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Road Test

Lotus Exige

Test date 22 June 2004  Price as tested £31,500

The original Elise, the car that saved Lotus, appeared nine years ago, but the story of the Exige really begins in 1999 with the launch of the Sport Elise, a one-make racecar featuring aggressive aero bodywork and a centrally-mounted driver’s seat. Lotus claimed a roadgoing version would never be made but within the year, the Exige had been born.

And this was no pale imitation of the race car; the functional roof scoop directed cool air to the alternator, and the numerous aerodynamic aids added 80kg of downforce at 100mph. Series one Exige production finished in 2001.

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