A little introduction of my V6 (and previous Lotus)

[Remonvdh]

Hi all,

Late 2015 I received my first company car, which gave me the opportunity to look for a nice project car which I didn't need as a daily driver. I've considered lot's of cars (Clio RS197, Megane RS225, 350Z, Z4, Cooper S) but at that stage I was attracted by the Opel Speedster (Vauxhall VX220) because of it's low weight, enough power and simple technique. Never have I thought of a Lotus, as they were above my budget. After driving several Speedsters I wasn't convinced as I didn't find them aggressive enough. In my opinion the 2.2 engine is not the right engine for this car. Unfortunately the 2.0 Turbo versions where way more expensive at that time (double the price of the 2.2) so that wasn't an option either.

Luckily after some months (12/2015), while still searching for a Speedster, suddenly a Lotus Elise popped up for sale which was just within my budget and located not further than 10 km from my home. It was a RHD 2002 Elise S2 135 (tuned to approx. 160bhp) which didn't had MOT and it wasn't in mint condition. It was a bit of a gamble but I knew the price was right so I bought the car instantly (as I was in love off course ) after a friend of mine (which is a mechanic) did some checks. 

Within the months after that I first converted the Elise to LHD. In the next months/years I started to upgrade the looks by a total interior upgrade, new offset wheels and an Exige front clam conversion (and lots more).

2002 Elise S2 when I bought it:

2002 Elise S2 when I sold it:

Although I really liked the car, after 4 years I thought it was time for a new project, preferably something faster . I dreamed of a V6, but I couldn't sell my Elise fast enough to have the funds required for a V6. To solve my "I want something faster itch" I bought a 2005 Exige S2 supercharged with 240 bhp in January 2020. This car also had a history, which didn't make it a mint example, but ideal as a project to upgrade again! So now I had 2 Loti (is that the plural of Lotus? ) in my garage, but luckily in May I found a buyer for the Elise. While owning Exige S2 I've upgraded a lot but, despite being a very fast and agile car, I couldn't stop hankering for a V6. So I made the decision to sell that car already after 10 months to make one of my dreams come true: owning a V6 😎

2005 Exige S2 when I bought it:

2005 Exige S2 when I sold it:

Beginning of December I found my V6 on the internet and due to all Covid-19 restrictions, I couldn't go look for the car as it was located in Belgium and they were in lockdown. Mid December Belgium loosened their restrictions, which made it possible to check out the car which I off course directly did. As hoped the Exige was in very good condition and coming from it's 1st owner. After covering just 28.000km the previous owner was having too much issues getting in and out and replaced it with a Porsche.

As everything seemed perfect I directly bought the car and drove the 174km back home in my dream car!!! It drives even better than I had hoped for, so much more refined compared to my previous cars! 🤗

Obviously I've told the wife this one is already near perfect so I don't have to work much on it. But knowing myself and looking back at my automotive history, this Exige doesn't stay standard  

[Bibs]

Hi and welcome. Nice car, nice house too! 

Enjoy the new Exige!

[Techyd]

Superb car! I like your rear lights on the other Exige...so if you're looking to something  then GRP v3 lights look really good in this car!

[Remonvdh]

3 hours ago, Bibs said:

Hi and welcome. Nice car, nice house too! 

Enjoy the new Exige!

Thnx! It's a nice house indeed, but a bit too big for me  

1 hour ago, Techyd said:

Superb car! I like your rear lights on the other Exige...so if you're looking to something  then GRP v3 lights look really good in this car!

Thnx! The lights on my previous Exige were Hella's and installed by the previous owner. I have to say I didn't like them that much, but that was also caused by the fact they weren't installed properly. But the GRP V3's are on my list, even a bit higher after I yesterday went through the project thread of @MAG which inspired me a lot!

I've already start modding by fitting an OEM front splitter, the rear spoiler was mounted by the previous owner. Next small steps for the coming weeks are blacking out some parts (fuel cap surround/"LOTUS" letters on the rear/spoiler mounts/door card bolts), modify the stance a bit with Eibach springs and spacers, repaint the calipers (yellow) and install a small subwoofer.
After that I have a lot of more ideas, but I (/gf) have to force myself to take it easy this time  

Edited January 21, 2021 by Remonvdh

[Techyd]

1 hour ago, Remonvdh said:

even a bit higher after I yesterday went through the project thread of @MAG which inspired me a lot!

Yes that's an addictive thread that one!  As is the yellow Exige by @GFWilliams both of which I am sure will provide much inspiration !

[GFWilliams]

A great looking car, congratulations!

[Remonvdh]

18 hours ago, Techyd said:

Yes that's an addictive thread that one!  As is the yellow Exige by @GFWilliams both of which I am sure will provide much inspiration !

True! @GFWilliams's thread is great as well, I already 'know' that car for so long from all other social platforms

16 hours ago, Buddsy said:

Hi welcome to the forum.

Your V6 looks amazing!

 

buddsy

Thnx! 👍

15 hours ago, GFWilliams said:

A great looking car, congratulations!

Thnx! 👍

[ramjet]

Welcome to TLF.

Enjoy the Exige. Both cars look great.

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