The Lotus Elite is one of five new models coming from the British maker over the next few years.
The long-struggling British sports car maker, Lotus, gave us a wee tease of what they had in mind for the Paris Motor Show, some weeks back, when they released some tantalizing shots of the Elite concept vehicle.
Little did we – or, apparently, anyone else – suspect the much bigger news that would emerge at the Mondial de l’Automobile, a roll-out of five new concept vehicles intended to put in motion a grand reinvention of the Lotus brand.
The first model we got a glimpse of was the Lotus Elite (Click Here for the full story). Set to go into production in April 2013, according to CEO Dany Bahar, the 2+2 will make elegant use of the new relationship between Lotus and Toyota Motor Co. The Japanese giant has agreed to provide the muscle to move the Lotus brand from niche to mainstream, quite literally.
For the Elite Concept, that means a mid-mounted V8 that drives a high-performance hybrid driveline – putting Lotus in line with all the other sporty and high-line brands that have come to Paris with electrified sports cars. A “perfect contradiction,” suggests Bahar of the idea of putting the promisingly green technology into a high-performance model like Elite.
The reborn Esprit will be one of the new Lotus models relying on a 5.0-liter Toyota powerplant.
A more conventionally-powered version of the Lotus Elite may use a supercharged version of the Toyota 5.0-liter V8 that powers the Lexus IS-F muscle car.
Another part of the grand Lotus remake revives the long-absent Esprit. Though we’ll have to wait a bit to see the final design, set for re-launch in 2013, the maker brought the Lotus Esprit Concept for us to gawk at.
Close your eyes a little and you’ll likely see a faint image of the old car that made such a public splash in popular films like “Pretty Woman.” The show car is also a mid-engine design, though the earlier turbocharged I-4 engine has been replaced with that 5.0-liter Lexus powerplant.
The next Elise will remain the go-kart of the Lotus line-up.
Here it will make about 620 hp, driving the concept at least, to 60 in just 3.5 seconds – on the way to a top speed of 205 mph. As with Elite, Esprit will be offered with a Formula One-derived Kinetic Energy Recovery System, or KERS, which here will be used to boost performance as much as to drive down fuel consumption.
Toyota has long been a key component of the Lotus brand, providing the compact engines in the pint-sized Elise and Exige models. The roadster makes a return for the big Paris roll-out and should come as a relief for those who worried that Lotus might lose interest in what is, for all intents, a street-legal go-kart.
Here, the maker is using a turbocharged 2.0-liter Toyota I-4 that makes a neck-snapping 320 horsepower, delivered through either a six-speed manual or an automatic that can be operated through steering wheel-mounted paddle shifters.
Models like the Lotus Evora will adhere to founder Colin Chapman's gospel of "adding lightness" to a vehicle.
At 2,409 pounds, that’s an impressive power-to-weight ratio, and will translate in a 4.2 second 0 to 60 run. Also impressive is the $55,000 base price. A less expensive naturally-aspirated version is also reported to be in the planning stage.
For those who want more than performance, however, the model on display in Paris delivers a significantly upgraded interior package, a satisfying bit of news for those who suffered through the minimalist nature of the old Elise and Exige.
Another familiar name making its return to the Lotus line-up is the Elan, which is expected to make a 2013 return at a price of around $120,000.
Here the powerplant of choice is a 4.0-liter Toyota V6 making 450 horsepower, but that will still be enough to propel the two-seater to 193 mph, passing the 60 mph mark in around 3.4 seconds. Oh, and yes, the KERS system will make an appearance in optional form on the Lotus Elan, as well.
The Lotus Eterne is a true 4-door, 4-seat sport GT -- with a hybrid drivetrain.
Appropriate. Also offered in an optional 2+2 configuration, the Elan is arguably the most track-ready of all the models Lotus is previewing in Paris, down to the flattened steering wheel, as well as the various carbon fiber touches and the digital performance instrumentation.
Wrapping up the roll-out is the Lotus Eterne. It’s yet another KERS-powered hybrid — in a slick four-door sport GT body — that primarily relies on the 620-hp Toyota IS-F V8. With an optional all-wheel-drive package it will do 4-second 0 to 60 runs and top out at 196. Expect a price tag of around $190,000.
Why the sudden glut of products from Lotus? Perhaps the alternative was simply going away entirely. In recent years, the British brand has been propped up by Malaysian money and investors appear to be taking a make-it-or-break-it push to see if they really can turn Lotus into the globe’ number one maker of premier class sports cars.