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Lotus Evora 400 first drive

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Last week Tom Sutton from Boardwalk Lotus invited the GGLC to swing by and take a look at the new Evora 400 which will be begining US deliveries later this summer. This particular car was one of two euro-spec demo cars that have been going all over the US to attend the auto show circuit and had 21000 kms on it. I got the chance to drive it for a few miles and wanted to write up my thoughts on the car. These are all my personal opinions and will be coloured by my experiences from owning an Elise for 10 years and an Evora S IPS for ~8 months.… Read the rest

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cars personal thoughts videos

Lotus Evora S IPS on track – Take Two

In my previous post about the Evora S on track I spent a lot of time complaining about the 400 treadwear tires that the car was on. I was getting a lot of tire lock under braking and the car generally did not have enough grip on the track. Luckily I was then able to replace the tires with a set of Michelin Pilot Super Sport tires on the optional forged “sport” wheels for the Evora and hit Laguna with the GGLC once more.

As you can see from the video I was able to pull a 1:48 lap without really maximizing any of the turns.… Read the rest

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cars personal thoughts

Shelby Mustang GT350R Track Review

A few weeks ago Ford invited GGLC members to come down to Laguna Seca and drive the new Shelby Mustang GT350 as part of their North American track tour. I immediately signed up for it but having done a few of these manufacturer events I was not expecting much more beyond some power point presentations and a couple of lead follow laps – boy was I in for a surprise 🙂

I showed up at Laguna Seca with some friends in the afternoon and after signing the usual waivers we got down to the days program. It started with a large tent that contained several Ford performance cars including the Focus ST, Fiesta ST, Raptor pickup and a couple of the new GT350s as well.… Read the rest

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cars personal thoughts track days

Evora S IPS Street & Track Review

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Lets start with the elephant in the room – what possessed a person like me who has never owned a 4 seater car or any automatic go buy a 2+2 Evora Automatic? While I am a Lotus fan and had driven the original naturally aspirated Evora at launch, it just wasnt sufficiently different enough to switch over from my Elise. That changed when ScottW let me drive his beautiful GP Edition Evora S during the 2013 WCLM and I was just blown away. The car finally had the power to match its looks and the effortless acceleration made it a joy to drive on the highway.… Read the rest

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cars personal thoughts

How to bungle a product launch – my Dodge Charger Hellcat story so far

Update: I cancelled my Hellcat order and bought an Evora S instead. The week after I cancelled Dodge announced that they were canceling all remaining 2015 Hellcat orders and that folks would have to find new dealers and get in line again for a 2016. Well Fuck You Dodge!!!

I’ve never been a fan of muscle cars!

Growing up in India I never got to see any in person and Top Gear was pretty much my only window to the automotive world. This meant that I skipped American cars and instead was always a fan of the european supercars and had posters of the Ferrari F40 and Lamborghini Diablo on my bedroom wall.… Read the rest