Spy Shots: Lotus "Eagle"
by Dan Roth on Nov 9th 2007 at 1:02PM 
Yes, we know it looks like the Esprit. Please don't bombard us with comments about how it looks like the old Esprit. It really is the new GT from Lotus, known for now as the Eagle. It's wearing Esprit body panels, so yes, we know it looks like the old Esprit. Based on a heavily revised Elise structure and powered by a Toyota V6 plunked down in the middle of the chassis and kicking out 300 hp, the coupe will cost about $100,000 (£48,000). Even though Lotus isn't fond of them, the transmission will be a paddle-shift automated manual. Lotus cites market desires for the about-face on the transmission. The Eagle will spawn several different models, including a convertible and a replacement for the reviled Europa. When they're done, the Eagle won't look like the Esprit. Instead, the bodywork will more closely follow the M250. Cramming four seats into a mid-engined chassis takes some cleverness, and who's more clever than Lotus?[Source: Autocar]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
rndmnme 1:06PM (11/09/2007)
It looks like the old Esprit.
Reply
k.w.a 1:30PM (11/09/2007)
hahaha
...hey, you know what? this looks a lot like the old Espirit
acidic 1:08PM (11/09/2007)
Who is more clever than Lotus? Hrrmmm...that's too easy.
Granted, Lotus makes some nice hardware, but I would hate to see what the legroom is going to be like in a 2+2.
Reply
Kowell 2:22PM (11/09/2007)
I'm getting flashbacks from 1990....
Reply
Aaron B Brown 2:46PM (11/09/2007)
What's with the flip up headlights, what is this the 80s. Most car manufacturers got the message in the 90s, that performance car buyers are not really interested in having to deployer air brakes that significantly screw up your aerodynamic profile whenever the sun goes down.
And when the drive motors go bad, and you try to turn on your lights, the only thing that gets illuminated is the inside of your bumper. Lotus must be playing in on the cheap with this model.
Reply
Dan Roth 3:04PM (11/09/2007)
And there we have it, folks. An Autoblog reader who's here for the pictures.
broosewee 3:40PM (11/09/2007)
Haha, "Autoblog reader"...
Mike 3:41PM (11/09/2007)
Step 1: Look at the photo
Step 2: Ignore the text
Step 3: Comment
Mark 3:59PM (11/09/2007)
reading > Aaron B Brown
A. Brown Wannabe 6:23PM (11/09/2007)
WTF!?!?! Good job on going retro, Lotus. There is only one true Esprit...
Reply
SherbornSean 7:23AM (11/10/2007)
Speaking of not reading, Dan, you may have noticed that the article (the one you summarized rather than do your own primary research) mentioned the Eagle would compete in price with the Cayman S. That's not $100K.
Reply
Dan Roth 8:32AM (11/10/2007)
We're a blog, part of what we do is aggregate the news from a variety of sources.
The article was from a UK pub, and the price range they cited for the Cayman S was 48,000 pounds. Please find the current pound-to-dollar exchange rate and do the math. 48,000 pounds equals roughly 100,000 dollars. While the Cayman S doesn't sell for that much *here*, the US isn't the market the Autocar post was written for. Context, man, context.
Mike 7:19PM (11/13/2007)
@ Dan Roth
Ha - I'm British, and when I read you got the article from a 'UK pub' my first thought was you'd got it from a drunk in a bar. Pub =Publisher - now I get it.
Richard 9:24AM (11/10/2007)
"the transmission will be a paddle-shift automated manual" is not accurate. Autocar said "available."
Lotus has too much pride to mandate a sissy gearbox for everyone. Let's just call it what it is, an AUTOMATIC that people can pretend is "F1 inspired" with 40ms gearchanges that nobody uses 'cause automatic mode is always engaged.
It's the same as the limited slip diff in the Elise. Lotus offered it, but told every magazine it could that the option was worthless. (It's useful for autox only)
Reply