New automatic version of the Exige S, designed to widen the car's market appeal, on sale in January 2015 for £56,500Lotus has unveiled an automatic version of its Exige S sports car, which will go on sale in January 2015.
The Exige S automatic will command a premium of £2000 over the manual variants, meaning the coupé will cost £56,500 and the roadster £57,500.
Lotus' boss, Jean-Marc Gales, said: "By introducing a paddle-shifted automatic, we have expanded the Exige product range to make it more accessible to customers worldwide.
"Now, customers who are more accustomed to two pedals and automatic transmissions can enjoy the unbelievable performance and handling of the Exige S without compromise."
The Toyota-sourced gearbox is the same six-speed torque convertor-based unit used in automatic 'IPS' versions of the Evora, but it has been tailored to suit the Exige S.
Sport and Race modes are offered, delivering more appropriate gear selections and responses when required, and column-mounted paddle shifts allow for prompt manual overrides.
Lotus says that the new self-shifting Exige is in the final stages of testing. Official performance figures are yet to be announced but the company states that the new car will "exceed the manual variant in performance".
The automatic, which retains the same 346bhp 3.5-litre supercharged V6 engine found in manual versions, has so far proven as fast as its three-pedal counterpart around the Hethel test track.
It has also completed the 0-62mph sprint in 3.9sec, which is 0.1sec quicker than the manual Exige S.
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