Engines = Toyota
They’re all “concepts” so there will be changes pre-production.
I’m with Boothy all the way. We’re lucky, we’ve got “proper” Lotus but soon there won’t be such a thing.I’ve been a Lotus fan since the days of Jim Clark when I used to go to races with my dad. He finally got his dream car: a Lotus and loved it.Now I’ve got mine.
I can’t believe the scatter-gun approach they are taking to car production, race teams etc. All the hoo-hah over Team Lotus, Group Lotus, Lotus F1. It’s not the right way to do things.
It’s going to end in tears.
I cant change what there doing and they do all look very samey, personally I think the elise is the best looking of the bunch! We just need a stripped out exge version! 5 years i a long wait.
Gav
I think they just look all very very similar when i first look at it, so i had a second look at the range…still the same…which i think lacks the character of each model???
That’s desperation right there. Reminds me of a recently divorced, back on the market bint with everything polished/buffed/waxed - come and get me! When you get down to business, she starts greetin fur her Ex…ige.
As I’ve said before, the Lotus I love appears to be gone. There is nothing, not a single other car in the market at the moment that would be a direct replacement for my Exige.
Lotus are throwing away a loyal customer base and a market segment they dominant to chase Ferrari and Porsche owners. I think its a real shame!
As mentioned previously, Lotus to me were a car brand with great history, core values and were always friendly. I’ve lost count of the number of times I’ve phoned up Lotus Motorsport to chat to Rowland with his classic Norfolk accent. Always friendly, always helpful. I worry now that they’ll all be sacked and the operation will be shipped out to another country!
Lotus owners for me are young(ish) car enthusiasts in jeans and t-shirts who love cars and love to chat about them. A Porsche owner is completely different and the type of person Lotus are going for!
So what will I do now? I’m going to get the 260 tune on my Exige while I still can, then I’m going to track it, enjoy it and keep it!
Maybe one day when this all blows over and Lotus rediscover their roots, I’ll have one of their new classics, but until then I’m happy with what I’ve got!
Spot on!
You’ve not been to an exiges.com trackday, have you?
[quote=Mr Pesky][quote=C8UER]
Lotus owners for me are young(ish) car enthusiasts in jeans and t-shirts
[/quote]
Spot on!
You’ve not been to an exiges.com trackday, have you?
[/quote]
Not yet
I fully intend to though. At the moment I’m sitting at home in a sling recovering from a shoulder operation. I’ve had a shoulder problem for the last 6 years and it’s really put me back when it comes to doing trackdays.
I’ve been on a few but my shoulder ends up killing me at the end of the day. Anyway, to cut the waffle short, I had an operation a few weeks ago and cannot drive until November / December now.
Once I’m back on my feet, and the snow / ice clears, then I fully intend on doing a lot of track days next year! Is there any information for the 2011 trackday calender for Exiges.com trackdays?
C8UER, get well soon!
I largely agree with all you said. I guess the problem is that they don’t make any money so have to try something different. I think it is an incredibly high risk strategy - to change the image of the brand itself and also to build cars to the quality levels of the likes of Porsche. Good luck to them, but it is not the Lotus I have come to love.
I am reasonbly sure someone has replaced Lotus while I wasn’t watching, it appears to have become an alien half breed with some nice designer Italian shoes!!! WTF are they thinking, how on earth are they going to make it to 2013 with 3 dealers and one car to sell, bankruptcy here we come…
Lost their core values? Lost the plot more like 
On the plus side the S2 Exige is no longer a future classic, it is going to have classic status like the S1 as they will never make anymore, unless hell freezes over I will not be selling mine as I could never replace it.
Rant over I’ll get my coat…
Is it just me, or is the checked interior a bit 80’s Golf?
80s intrior with a 2010 silly ferrari steering wheel. I do however like the centre display with the circuit picture in, could that be a clue?
Gav
Looks like you will smack your hands to bits on the bling gear change surround trying to change gear! 
It’s either a sequential, or a paddle/auto style stick shifter, surely? No doubt the latter in “reality” eventually a la Ferarri etc
Will the power hike the new elise is supposed to be capable of not bring the power to weight ratio back to the levels of the “old” elise based lotuses??
I made the assumption that DCT in relation the gearbox, meant Double clutch transmission 
Power to weight is only good when accelerating in a straight line. On the Brakes and in the corners it’s only weight.
I am with Boothy. Nice looking cars but it’s not what we all love.
Ex77
I know where Lotus are coming from and understand to a certain extent the desire to chase Ferrari Porsche and Aston, but this is a very expensive gamble in my opinion, and verging on corporate suicide.
They have a good loyal customer base, but are about to introduce a range of cars that I estimate 90% of their current customers cannot afford.
Much as I think each one is fantastic, and the Elite has my vote, even the Elise is going to weigh over a ton, and have a V8, so is likely to be north of �40k
The Elan might scrape in under �100k
Apart from the Elite, where are the Convertibles, and what happened to Adding Lightness.
Also to do this within 5 years with a bunch of “turnip farmers in Norfolk” is adventurous to say the least.
A company like Lotus has to move forward, and Lotus now being on the world F1 stage is probably the time to do it, but didnt they try this before in the 70s when moving upmarket to Excel, Eclat etc, and didnt they nearly go down the toilet then ?
In spite of the speech it just seems that the Lotus roots are just that… history. I do hope I am wrong and that the company I started following 40 odd years ago can survive. From watching F1 on TV supporting the green and yellow Lotus of Jim Clark, and my first Elan some 25 years ago, to my first brand new Lotus the Exige 3 years ago.
Will they continue to produce cars I can (only just) afford. Agree with Boothy, a Caterham is just not the same as a Lotus.
Oh, and I wish they had picked a CEO who knows how to tie his own tie, and that the tartan inserts in the Elise seats are a joke.
Minor detail but the Elise is a V4 