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http://www.lotusexcel.net/phpbb/I've not had an Excel, but I've had two Eclats. I loved 'em... they're great cars. A few maintenance weaknesses, like the rear U-joints. But when well maintained, they're great to drive. Their steering feedback & feel are exceptional. It's said that Colin Chapman liked to be seen in the Esprit, but he preferred to drive an Elite/ Eclat/ Excel.
The Elite/ Eclat/ Excel 4-seaters all had the reputation for out-handling the contemporary Esprits of the day, even lapping the Hethel track close enough to the lap times of Turbo Esprits that Lotus took steps to slow them down.
I used to actively autocross both an '79 Eclat and an '80 Esprit S2. I hotrodded the Esprit's engine, so it was faster just based on power. But I ran 225/50x14 DOT Road Race tires all around on both the Eclat and the Esprit, so the handling differences were more 'car' than tires. I can attest to the fact that, IMHO, the Eclat did handle better than the Esprit... and the Esprit was no slouch. The Eclat's only 'negative' was that it's longer wheelbase wasn't as 'at home' on a really tight parking lot auto-X course. But on a more open course, it's handling was great.
Oh, well, there was a second 'negative'. Both of my Eclats had power steering, and it was much lighter than it needed to be, and far slower than I liked (I never tried the Excel's). There were some really tight, 'busy' autocross courses on which the limiter was that I simply couldn't flail my arms about fast enough to keep up. The car was doing fine... I couldn't 'frenzy' fast enough. I toyed with the idea of converting to the quicker manual steering, but never did. If I were to shop for another one, I'd definitely look for one with manual steering. It's a light car... power steering really isn't necessary unless the driver has a physical limitation.
Having said all of that, I must add that my daily driver for decades has been a series of Lotus Europas, and nothing 'excels' at the "Add Lightness' sort of handling like a small vintage Lotus. Elans & Europas are like water bugs scooting around on a pond, while Excels & Esprits are 'cars' with exceptional handling. In a gaggle of 'cars', they stand out above all others... but they're no Elans/ Europas. Disappointment is a function of expectations, and if you gauge life from the seat of an Elan, the Excel may just be too large and slow to react. In a race around the living room, a Chihuahua will beat a Thoroughbred every time. But in a herd of Throughbreds, the Excel runs circles around the rest.
Regards,
Tim Engel