To continue on this super awesome photoshoot streak, I also shot Randy’s Lotus Exige S 260 Sport *catches breath* while shooting Tommy’s M3. Another awesome car to shoot right after Driven – which Randy also attended. I’ve never personally seen a Lotus up close in personal because they are pretty rare to see around town in the first place, especially in a place like Calgary. I always hear about them, but they are like Unicorns to me and I’m pretty sure I could count the number of times I’ve seen one on one hand. Maybe I just don’t get out often enough or I’m always in the wrong place at the wrong time, but take it how you will.

Speaking of rare sightings, Randy’s Lotus Exige is exactly that. The S 260 Sport model was only made during 2009-2011 and of that batch, only 60 were imported to North America – and to whittle that number down even more, only 4 of them made it into Canada, and one more statistic for you nerds: Randy’s Lotus is the only Isotope Green made for the 260 Sport and the only 2009 model in Canada. So I guess it’s fair to go back to my previous comment and say that they are pretty much Unicorns 🙂

Anyway – this was an awesome shoot because of the color. I personally love shooting colored cars (as I’ve probably mentioned before) because it’s so easy to make them “pop”. They pretty much do it on their own. Randy’s Isotope Green is by far the most vibrant car I’ve ever shot and it works the camera like a Playboy model. White is a very flat color and it’s more difficult to make it pop, while black soaks everything up – many things can go “wrong” with black – like swirls, too much light, too little light, etc. But that’s beside the point – lets get to Randy’s awesome Unicorn.

Just like with Tommy’s M3 – we’ll start it with probably my favourite roller of the day. Can you spot the differences?

Fun fact: The difference between Randy’s S 260 Sport and an S 240 is comparably the same as when looking at the Porsche GT3RS versus the GT3 Cup. There are a number of parts that have been swapped for carbon fiber goodies. These swaps result in a weight savings of 12kg or about 26lbs.

From the front quarter, it reminds me of a praying mantis. Bad ass.

At this angle, you’ll see the side air intake ducts are carbon as well as the fuel door.

The eyes.

The roof panel is carbon.

HKFEVER carbon fiber side skirts and front lip help to make it more aggressive as well… Are you still counting the carbon?

Some additional mods that Randy has added include a Larini dual exit exhaust, an LETSLA short shifter, and Manly 60A motor mount inserts. The ECU has also been uprated to approximately 258bhp. Lots of power for such a light chassis.

The wheels are an ultra-light 12 spoke forged alloy made by Team Dynamics with AP racing brakes tucked nicely behind.

The rear spoiler is carbon…

The car also sits aggressively on a set of Ohlins dual adjustable coilovers for those track days.

The dash top panel is one piece of carbon as well as the front access panels.

The seats have been changed out to FIA and HANS compliant seats.

A lot of the weight savings on the S 260 Sport are in parts you can’t really see:

– Lightweight ‘motorsport’ battery made by Odyssey

– Revised rear engine subframe with lightweight coating

– Lightweight fly wheel

– Lightweight composite bulkhead panel that would replace the rear window

– Alloy supercharger U bend pipes

– Even the footwell pads

All of these lightweight pieces further reduces the weight by another 22kg or 48.5lbs. Weight savings is everything!

And lastly – the rear tailgate is carbon.

Overall – an awesome shoot and a wicked little car… Thanks to Randy for giving me the chance to shoot this as well!