Tires | 225/45ZR-18 f 255/ 40ZR-18 r | P265/40ZR-17 91Y f, P295/ 35ZR-18 91Y r | 215/45R-18 89 Y f, 275/ 40R-18 99Y r | 175/55R-16 80V f, 225/ 45R-17 90V r | 205/45ZR-17 88W | 235/45ZR-17 93W | 225/40ZR-18 f, 265/ 35ZR-18 r | 225/40ZR-18 f, 295/ 30ZR-18 r |
| Steering | rack & pinion, power assist | rack & pinion, power assist | rack & pinion, power assist | rack & pinion | rack & pinion, power assist | rack & pinion, power assist | rack & pinion, power assist | rack & pinion, power assist |
| Suspension, f/r | MacPherson struts, coil springs, anti-roll bar/ multilink, coil springs, anti-roll bar | upper & lower A-arms, transverse composite leaf springs, anti-roll bar f & r | upper & lower A-arms, coil springs, anti-roll bar/ upper & lower A-arms, toe links, coil springs, anti-roll bar | upper & lower A-arms, coil springs, anti-roll bar f & r | MacPherson struts, coil springs, anti-roll bar/ trapezoidal-link, coil springs, anti-roll bar | MacPherson struts, coil springs, anti-roll bar/ multilink, coil springs, anti-roll bar | MacPherson struts, coil springs, anti-roll f & r | MacPherson struts, coil springs, anti-roll bar/ multilink, coil springs, anti-roll bar |
From Road and Track online; http://www.roadandtrack.com/