Lotus
Report: Lotus Range Extender Engine an Off-The-Shelf Hybrid Powerplant
Lotus’s engineering department is constantly working on new projects that will make cars not only faster, but also more efficient. The company’s latest project is the Lotus Range Extender Engine, a hybrid drivetrain that serves as an off-the-shelf solution for existing automakers looking for a hybrid engine for a mini-car. By designing this new engine…
Report: Lotus to Debut Elise Club Racer at Frankfurt Auto Show
Along with the Exige Cup 260 model that Lotus just announced, the British sports car maker will also debut a new Elise Club Racer at the Frankfurt Auto Show on September 15th. Based on the 134hp Elise S model, the Elise CR gets plenty of unique features likes an anthracite anodized gear knob and handbrake…
Report: Lotus Names ex-Ferrari Exec as New CEO
Lotus has just announced that a of October 1st, former Ferrari executive Dany Bahar will take over at the helm of Group Lotus plc. Bahar moves into the position after former Lotus CEO Mike Kimberly retired in July due to health reasons. At Ferrari Bahar worked as Senior VP of Commercial and Brand, where he…
Report: Lotus Exige Cup 260 Announced
As expected, Lotus has announced the release of a cup car version of the new 2010 Exige 260. Powered by the same 257-hp supercharged 1.8-liter 4-cylinder as the street car, the race-ready Cup version weighs just 1,958 lbs, making for what will no-doubt be an outrageously good track machine. Lotus says the Exige Cup 260…
Lotus Offers Supercharger Kit for Elise, Exige Models
While Lotus’s philosophy of making its cars as light weight as possible has obvious benefits on the race track, owners of non-supercharged Elise and Exige models can attest to the fact that the tiny Toyota-sourced engines don’t always deliver the sort of thrust one might hope for. To help remedy this situation Lotus has just…
Report: Lotus CEO Mike Kimberley Retires
Lotus CEO Mike Kimberley has announced his retirement as the head of the U.K. based sports car maker due to medical reasons. The 70-year-0ld Kimberley has been suffering from severe back pain, underwent surgery in 2008 and has now been advised by his doctors to resign his position. “Sadly, it is on doctor’s orders that…
Hertz Adds Lotus Elise SC to Italian Rental Car Fleet
If you are traveling to Italy any time soon Hertz now offers the ability to rent an exotic sports car. It may surprise you to learn, however, that these exotics are not of the Italian variety; they are British. Hertz has just signed a deal with Lotus that will see a fleet of bright yellow…
Lotus Cars USA to Sponsor Lotus Challenge Series
Lotus Cars USA has announced that it has signed on as the Title Sponsor of the grassroots Lotus Challenge Series. Started in 2008 by Jim Navarro and other Lotus enthusiasts the series held eight races in its first year with six in California and two at Spring Mountain Motorsports Ranch in Pahrump, Nevada – the…
U.S.-Spec Lotus Evora Details Leaked
While the new Lotus Evora has already launched in Europe, the official release of the car in the U.S. has yet to take place. Normally we wouldn’t have the full U.S. specifications until that time, but a three page tech sheet from Lotus has leaked out with all the juicy details. And while so often…
Lotus Threatens Legal Action Against New Formula 1 Team Using Its Name
In press release issued by Lotus Cars, the British exotic car maker takes issue with recent reports that a new Formula 1 team for 2010 will run under the banner of Team Lotus. The new team, however, says that’s not the case. U.K.-based Litespeed Racing has already secured a sport on the 2010 F1 lineup…
Upcoming Lotus Esprit May Get 500 Horsepower Lexus V10
The upcoming Lotus Esprit may be powered by a 500hp Lexus V10 according to a report in the U.K.’s EVO magazine. Lotus has a long time partnership with Lexus parent company Toyota, using its Celica-sourced 1.8-liter 4-cylinder engine for the Elise and Exige, as well as its the Camry-sourced 3.5-liter V6 for the Evora. According…
Lotus Exige 270E Tri-Fuel Could See Production
When Lotus first showed the Exige 270E Tri-Fuel at the Geneva Auto Show back in 2008 it was seen more as an engineering project than a concept car. That, however, may change. Recently the vehicle was put on display at the Shanghai Auto Show in China and interest was so high China’s Lotus distributor is…
Lotus Elise Purist Edition Announced
Lotus has confirmed that it will introduce a Purist Edition of the Elise for sale in the U.S. this year. The philosophy behind this new model is to bring the Elise back to what it was when it first crossed the pond and landed on U.S. shores. That means it will be a more basic…
Lotus Evora Chassis Wins Prestigious “Technical Achievement” Award
Those engineers over at Lotus have received a pat on the back by industry experts in the U.K., as the company was recently awarded the Dewar Trophy by the Royal Automobile Club. The Dewar Trophy is handed out each year for a “outstanding British technical achievement in the automotive field.” Lotus received the award for…
British Driver Nabbed for 173 MPH in Lotus Elise Beats Jail Sentence Because Speed “Was Impossible”
Last July, Tex O’Reilly was clocked driving 173 mph in a 50 mph zone in his Lotus Elise – an offense that would normally have landed the father of three in jail. O’Reilly beat the rap, however, by hiring a team of defense lawyers who argued that such a speed “was impossible.” The unmodified Elise,…
Kia Soul: The Soul of a Lotus?
According to a report in the UK’s CAR magazine, Kia has entered into a partnership with Lotus that will see the British light-weight sportscar maker develop the suspension for all future Kia models – starting with the Soul. The only problem is, this special suspension setup with be specifically for the UK – or so…
Detroit Auto Show 2009: Worst Display
While in past years we might have handed out praise for the “Best Display” at the North American International Auto Show (NAIAS) in Detroit, a “Worst Display” nod seems only appropriate for the 2009 show. And so, without further adieux, the AutoGuide “Worst Display” award goes to Mitsubishi. Why, you might ask? Well, there are…
Lotus Plug-in Hybrid Coming
In an interview with the Financial Times, Lotus CEO Michael Kimberly said that Lotus is working on a Hybrid and that the vehicle could be ready as early as March. And March just so happens to be when the Geneva Auto Show is… and Lotus never passes up an opportunity to unveil something in Geneva….
2009 Lotus Exige 260
For 2009 Lotus will once again improve the already perfect Exige by adding more power and by further reducing the sportscar’s already anemic curb weight. Lotus has managed to squeeze an additional 17hp out of the supercharged 1.8-liter Toyota powerplant for a total of 257 ponies at 8000 rpm. Torque is rated at 174 ft-lbs…
NextPrevious