The Lotus Exige S rolls gently into the windswept Shek O beach car park, with just a hint of rasp. The two-seater's entrance is so low-key that passers-by glance rather than gaze at the British supercar's gleam in the January chill. Shek O villagers are used to Lotuses, however, as many owners meet here on Sundays. The marque is popular in Hong Kong, usually among young or menoporschial thrusters: 220 of its cars were sold here last year, and mainly the Elise, says Eric Wong, the chief executive of dealers Richburg Lotus.
Forty-one of the latest Exige S have been sold for HK$1.152 million each in Hong Kong, including this test car. Its lines suggest Lotus has at last luxed up its look under the supervision of its Italian design director, Donato Coco, who worked for Ferrari, and previously drew up the stylish C3 Pluriel for Citroen.
The Exige S is 260mm longer than its predecessor, at 4.084 metres, to fit a 345hp, supercharged version of the 3.5-litre Toyota Camry V6 block. It is also up to 38mm wider, at 1.082 metres, "for enhanced stability", Lotus says.
The model's lavish design seems a departure from its spartan roots. The Exige was first built as a track car in 1999, and proved a noisy enthusiasts' road drive. A 1.8-litre, 218hp Exige S was a rampaging delight on the Post's test drive in 2007, for example, but today's model is in a different league. Lotus has improved the steering, brakes, suspension and comfort, to produce a dream car with 46 per cent more power and 74 per cent more torque. The new Exige S weighs 1,176kg, but that Camry V6 is tuned to deliver 400Nm of torque and 293hp per tonne for a top speed of 274km/h. It sprints to 100km/h in 3.96 seconds - more than a second faster than the 326hp Porsche Cayman R, Lotus says, and is reportedly 0.1 seconds quicker than the Audi R8 V10 (about HK$2.85 million).
Such boasts sound bizarre in Hong Kong, where there are more than 300 speed cameras, and motoring enjoyment has largely evolved into jerked sprints between lights. This Exige S is well equipped for that, but critics might wonder where this particular test car is heading after its delivery in Hong Kong: to the roar of a mainland racetrack; or - like so many underused supercars here - caged for third-gear screams to remote Sunday brunches; or doomed to pent-up idling in tunnel traffic?
Despite rave reviews in the West, the Exige S is horrendously overpowered for Hong Kong's clogged roads, but help is at hand from Vancouver-born racing driver Darryl O'Young, fresh from a podium finish in an Aston Martin Vantage GT3 at the Dubai 24 Hours. A few years ago, he and I first exchanged professional and amateur cornering and gear-selection techniques in Porsche Caymans on the Zhuhai International Circuit, and then went our different ways: he drives Chevrolet Cruzes in the World Touring Car Championships, while I ride to our reunion on a No9 bus.
So, I tell Wong that I would be happy to drive the Exige S around the Shek O car park, and then watch and learn from O'Young's driving on our return to town.