LOTUS

Lotus to Replace Evora with Elan in 2017 

Lotus’ most recent new sports car, the Evora, will stay into production until at least 2017, when it will be replaced with the new Elan according to the company’s boss Danny Bahar. This changes the initial plan that called for the Evora to be replaced as early as 2012. Bahar also told UK magazine Autocar that Lotus is building its own V8 instead of using Toyota’s unit from the Lexus IS-F, as research from the Paris Motor Show floor concerning the new Esprit revealed that customers were unwilling to pay the price for a $100,000+ supercar powered by a Toyota engine.
The new Esprit will be launched, if everything goes according to plan, in 2013. The new engine, according to Wolf Zimmerman who heads the engineering department, is 40% smaller than the Toyota’s, solving packaging problems. Zimmerman also added that it could form the basis for a new four-cylinder unit, being effectively one bank of the V8, to power smaller models in the range such as the new Elise and Exige.
Bahar also confirmed that the Ethos city car will indeed enter production, selling as a Lotus small-volume luxury small car, probably as a pure EV or a hybrid, in Europe and as a more affordable Proton with conventional internal combustion engines in Asia.

Rumors: Lotus Exige to Spawn Rally Car? 

 

Here’s something we weren’t expecting; according to a report from CAR Magazine, Lotus will launch a new rally car at the Frankfurt motor show in September. The rally car -not the one pictured here- will be based on the Exige, which is renowned for its road and track capabilities, but we’ve never imagined it near a rally stage. At least in factory form, since privateers have raced the Elise and Exige in asphalt rallies in the past.
According to Lotus director of motorsport, Claudio Berro, Lotus may indeed build more than the 300 cars that are necessary by FIA rules for the car’s homologation. It will be rear-wheel drive, of course, although it isn’t still clear whether it will race in the WRC or IRC championships.
But the Hethel-based company’s involvement in motorsports doesn’t end here. It already participates with Renault in the Formula 1 championship, and finished 7th in the GT class in this year’s 24 Hours of Le Mans.
Also it has already stated that it will compete in 2012 or 2013 in the LMP2 class, probably with a car that will use its own-built V8 that is destined for the new Esprit and will be up and running by August.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Lotus Aims to Better Ferrari’s 458 Italia and McLaren’s MP4-12C with New Esprit 

Lotus has lofty aspirations for its all-new supercar, the Esprit, which was presented as a concept at last year’s Paris motor show along with four other concepts. According to the company’s CEO, Dany Bahar, the new supercar will be launched in 2013 and will offer a “more authentic driving experience than both the Ferrari 458 Italia and the McLaren MP4-12C”. Bahar revealed that development of the the new Esprit is already under way, with prototypes up and running.
The Esprit will be the first to use an all-new, Lotus-developed engine instead of the 5.0-litre Toyota engine that also powers the IS-F and was initially destined for the Lotus supercar.
The British company’s own engine is both lighter and smaller than the Toyota V8 and is expected to deliver around 570-horses, offering “the character and emotion that the MP4-12C lacks”, at least according to Bahar.
It will also feature F1-derived KERS technology, which Bahar insists will add and not detract from the driving experience. It seems that the Hethel-based company has set the bar very high, since both the 458 Italia and the MP4-12C are quite magnificent to drive.

Lotus to Kill Elise and Exige for North America in August 

If you’re a fan of the lightweight sports cars from Lotus, namely the Elise and its closed-top sibling, the Exige, and live in North America, then you’d better hurry up before the well dries up. That’s because production of the North American spec model will end in August according to a report from Autoblog. The reasons behind this decision lie in the lack of “smart” airbags, which are now mandatory in the US, along with Toyota’s decision to stop production of its 2ZZ 1.8-liter, 4-cylinder engine that powers US-spec models. The Elise and the Exige will continue to be sold in Europe, as they’re equipped with a new 1.6-liter four-cylinder unit.

F1’s Team Lotus Acquires British Sportscar Maker Caterham 

The owners of Formula One Team Lotus announced today the acquisition of lightweight sportscar manufacturer Caterham, for an undisclosed sum from the shareholder consortium led by Corven Ventures. Based in England, Caterham has made a name for itself for building the Seven, a lightweight two-seater sports car that was designed by Lotus founder Colin Chapman and who sold the rights of the car to Caterham in 1973.
Team Lotus chiefs Tony Fernandes, Kamarudin Meranun and SM Nasarudin said in a statement that the company plans to expand Caterham’s profile and product family while also continuing the development of the Seven.
“Caterham Cars has remained wholly faithful to Colin Chapman’s philosophy of ‘less is more’, and the DNA of the original Seven can still be traced to the newest additions to Caterham’s product offering," said Tony Fernandes.
“It is already a successful business with sales across Europe, Japan, Australia and the Middle East, and under the guidance of the existing management team, we now have all the ingredients and the launch pad to further evolve that spirit and take Caterham to new exciting horizons with innovative products and greater global brand exposure.”
Team Lotus said that Caterham will be led by the company’s existing management team, headed up by Caterham Cars Managing Director, Ansar Ali.
In celebration of the new ownership, Caterham will build a limited run of Team Lotus Special Edition Sevens. The British firm will offer just 50 upgrade packages (split evenly for the UK and rest of the world) that can be applied on the range-topping 263bhp, 150mph Superlight R500.
Priced at £3,000, the package adds special livery in the traditional green and yellow colors of Lotus, along with some other goodies such as a plaque carrying the signatures of Team Lotus F1 drivers, Jarno Trulli and Heikki Kovalaine. Also included in the package will be an invitation to a special tour of the Team Lotus F1 factory in Hingham, Norfolk.
Caterham managing director, Ansar Ali, said: “Caterham Cars is starting an exciting and hugely important chapter, so it’s entirely fitting that we celebrate our opportunity to take Colin Chapman’s ‘less is more’ philosophy global, with this special car.”

Geneva 2011: Lotus Keeps its Evora Debuts Simple but Significant with Mansory in the Mix 

After Lotus blew its proverbial head gaskets all over the Paris stage with a futuristic lineup consisting of a sedan and no less than four coupes, simplicity was the name of the game for the 2011 Geneva motor show. Lotus brought two special edition Evoras, a relatively low-key showing in stark contrast to its behavior in France last year. Before you roll your eyes thinking, "Christ, another special edition blah blah blah," one of these two new Evoras is very different than another special edition Mustang or Bugatti.
The Mansory Evora comes from the union of two weight-conscious companies; Lotus prides itself on keeping its vehicles trim, while Mansory "provides valuable insights and an intuitive feeling for [high-end customisation]" while also offering "state-of-the-art carbon components".
Mansory's Lotus is dubbed the Lotus Bespoke Concept and is kind of a big deal because it establishes a relationship between a respected manufacturer and well-known tuner. You may recall Mansory from their various efforts tackling high-end vehicle customization. If all goes well, we just might be witnessing the next in-house tuner coming around.
Lotus calls the Mansory Evora an "Individualization Concept Car"; with it, the industry's resident featherweight hopes to develop its own "Exclusive" / "Individual" program for customer's seeking a coachbuilt feel. The other Evora isn't as significant consumer-wise as the Mansory model, but is important nonetheless.
The Evora Enduro GT concept is an evolution of the current Lotus Evora GT4 Endurance and will serve as the platform from which FIA and ACO GT2/GTE racers will be built. That means we'll likely see this at a variety of upcoming 24-hour enduros including the Nürburgring, Spa, and Silverstone.

New Lotus Elise 1.6 Club Racer Sheds 24 kg / 53 Pounds 

 

True to its heritage, Lotus has unwrapped a new lighter version of its entry-level Elise 1.6 called the Club Racer. Even in stock form, the Elise is one of the lightest production sports cars in the market tipping the scales at just 876 kg or 1,931 pounds, but the company's engineers put the open top model on a crash diet and managed to shed a further 24 kg or 53 lbs. Lotus says the engineers behind the Elise Club Racer took a stripped-to-the-bare-bone approach and while the company did not reveal all the details, it did mention the motorsport derived lightweight battery and the deletion of noise insulation.
In addition to the weight savings, the Club Racer is the first Elise variant to come with a Sport setting for the DPM (Dynamic Performance Management), which according to Lotus, "allows even the less experienced sports car drivers to feel at the top of their game, while the ability to switch it off completely will please the more established track orientated drivers"
The British automaker's Chief Technical Officer, Wolf Zimmermann, commented:
“The traditional Lotus approach of reduction and purity has lead to one of the most zeitgeist and contemporary sports cars around. For over 15 years the Lotus Elise has become an icon in the sports car market, carving out a niche market with a dedicated following of lightweight fans. The new Club Racer will definitely give these people something extra to get their teeth stuck into. This car epitomises everything that’s cool about the Elise – it’s fast, raw, responsive and a huge amount of fun to drive.”
Power for the new Elise Club Racer is provided by the standard model's 1.6-liter four-cylinder unit delivering 134HP at 6,800 rpm and 160 Nm or 118 lb-ft of peak torque at 4,400 rpm.
The Elise Club Racer is offered with a choice of six colors including Sky Blue, Saffron Yellow, Ardent Red, Aspen White, Matt Black and Carbon Grey, and features some bespoke design elements such as the body colored seats.
The new lighter version of the Elise is priced in Europe at £27,500 / €34,450 / CHF48,900, which makes it the most pocket friendly model in Lotus' range.

Geneva Preshow: Lotus Joins Forces with Mansory to Tune the Evora 

Mastering the fine art of tuning is a complicated process and, judging by the sheer number of overkills one can see on the web every day, it’s clear that only a few have what it takes to do a good job. For Lotus that special someone is Swiss tuning firm Mansory, which is responsible for the creation of an Evora concept that will be presented at the Geneva show in the beginning of March. The automaker released two pictures of the special version 2+2 sports coupe, while also stating this:
“Let’s be clear on this: contrary to media reports, what you’ll see in Geneva is NOT an Evora facelift. It’s a taste of the future of Lotus product customisation. Merely the first toe in the water and a showcase of the potential future.”
From what we can tell, the modified Evora features a new front bumper with bigger air intakes and inserts, which appear to be made out of carbon fiber. The same lightweight composite material seems to have been used for the side vents, mirror housings, side skirts, greenhouse, rear spoiler and oversized diffuser. The 10-spoke alloys with a glossy black finish are also new.
While we can’t say that the Evora is our favorite Lotus, overall the bodykit looks nice and it seems that the Brits are really on to something good here.

Ayrton Senna's Nephew Bruno Signs with Lotus-Renault F1 Team 

The nephew of the late three-times Formula One world champion Ayrton Senna, Bruno, has signed up with the new Lotus-Renault GP team, the British automaker announced on Monday. The 27-year old, who comes from a bad season in Formula One with the struggling Hispania team, will be a reserve driver for the 2011 season. "It’s a really exciting opportunity from both Group Lotus and Lotus Renault GP," said Brunno Senna after the announcement. "To be able to develop my Formula One career within a World Championship winning organisation and to do so in conjunction with some hugely interesting work for such an iconic sports car company as Lotus is a once in a lifetime opportunity. Lotus has placed a great deal of faith in me and I am looking forward to beginning work on the technical side of our relationship," he added.
The British carmaker said that Bruno’s test driving role with Lotus will see him provide valuable input into all Lotus cars, both track and road.
Lotus Director of Motorsport Claudio Berro said: “We’re delighted to have Bruno on board. In his young motorsport career he’s built up a great armoury of skills and experience. He’s a fast learner and this talent combined with his ability to shift between different types of race car will make him a great asset to Lotus. Normally people like to talk about the ‘technology transfer’ between F1 and road cars but in Bruno’s case we’re opening this up to an intellectual transfer – we’re certainly going to keep him busy!"

Lotus Evora Tries Out Police Uniform in the UK 

 

Lotus has loaned a brand new Evora to the boys in blue at the Central Motorway Police Group (CPMG). The police-liveried version of the British sports car was officially revealed at this week's Autosport International Show at Birmingham’s NEC. Once its show duties are over, the sports car maker will hand the keys of the Evora to West Midland's police officers who will then trial the car for a two week test period.

Gino Rosato, Director of Corporate Operations at Lotus comments: ‘Lotus is proud to take part in this and similar initiatives to help create a safer road culture for our customers and other road users. We believe that you do not have to compromise fun for speed and to that effect we build sportscars that are fun to drive within legal limits! We will be working with Officers from CMPG to teach them how to get the best from the Lotus Evora at our test track to ensure that any high-speed activity is as safe and effective as possible.”
PC Steven Rounds from, CMPG said: “The Lotus is a visually stunning machine which offers us the opportunity to engage with the public, reinforce and promote the life-saving messages of road safety.”