A few years back as the Esprit was fading into history, Lotus devised the Europa as an alternative for drivers for whom the little Elise and Exige were a bit too hardcore. The Elise chassis was stretched and a slightly more upscale interior was put in place to create what was supposed to be more of a grand touring coupe. Unfortunately, most people still felt the Europa hadn't gone far enough and the car wasn't up to the standard of competitors like the Porsche Boxster/Cayman. For 2008, Lotus has done some further upgrades to the Europa and added a lower cost entry level model. The Europa SE now has newly designed 17"/18" wheels front and rear and an interior completely finished in leather. The interior volume of the Europa hasn't changed, so it's unclear if the upgrades will be enough to attract more buyers, but if Lotus wants to bring some to the U.S. we would be more than happy to try one out in the Autoblog Garage.
Contrary to a report that surfaced Monday, Lotus has no intention of partnering with the Malaysian state-owned automaker, Proton, to build cars in China. This announcement debunks what Jinhua Neoplan has asserted throughout a number of articles in the Chinese press – including the state-supported China Daily.
The e-mail, which was apparently sent to Lotus staff, makes it clear that no vehicles will be produced in China, nor are there any plans to do so within the next five years. The email goes on to say that such reports "could affect staff morale or performance" and that, "in the future please treat such press comments with the scepticism (sic) they deserve."
Lotus has jacked up the prices on the Elise and the Exige, according to The Car Connection. The smaller Elise, which has adaptive headlights and an unfavorable exchange rate for 2007, will go for $43,990, up from $42,990 for the 2006 model. The Exige, which is essentially an Elise with a hard top and turbocharged four-banger putting out 220 hp, will go for $56,990 -- quite a steal when you consider its supercar-worthy 0-60 time of 4.1 seconds and top speed of 148 mph.
It's rumored that the two vehicles here aren't the only ones that will be offered in the U.S. market in the coming years. The Esprit, which should become available in the United States in late 2008, has been spotted tooling around Europe as a tester, and other models are expected to be on their way.
The world is rife with disappointments, but driving a Lotus should never fall into that category. According to Andrew Frankel over at Inside Line, that's exactly what the new Lotus Europa S is – a cumbersome, unmotivated and unrefined (not in the Lotus way) let down.
His report from Europe makes it clear that this is not a proper Lotus, if for no other reason than it was developed by Proton, then had the Lotus emblem attached later. The interior, although an upgrade over an Elise/Exige, is still far from GT-like. The controls are there, spartan as they may be, but due to engine noise, a lack of luxury amenities and limited trunk space, it doesn't make the grade.
Motivation was another disappointment, as the GM-sourced, turbo'd 2-liter had disturbing quantities of lag, which then compromised the very Lotusness of the driving experience.
In the end, Mr. Frankel made the assertion that this may be one of the few times that a vehicle not coming to the U.S. is a good thing. The Europa would disappoint owners, diminish the perceptions of Lotus and shame Mr. Chapman himself.
When Lotus announced earlier this week that its intends to bring three new models to production over the next few years, we began day-dreaming of the myriad of possibilities that may come about.
As good as the Elise and Exige are, and as good as the Europa and new Esprit hope to be, some of Lotus' more intriguing offerings were vehicles that weren't developed from the ground up by the boys in Hethel.
Stateside, the Ford Lotus Cortina has been hailed as the original sport compact. Introduced in 1963 and sold in limited numbers, the Cortina benefited from the staple Lotus tweaks, namely suspension upgrades and lightweight materials. When compared to the Lotus Carlton, however, it seemed pedestrian, at best.
The video above is a vintage episode of Top Gear, with then host, Tiff Needell driving one of the most controversial vehicles ever to be offered in Europe. The Lotus Carlton was based on the Vauxhall sedan bearing the same name and was stuffed with a twin-turbo 3.6-liter inline six, developing 377 hp and 419 ft/lbs. of torque. All that power was channeled through a six-speed manual transmission pulled from the Corvette ZR1, sent to the rear wheels through an LSD, which then catapulted the stately sedan to 60 in 5.2 seconds. All of this before we even broke into the 90s.
Since part of Lotus' plan for the future includes helping to develop vehicles for other manufactures, we hope that the standard set by the Cortina and Carlton may inspire upcoming collaborative efforts.
Lotus announced today that it plans to introduce three new cars in the next few years. Right now, the Lotus range consists of the Elise, Exige, and Europa S. As most of you know by now, North America won't see the Europa.
So, what is in store for Lotus?
Obviously, one of the three new cars is going to be the eagerly-awaited new Esprit, whose timetable has been pushed back a bit as Lotus is still working out several details. It will be shown to the public in December 2009.
Calendar year 2008 should be an exciting one for the boys in Hethel, though. May will see the introduction of a new Lotus/Proton high-performance car and in December, the company will pull the wraps off of a new midrange machine. Lotus gives no details as to what markets will receive the new cars, saying only that all three of the upcoming vehicles will be sold through the Lotus dealer network and are intended to broaden the automaker's customer base. Hopefully, that means that one of the non-Esprit cars (in all likelihood, the Lotus/Proton) will be positioned beneath the Elise, creating a low-cost entry-level model.
That's pure speculation, of course -- mixed with a healthy dose of wishful thinking on my part. And even if that does come true, that doesn't mean we'd see it here. Still, a six-car Lotus lineup? A couple of years ago, people would have dismissed such a notion as crazy talk. Things sure do change in a hurry.
Lotus announced today that it has hired a new ad agency to help it along with a renewed push into the North American market. Burbank-based e2amp, inc. will be responsible for rejuvenating the British sportscar company's image in the US and Canada through advertising, product placement and promotional events.
e2amp doesn't appear to have much experience with carmakers - its client roster includes such entertainment companies as JVC, Sony, Buena Vista and Universal. And what could be more entertaining than the tight handling and eminent chuckability of the Lotus Elise and Exige?
Arguably the most interesting part of e2amp's mandate from Lotus is the product placement. After James Bond's return to Aston Martins, could we see a Lotus comeback in the next 007 film?
So you have an Elise and are tired of seeing Cayman owners get out of their cars in a couple of seconds, looking all relaxed and happy. You've grown accustomed to wearing knee and elbow pads and have gotten used to those eight Advils a day to help with the aches and pains associated with piloting your little go-kart. You've even began surreptitiously looking at Porsche brochures because the rumored Esprit seems so very far away. Well, this here Europa S might be the answer to your prayers. At least if you live in Europe.
Car magazine just finished a review of the Europa S and it seems impressive. Slightly larger than an Elise/Exige and quite a bit heavier at almost 2200 lbs., it still managed to capture their hearts with its immediacy of throttle and steering reaction. The GM 2.0-liter turbo four-cylinder puts out 197 hp in this application and has an instant but smooth power delivery. Praised too were the brakes, steering, shifter, ride and handling, as would be expected from a Lotus.
About once a week, one of the members at Autoblog HQ envisions a credit card abusing romp through the UK. The reasons for such idle threats are varied, but some of the catalysts include the Goodwood Festival of Speed, Jeremy Clarkson playing MC at MPH, the variety of not-for-U.S. consumption vehicles available and now the Lotus Summer Festival.
The five-week long festival will encompass over two-dozen dealer sponsored events, ranging from barbeques, RC car contests, test drives and other activities yet to be announced, but are assured to be cool. Each weekend throughout the festival one car will be the focus of the event; the first of the three will be the Euro-only Elise S, followed by the Exige S and then wrapping up with the unveiling of the Europa S on September 16th and 17th.
Additionally, Lotus is putting out some new TV spots to increase awareness of the festival and the glorious Lotus philosophy. That spot can be found after the jump. Enjoy!
Lotus CEO Mike Kimberley let slip in an interview with PistonHeads that the Hethel-based automaker would indeed be calling its upcoming mid-engine supercar the Esprit, a name that graced the flanks of the supercar for which Lotus is most well known. The slip was entirely unintentional, as a PR person next to the CEO corrected his boss on the reference, saying that what he meant to say was 'the mid-engined sports car". Sure, right.
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