Geneva Motor Show: Lotus unleashes Exige GT3 Concept

Frank Filipponio — Mon, 05 Mar 2007 16:33:00 EST

Filed under: Performance, Geneva Motor Show, Lotus

click image for two desktop-sized sketches of the car

Geneva show-goers are in for a treat courtesy of Lotus. Well, Lotus Sport actually. Lotus Sport is the racing arm of Lotus and they used their GT3 race version of the Exige as a template to fashion an Exige GT3 concept for the street. Sure it's just a concept for now, but it is likely to go into limited production. With its supercharged and intercooled 1.8-liter engine further tweaked, the GT3 is putting out 271 hp now. It bests the current best Exige S by a bunch, and the track-only Exige Cup by a little bit. More importantly, it is the closest thing on the street to the Lotus Sport Exige GT3 that has been winning races for two years now. Think Porsche GT3 as interpreted by Colin Chapman. Lighter, more sharply focused, and dangerous looking.

Along with the added power, this special Exige gets a wider rear track, a unique rear spoiler, and a more aerodynamic (and clean) nose. There are also upgraded brakes up front and pads all around, wider rear wheels and a few other bodywork changes. It sounds like a great track car that you could actually drive on the street and looks even better than the current Exige. Lotus is guessing that pricing would be somewhere in the £50,000 to £60,000 range. That might seem a bit steep, but put it up against a 911 GT3, F430, or maybe the Gallardo Superleggera and you might be surprised at how well this could keep up on a track.

Follow the jump for the rest of the specs and the official press release from Lotus.

[Source: Lotus]

Gallery: Lotus Exige GT3 concept

Continue reading Geneva Motor Show: Lotus unleashes Exige GT3 Concept

Geneva Motor Show: Lotus unleashes Exige GT3 Concept originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 05 Mar 2007 16:33:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Lotus Sport launches in U.S. with two new cars

John Neff — Thu, 20 Apr 2006 07:33:00 EST

Filed under: Motorsports, New York Auto Show, Performance, Lotus

Lotus Sport, the competition subsidiary of the British marque that produces the lightweight Elise, has been around since 1999. Until now, however, North American customers were left with few options when customizing their Elise for track use. The announcement that Lotus Sport would be now be operating in North America came at the New York Auto Show last week where Lotus debuted a pair of Elises to commemorate the occasion.

The first is the Lotus Sport Exige Cup (shown), a purpose-built track car that does away with such civilized comforts as headlights and air conditioning and adds a supercharger to the Elise's Toyota-based, Lotus-tuned 1.9L four-cylinder. Power is up to 243 hp in the Exige Cup and makes its way to tarmac through a 6-speed manual and adjustable limited slip diff. 0-60 will occur in a scant 4.1 seconds. Only 15 copies will be made available on this continent at the price of $78,990.

The second car is the Lotus Sport Elise, which slots in between the narrow-minded Exige Cup and the relatively civilized Elise. The Sport Elise is fully street legal but adds adjustable Ohlins dampers and front anti-sway bar, defeatable Lotus Traction Control and a competition clutch. A roll cage and harness bar is also standard equipment. Only 50 examples of the Sport Elise will find their way ashore in the North America and each will carry a price tag of $54,995.

Follow the jump for more live shots of this dynamic duo from Lotus along with official shots from the company.

[Source: Lotus]

Continue reading Lotus Sport launches in U.S. with two new cars

Lotus Sport launches in U.S. with two new cars originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 20 Apr 2006 07:33:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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