GALLERY: Lotus Exige S with GB livery, Elise 220 Cup

We’ve seen this duo before, but in less eye-catching dresses. The liveried car is a Lotus Exige S Automatic and the Elise is the 220 Cup, seen here in Polestar-like Daytona Blue.

The Exige S Automatic, announced in October last year, went on sale here in June. The six-speed auto coupe is powered by a 3.5 litre supercharged V6 engine with 345 hp at 7,000 rpm and 400 Nm of torque at 4,500 rpm, enough to catapult it to 100 km/h in 3.9 seconds, or 4.0 seconds for the Roadster.

The paddle shift-equipped car is actually a tenth faster in the century sprint than its manual sister, although those spending RM432,919 for a sparsely equipped Lotus (RM435,919 for the Roadster, both before options) might want more involvement. Or not, I’m not sure!

The Coupe here has some Union Jack livery with the “Investment Is Great Britain” tagline, which highlights the “GREAT” bit. Yes, there’s a “Britain” there although small, so this is not part of a Great Eastern Insurance campaign.

The “GREAT Britain” campaign was launched by British Prime Minister David Cameron in 2011 to encourage businesses to invest in the UK. The PM was in Malaysia as part of his four-day trade mission to South-East Asia, and this Exige would have had to play an ambassadorial role as Cameron wooed Malaysian investors at a lavish reception called “Battersea and Beyond” at the Petronas Twin Towers.

In fact, the Exige is the perfect example of foreign investment in Britain – it’s the fruit of Malaysian money and British engineering.

Moving on, we have here a Lotus Elise 220 Cup looking striking in Daytona Blue. Essentially a road-legal version of the track-only Elise Cup R, it sits above the Elise S Club Racer, Sport and Touring in Lotus Cars Malaysia’s range. Prices start from a hefty RM316,127, but one gets 217 hp/250 Nm from a supercharged 1.8 VVT-i engine. With just 952 kg to haul, it’s 0-100 km/h in 4.6 seconds via a six-speed stick shift.

It looks hardcore thanks to aero bits such as the new front splitter, lateral bargeboards, a fixed blacked-out roof, a large spoiler and a massive rear diffuser. Bilstein dampers, Eibach co-axial coil springs, AP Racing two-pot front calipers and Brembo rear calipers are all standard too. One can add on lightweight forged wheels with semi-slick Yokohama A048 tyres.

Lotus Exige S Automatic with GB livery

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