Lotus has marked the assembly of the 1,000th Exige S sports car at its core plant in Hethel, United Kingdom.
Since their launch in 2012, the Exige S and its Roadster sibling have sold particularly well in Japan (the model’s biggest market), the UK, Switzerland, Australia, Hong Kong and Belgium. Lotus said the 1,000th car built is destined for the final sign-off of the new automatic gearbox which will be offered as an option on either coupe or roadster variants.
“Our customers want a pure driving experience and the Exige S epitomises the Lotus DNA of performance and handling excellence,” said Lotus Cars CEO Jean-Marc Gales. He added that the company has recorded its strongest October since 2009 for sales thanks to strong global demand in new markets.
“There is incredible potential for growth in the Middle East, China and ASEAN countries, where the automatic option for the Exige is anticipated to stimulate customer demand further,” the executive added.
The Lotus Exige S is powered by a 3.5-liter supercharged V6 petrol engine producing 345hp (350PS) at 7,000 rpm and 295lb-ft (400Nm) of torque at 4,500 rpm. Mated as standard with a six-speed close ratio manual gearbox, the Exige S sprints from 0 to 60 mph (96 km/h) in 3.8 seconds and reaches a top speed of 170 mph (274 km/h).
PHOTOS
