Supercharged Elise SC blows them away. July 2008

This is no mere engine swap from the supercharged Exige. Applied to the current Elise's 1.8-litre 2-ZZ VVTL-i engine, the Lotus designed, Magnuson produced supercharger uses a smaller Eaton rotor pack than that of the Exige S, and is married to the bespoke intake manifold plenum as part of a single piece casting.

Combined with the absence of an intercooler and its associated pipe work, this integrated supercharger/intake assembly contributes to an 8kg reduction in engine weight compared with the Exige S.

As expected in a car with 162kW and weighing just 870kg, the performance of the Elise SC is stunning: 0-100km/h in 4.6 seconds, 0-160km/h in 10.7 seconds and a top speed of 241km/h. Like the 141kW Elise R, the Elise SC runs a six-speed gearbox.

A new bespoke alloy wheel design is introduced to the Elise SC with the rears increasing in width half an inch to 8-inches. In addition to this extreme performance, the fuel economy of the Elise SC is equally impressive with an estimated combined figure of 8.5litres/100km.

The Lotus Elise SC is priced at $104,990 + ORCs. The Touring Pack adds $8,000 and the Sport Pack $7,000.