Car Moon

If you’re a fan of the lightweight sports cars from Lotus, namely the Elise and its closed-top sibling, the Exige, and live in North America, then you’d better hurry up before the well dries up. That’s because production of the North American spec model will end in August according to a report from Autoblog.

The reasons behind this decision lie in the lack of “smart” airbags, which are now mandatory in the US, along with Toyota’s decision to stop production of its 2ZZ 1.8-liter, 4-cylinder engine that powers US-spec models. The Elise and the Exige will continue to be sold in Europe, as they’re equipped with a new 1.6-liter four-cylinder unit.

True to its heritage, Lotus has unwrapped a new lighter version of its entry-level Elise 1.6 called the Club Racer. Even in stock form, the Elise is one of the lightest production sports cars in the market tipping the scales at just 876 kg or 1,931 pounds, but the company's engineers put the open top model on a crash diet and managed to shed a further 24 kg or 53 lbs. Read more »

You may have to ask a second time for their name and you probably need to take more than a couple of looks to tell them apart, but that doesn't mean we're not impressed by the next generation of Lotus sports cars.

Unveiled for the first time as concept studies at the Paris Motor Show in October, with the North American debut taking place at the Los Angeles Auto Show in November, the new Elise, Esprit, Elite, Elan are a wild bunch. And while we don't have anything new to add about the four sports coupes, Lotus has unleashed a beautiful photo gallery shot in Hollywood, which you can enjoy in high-resolution quality right after the jump.

Remember Hennessey’s barnstorming, 1,200 hp (895 kW) Venom GT? Well its back and the journalistic titans at Road & Track have driven it. And there’s a video, to boot. Weighing in at a lithe 2,685 lbs (1,218 kg), the phenomenal Venom GT builds on Hennessey’s experience with tuning the Viper, 5th generation Camaro and various Cadillacs, among many others. It’s a simple formula, really. Big power + light weight = big fun. Read more »

Taking center stage at Proton's 2010 Kuala Lumpur International Motor Show booth alongside the Mitsubishi Lancer EVO-esque Jebat study, is yet one more concept model based on another manufacturer's vehicle, the Lekir. This time, Proton looked into its own car bin and in particular, Lotus, which it acquired back in 1994, as the Lekir is essentially a rebagded Europa coupe. Mind you, it's not the first time we've seen the Europa wearing different logos as Dodge displayed an EV concept of the model at the 2009 Detroit Show.

From the creators of the Ferrari Enzo-emulating GTX-R comes the K1 Attack, a car that takes styling cues from the Spyker C8 Aileron, Lotus Europa and others. Simbol Design has fitted the Attack with an Alfa Romeo-sourced V6 turbo good for 246 horsepower. Mated to a 5-speed manual, this gives the custom built sports car an apparent 0 to 100 km/h [62 mph] time of 4.9 seconds and a top speed of 265 km/h [165 mph].

To show that the brand is going through a metamorphosis after the presentation of five new models at the Paris Show, Lotus has joined forces with award winning French artist Gérard Rancinan to create seven artistic images that will be showcased alongside a new book by French writer, Caroline Gaudriault, at a special event in Los Angeles on Friday, November 12.

As you may have guessed, the collection of photos is called "Metamorphosis" and the focus is on the five new Lotus models that made the trip to this year's Paris Motor Show: the Esprit, Elan, Elite, Elise and Eterne, plus two extra large montages.

Some say you can't make a Lotus any better. Well, maybe they haven't head of Hennessey and its SEMA Show-bound Venom GT. The American firm's new toy is based on the Lotus Elise and, in its flagship version, comes equipped with an out-of-this-world 1,200 hp (895 kW) twin turbocharged V8 engine sourced from the Corvette. Power is sent to the rear wheels through a six-speed manual gearbox.

The new Lotus Elise jumps into entirely new styling territory, not so much evolving from the current model but fully reinventing itself as a baby Esprit. The only similarities are the mid-engine layout driving the rear wheels and 2-seats around corners.

Possibly one of the biggest surprises of the 2010 Paris Motor Show, was the unveiling of six new models from Lotus. Aside from the Elite GT (see here) that we've already told you about, the British sports car maker revealed not one, not two but five more new models and concepts!

Clearly, it's good to be the boss. How so? Lotus CEO Danny Bahar recently made a trip to Japan to thank Toyota for their companies' long - and soon to be longer - partnership. For those new to the game, Lotus has been sourcing its power plants from Toyota for a while and currently all Loti use one form of Toyota mill or another.

Following the Australian government's move to reduce import duties earlier this year, Lotus Cars of Australia has announced significant price reductions across the model range, with savings of up to $18,500.

Lotus Cars Australia Managing Director John Startari explains: "The government's import duty reduction at the start of 2010 has offered some assistance, whilst favorable foreign exchange rates have been a further catalyst to these announced price changes."

[Updated with New Photos and Details] The most popular Lotus of our time, the Elise, is entering the 2011 model year with a host of updates that include styling and mechanical tweaks as well as the introduction of a new entry-level model with a Toyota-sourced 1.6-liter gasoline engine.

The facelifted model can be recognized by the new fascia up front that boasts a redesigned hood, new bumper with a wider grille, and reshaped headlights featuring LED daytime running lights for the first time.

Like many other niche automakers, Lotus has a thing for special edition models. The latest one to come out of Hethel is the Elise S-based Club Racer (CR) and it will be displayed for the first time at the Frankfurt motorshow. Although it retains the base model's Toyota-sourced 1.8-liter engine and five-speed gearbox which is good for a 0 to 60mph sprint time of 5.7 sec (0-100km/h: 6.1") while returning 37.2 mpg UK or 7.6 lt/100km on the combined cycle, the CR introduces new color schemes, bespoke interior and lightweight components.

North American owners of naturally aspirated Elise and Exige models can now add a little more oomph to their cars without worrying about voiding the warranty as Lotus USA has announced the availability of a factory engineered, warranted and 50-state legal supercharger kit. Utilizing the same supercharger and integrated intake manifold unit as fitted to a production Elise SC, the kit can be installed on any naturally aspirated Elise or Exige powered by a Toyota 2ZZ-GE engine.

Fancy taking a Lotus Elise SC for a spin? Well, if you're either a permanent resident or planning to visit Italy as a tourist, you'll be happy to know that Lotus has announced a new agreement with the car hire company Hertz Italiana to supply a bunch of yellow Elise SC for its rental business in Italy. The two-seater roadsters will be available to hire from central Hertz centers throughout the country beginning from the middle of July.

As most of you may already know, the all-electric Tesla Roadster is based on the Lotus Elise with which its shares numerous parts including the rear hub flange bolts that have been deemed defective. According to the NHTSA, on some vehicles the bolts may be under-torqued and could become loose. The two companies issued separate notifications on the matter with Tesla saying that the recall affects 345 Roadster models manufactured between March 2008 and April 22, 2009 (out of a total of 400 cars sold until May 2009) while Lotus is recalling 27 Elise and Exige vehicles built from January 14 through May 5, 2009.

You'd think that, since the Elise and Exige models are pure-bred sportscars, Lotus wouldn't care much about improving their eco-credentials. Well, apparently that's not the case with Lotus as the British automaker has performed various tweaks on both cars' powertrains and aerodynamics helping the 2010MY Elise and Exige give up to a 9% reduction in CO2 emissions and similar increases in fuel economy.

According to Lotus' Spartan press release, on the combined cycle, the Elise S shows the greatest improvement in fuel efficiency offering an increase of 3.2mpg UK or 2.7mpg US (a decrease of 0.7 l/100km), from 34.0 mpg UK or 28.3 mpg US (8.3 l/100 km) to 37.mpg UK or 31mpg US (7.6 l/100km)

Mike Kimberley, CEO of Group Lotus plc, stated, "The Lotus philosophy of performance through light weight is even more relevant in today's emission focused ecological world. This design philosophy has enabled Lotus to offer fantastic levels of performance, with Lotus cars being some of the greenest performance cars on the market".

The new 2010 model year Elise and Exige are on sale now at Lotus dealers in the UK.

Elise S:179 g/km CO2

• 7.6 l/100 km (37.2 mpg UK) Combined Cycle
  
• 10.6 l/100 km (26.6 mpg UK) Urban Cycle
  
• 5.8 l/100 km (48.7 mpg UK) Extra Urban Cycle
  

Elise R: 196 g/km CO2

• 8.2 l/100 km (34.4 mpg UK) Combined Cycle
  
• 11.6 l/100 km (24.4 mpg UK) Urban Cycle
  
• 6.2 l/100 km (45.6 mpg UK) Extra Urban Cycle
  

Elise SC: 199 g/km CO2

• 8.5 l/100 km (33.2 mpg UK) Combined Cycle
  
• 11.8 l/100 km (23.9 mpg UK) Urban Cycle
  
• 6.4 l/100 km (44.1 mpg UK) Extra Urban Cycle
  

Exige S: 199 g/km CO2

• 8.5 l/100 km (33.2 mpg UK) Combined Cycle
  
• 11.9 l/100 km (23.7 mpg UK) Urban Cycle
  
• 6.5 litres/100 km (43.5 mpg UK) Extra Urban Cycle

Lotus has joined forces with tuning specialist Project Kahn to create a bespoke version of the Elise to celebrate the British automaker’s 60th Anniversary. Along with the release of a few teaser images, Project Kahn also revealed details on the limited production Elise that will be officially unveiled in September. The exterior of the Elise has been upgraded with an aerodynamic styling package, whilst the interior is given the full Kahn treatment with full leather seats and door trims. In terms of performance, the Elise’s air flow system is enhanced with the addition of the Kahn sports exhaust while the suspension is lowered with 28 stage dampeners for improved handling. -Continued


Via: Autoblog.it

Ever since Fiat re-launched its Abarth brand, we’ve been hearing rumors about a stand-alone sports car that will act as a “halo” car for the Italian brand. Now, British magazine Autocar is reporting that it has learned from credible sources that Fiat has struck a deal with Lotus to use the next generation Elise that’s expected in 2010 as a base for a lightweight sports car with a mid-engine, rear-wheel drive layout. -Continued

The two-seater that is slatted to enter production in 2011 will get its own unique styling along with a range of Fiat sourced engines that could include the 1.4-liter Turbo unit from the Grande Punto Abarth and the 1.8-liter direct-injection Turbo from the new Lancia Delta. (Picture: CarScoop)

Via: Autocar