The Elise has long been one of the finest driver’s cars on the planet. Incredibly light and fast, its driving experience has more in common with a go-kart than an ordinary car.
Now Lotus has decided to make it even lighter and quicker with a new special edition.
The British sports car maker is marking the 50th anniversary of its base in Hethel, Norfolk, with a new special edition Elise. The 250 weighs just 899kg, and has set the lap record for a street-legal production Elise round the company’s test circuit.
Just 50 units of the Elise 250 will be made, costing £47,900
The 899kg weight is thanks to liberal use of hand-finished carbon fibre and aluminium components. The 250 gets a carbon-fibre front splitter, rear wing, tailgate and front access panel. Carbon-fibre sports seats in leather are also included.
The Elise 250 uses the familiar 1.8-litre supercharged petrol engine mated to a six-speed manual gearbox, producing 243bhp. That combination of power and light weight means it has an astonishing power-to-weight ratio of 270bhp per tonne.
Available in a choice of four colours – blue, red, yellow and white – an optional carbon fibre hardtop roof panel is also available as well as leather seats with contrast stitching and silver or black alloys.
The new Elise also features a driver selectable ‘Sport’ setting, which proportionally increases throttle response, lowers traction slip thresholds and allows enhanced control before the system intervenes.
The special edition has a number of styling details that pay tribute to one of the most iconic Lotus cars of all time – the Elan, which was among the prettiest cars of the 1960s and a familiar sight to viewers of TV show The Avengers.
At £47,900, the special edition is the most expensive Elise in the range, sitting above the 250 Cup which costs £45,600, and Lotus says it will be sold on a first-come, first-serve basis.
jmckeown@thecourier.co.uk