St. Laurent 2003
Date: 31 May 2006
It's Tuen Ng Festival (Dragon Boat Festival) today. This wine is another from the hamper series. Not much to speak of - a bit of plum on the nose, very thin body with just a hint of fruit.
It is probably more interesting to make a note about the Lotus Exige 2 that I tried out this week. This is a back to basic sports car more suited for the track than as transport to the office. This particular sample has some modifications made to the air-intake, exhaust, gear-box oil cooler and brakes. The standard Exige has a maximum power output of 192hp, this one has been uptuned to 210hp.
The 6 speed manual gearbox takes a while to warm up. It was a little hard to work with when cold especially from 2nd to 3rd gear but after 10 minutes it starts to get slick. The brake pedal and accelerator was perfectly arranged for heel/toeing although the racing brakes tend to stick unless you work it hard and up to temperature.
The driver's seat is a no nonsense bucket with only fore and aft adjustment, which is just as well because those who are tall or obese needs to move the seat right back to get in and out of the car. The passenger seat is fixed and there is no adjustment.
Driving experience is 100% direct, the tiny Momo steering wheel is excellent and you can sense every little bump on the road. Larger potholes are hell. You can't complain about road feel with this car. The suspension, more like the lack of it, is extra stiff, coupled with the low centre of gravity of the car, there is no body roll into turns and you can really throw the car around corners. The car is really eager to point into turns but it is quite easy to kick the tail out if you gas up too soon. The racing tyres installed in this car with track tread-pattern can make driving in the wet a hairy experience.
The engine in the Exige is sourced from Toyota, keep the rev above 2000rpm and you'll be rewarded with superb responses and amazing engine notes. Every downshift with heel/toe is accompanied by an intoxicating engine roar which won't embarass you even next to a Lamborghini.
Compared to the open top Elise which is already a hard-core sports car, the Exige can be a bit too harsh for day to day use. But having driven this car for a while, one will find everything else a bit tame. To get the same driving pleasure, you'll have to fork out 5 to 10X as much to get a GT3, MC12, Zonda, Enzo....etc.
Rating: wine - poor
car - excellent
posted by Dr. T at 7:40 AM
