Lotus customers in the North America region who feel their naturally aspirated Elise and Exige cars are not performing to expectation are in for a pleasant treat. Lotus Cars USA is offering these loyal fans a factory-engineered supercharger kit to increase both their power figures and their level of driving enjoyment.
"Lotus Elise and Exige owners are genuine driving enthusiasts," said Lotus Cars USA, Inc. Director of Operations Arnie Johnson, "and that's what has attracted them to Lotus cars in the first place. They will fully appreciate the dramatically enhanced driving character these Lotus Supercharger Kits will bring their vehicles and the peace of mind from a fully warranted, factory engineered kit."
The main instigator is the same supercharger found in the normal Elise SC and it comes with the same integrated intake manifold unit as well. Both pieces of kit work in synch with new high-flow fuel injectors and a reprogrammed ECU to boost power.
Authorised Lotus dealers in the US and Canada will be able to install it into any Elise or Exige powered by the Toyota 2ZZ-GE engine. The number of horses delivered will then jump from 189 to 218 (139kW to 160kW). Torque also sees an increase from 133 lb-ft to about 155 lb-ft (180Nm to 210Nm). What is significant about the torque, apart from the increase, is that it is now available from 5,000rpm instead of 6800rpm like in the naturally aspirated models.
