mdavies Posted September 20, 2016 Report Share Posted September 20, 2016 Even Zenos! http://www.cosworth.com/pr-media/news-archive/automotive/cosworth-set-to-play-major-role-in-new-hybrid-driveline-system/ Working with Cosworth et al on a future hybrid drive system. Shouldn't actually be surprised of course, given their outlook. The Zenos Operations Director in the photo actually spells his name "Windle". He is ex-Caterham but previously Tesla, so probably already up to speed with battery aspects. Seeing their approach to high and then higher performance (now an upgrade kit for the S model), I can imagine one specific benefit of a hybrid installation in a Zenos perhaps being a short term "over boost" type function such on the Fiesta ST. Trevor, re your query above, I see on Twitter that they just recently handed over the 100th customer car. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mdavies Posted October 9, 2016 Report Share Posted October 9, 2016 Grand Tour? Grand Coup! For the Zenos Marketing Department anyway: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mdavies Posted December 18, 2016 Report Share Posted December 18, 2016 Be glad to hear from anyone who saw the whole Zenos related piece about how it did. Episode 5 I believe. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gold FFM JayEmm Posted December 18, 2016 Gold FFM Report Share Posted December 18, 2016 It's Top Gear The Grand Tour, they didn't really do much quantifiable reviewing, other than the startling revelation than the Zenos was faster than the Alfa Romeo - which we all know. You can keep an eye out for my review of the Zenos E10 next year, the kind people at Zenos have agreed to loan me one for a video. Quote James Martin (JayEmm) Director of Photography & Car Enthusiast Follow my Lotus adventure online! www.jayemm.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Inkyfingers Posted December 18, 2016 Report Share Posted December 18, 2016 Look forward to that James. I quite like the look of these but the interior really puts me off. Some people might say that's not the point in a car like this, but even the basic Elise interior looks far superior. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Trevsked Posted December 19, 2016 Report Share Posted December 19, 2016 I thought the interior was ok and minimal as it should be but the LCD screen brought nice modern edge. It's looks are a bit unbalanced but of course it's more about how it drives. Trevor. 1 Quote I'll get around to it at some point. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gold FFM JayEmm Posted December 19, 2016 Gold FFM Report Share Posted December 19, 2016 I'll have a thorough opinion when I've got my hands on one, I haven't sat in one since it was a prototype that didn't even run! I'm going to approach it as a Caterham alternative, or possibly for someone looking at an Elise that really just wants a track or sunny weather car Quote James Martin (JayEmm) Director of Photography & Car Enthusiast Follow my Lotus adventure online! www.jayemm.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LF1 Posted December 19, 2016 Report Share Posted December 19, 2016 Are you going to be reviewing it on track back to back with those cars then @JayEmm? Quote Lotus Register - https://www.lotusregister.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gold FFM JayEmm Posted December 19, 2016 Gold FFM Report Share Posted December 19, 2016 Unfortunately not. I would love to take the Zenos on track and if I can foster a good relationship with the guys there hopefully I might get an invite in future to do so. Sadly the only people in Norfolk I know who have a track that I can use with ease don't seem keen on me taking their own cars on it, let alone a rival's. Quote James Martin (JayEmm) Director of Photography & Car Enthusiast Follow my Lotus adventure online! www.jayemm.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bibs Posted December 19, 2016 Author Report Share Posted December 19, 2016 Snetterton isn't miles away... 1 Quote 88 Esprit NA, 89 Esprit Turbo SE, Evora, Evora S, Evora IPS, Evora S IPS, Evora S IPS SR, Evora 400, Elise S1, Elise S1 111s, Evora GT410 Sport Evora NA For forum issues, please contact the Moderators. I will aim to respond to emails/PM's Mon-Fri 9-6 GMT. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gold FFM JayEmm Posted December 19, 2016 Gold FFM Report Share Posted December 19, 2016 No and hopefully I may get to do some filming their but to do proper filming you need the track to yourself, even if for a short while. MSV are not easy people to deal with. And the only Lotus I have which will pass their noise tests is probably the Excel! Quote James Martin (JayEmm) Director of Photography & Car Enthusiast Follow my Lotus adventure online! www.jayemm.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LF1 Posted December 19, 2016 Report Share Posted December 19, 2016 The Elise and Caterham you are comparing too won't have any issues at Snett. Quote Lotus Register - https://www.lotusregister.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gold FFM JayEmm Posted December 19, 2016 Gold FFM Report Share Posted December 19, 2016 My Elise would. Not a fair comparison but it's a car I have access to. I may ask Caterham in the new year if I can have a car for review but I highly doubt they're going to let me have one for a head to head. Quote James Martin (JayEmm) Director of Photography & Car Enthusiast Follow my Lotus adventure online! www.jayemm.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LF1 Posted December 19, 2016 Report Share Posted December 19, 2016 Which Caterham derivative were you thinking? Assuming Elise Cup? Have you considered Bedford? They may let you use parts of the track not in use on their corporate days. I've had parts of the track privately for a day when a corporate day was going on elsewhere. Quote Lotus Register - https://www.lotusregister.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gold FFM JayEmm Posted December 19, 2016 Gold FFM Report Share Posted December 19, 2016 Good shout, I might ask them. I would have to look and see what is the fairest comparison cost-wise to the Zenos. I think I will be getting an E 10 S for review, very possibly the exact same one Clarkson etc... just had. It's probably the most popular in the range as the E10R is faster but £50k+ when specced and that is a fair chunk of money for something without a roof Quote James Martin (JayEmm) Director of Photography & Car Enthusiast Follow my Lotus adventure online! www.jayemm.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ads_green Posted January 1, 2017 Report Share Posted January 1, 2017 On 18/12/2016 at 22:05, Inkyfingers said: Look forward to that James. I quite like the look of these but the interior really puts me off. Some people might say that's not the point in a car like this, but even the basic Elise interior looks far superior. I think the interior works well (ok, probably biased!). The screens are great even in sunlight and the ergonomics are every bit as good as the elise. I don't think it's fair to compare with an elise though as easy to have a nicer interior if you want to add the best part of 200kgs! I never really liked the 211 interior as it wasn't even tweaked for screenless/roofless driving leaving a lot of exposed areas. It has some nice touches... Things like lockable storage, access to battery/fuses/OBD. I can totally recommend the heated carbon seats - comfy even on a long journey and being heated really takes the edge off. I am still using my e10r even now which isn't something I'd have considered with the 211. Downsides? Well the electronic cut off is infront of the phone holder and it's *very* easy to hit it if you put your phone there. It is quite embarrassing to say the least! I got some small luggage nets and stuck to the central spine and it works much better. On 19/12/2016 at 18:26, JayEmm said: Good shout, I might ask them. I would have to look and see what is the fairest comparison cost-wise to the Zenos. I think I will be getting an E 10 S for review, very possibly the exact same one Clarkson etc... just had. It's probably the most popular in the range as the E10R is faster but £50k+ when specced and that is a fair chunk of money for something without a roof I was fortunate to get my E10R finalised before the price increase and ticked a lot of option boxes for considerably under 50k. However I do like that Zenos have a fully supported upgrade path from the E10S to the E10R so you don't lose anything if later on you decide for more. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gold FFM JayEmm Posted January 1, 2017 Gold FFM Report Share Posted January 1, 2017 I guess the real question the Zenos needs to answer is "Does the car offer a tangible improvement in driving experience, to make the practical trade-offs necessary" An Elise is a car that COULD be daily driven. I never would, at least not mine, but I know plenty of people who do. However I think the Zenos is nowhere near being able to make that claim with the E10. They did have a coupe and convertible planned though... Quote James Martin (JayEmm) Director of Photography & Car Enthusiast Follow my Lotus adventure online! www.jayemm.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bibs Posted January 1, 2017 Author Report Share Posted January 1, 2017 4 minutes ago, JayEmm said: They did have a coupe and convertible planned though... E11 is the cab and E12 is the coupe iirc. I saw their renderings both late in 2015 and they looked stunning. Quote 88 Esprit NA, 89 Esprit Turbo SE, Evora, Evora S, Evora IPS, Evora S IPS, Evora S IPS SR, Evora 400, Elise S1, Elise S1 111s, Evora GT410 Sport Evora NA For forum issues, please contact the Moderators. I will aim to respond to emails/PM's Mon-Fri 9-6 GMT. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ads_green Posted January 1, 2017 Report Share Posted January 1, 2017 The E11 is next (the coupe) and looks amazing. People won't be disappointed (and will have doors and windows and a boot). As any Lotus owner knows, doors and windows are hard to get right. So made sense to prove the chassis tech with the E10 as this was considerably easier (relatively) without having to consider doors. The hard part is that whilst the E10 could survive as an IVA approved card the E11 will be (I believe) type approved... whole new level of complexity. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ads_green Posted January 1, 2017 Report Share Posted January 1, 2017 43 minutes ago, JayEmm said: I guess the real question the Zenos needs to answer is "Does the car offer a tangible improvement in driving experience, to make the practical trade-offs necessary" An Elise is a car that COULD be daily driven. I never would, at least not mine, but I know plenty of people who do. However I think the Zenos is nowhere near being able to make that claim with the E10. They did have a coupe and convertible planned though... The E10 is the nearest thing I've driven to the feel of the original 1997 Elise but has many modern tweaks. Brakes feel better and the engine is less likely (fingers crossed) to have issues. All the drive train is lifted from standard Ford parts so no reason to suspect any issues. I survived with an Elise as my only car for years - certainly no reason why it can't be used even in the harshest weather. However as good as the E10 is, I agree it's not an all-weather car. You can go out in thunderstorms (I have) and only get "moderately damp" but it's not ideal. And the lockable storage is really only big enough to store the steering wheel. I would say the E10 with a windscreen is best compared with the 340R. For sure the E10 isn't an single car proposition but it is so much fun to drive - I don't miss my old 211, s2 190 or other elise cars at all. On 19/12/2016 at 18:26, JayEmm said: Good shout, I might ask them. I would have to look and see what is the fairest comparison cost-wise to the Zenos. I think I will be getting an E 10 S for review, very possibly the exact same one Clarkson etc... just had. It's probably the most popular in the range as the E10R is faster but £50k+ when specced and that is a fair chunk of money for something without a roof Worth making sure that it has the revised brake setup which clears up criticism of a "wooden" brake pedal and the short shift. If it's a press car then no doubt it'll have the latest tweeks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gold FFM JayEmm Posted January 1, 2017 Gold FFM Report Share Posted January 1, 2017 I'm fairly sure they won't give me a crapper. I did have the offer to drive one in December but they said if I waited until this year I would possibly get something better (I assume they mean an S). It's a very big thing for me because tiny manufacturer though they may be, it's manufacturer support none-the-less. Quote James Martin (JayEmm) Director of Photography & Car Enthusiast Follow my Lotus adventure online! www.jayemm.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ads_green Posted January 1, 2017 Report Share Posted January 1, 2017 Might be the upgraded S to 280hp from 250. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gold FFM JayEmm Posted January 16, 2017 Gold FFM Report Share Posted January 16, 2017 As of this morning Zenos are now in Administration. Such a shame. I thought they had cracked the curse of the small sports car maker. I have no other information at the time. Quote James Martin (JayEmm) Director of Photography & Car Enthusiast Follow my Lotus adventure online! www.jayemm.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Malcolm Feth Posted January 16, 2017 Report Share Posted January 16, 2017 not the best news of the day :/ Quote www.facebook.com/nineteen80one | www.nineteen80one.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gold FFM CocoPops Posted January 16, 2017 Gold FFM Report Share Posted January 16, 2017 Just read a similar thread over at the playground. Quote Current: 2021 Lotus Elise Cup 250 FE in Isotope Green, Red Alcantara Interior, Carbon Aero Kit, AirCon, Carpets & Mats, NVH pack, Cruise Control, Stereo, Red Calipers. Now Gone: 2018 Lotus Elise Sport 220 in Metallic Blue, Alcantara Pack, Forged Wheels, 2piece brakes, AirCon, Hard/Soft Tops, Red Calipers, Stereo, Interior Colour Pack, NVH Pack, Carpets, Mats. Previously Owned: 2016 Lotus Evora 400, 2010 Lotus Evora NA, 2003 VX220 Supercharged, 2001 VX220 Lightning Yellow Follow my Lotus journey here: http://www.FaceBook.com/HandmadeInHethel Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.