3:00 to 4:00 I think the visitors of this blog at least a couple you will be very sad to see only the name Lotus written anywhere in the post recently, but the innovations unveiled yesterday are so greedy that they can not pass under the guillotine tragic than my usual opinabilissimo and personal opinion. Who wants to read and understand the little article (in the hope of not falling asleep before) can write his thought: the subject is too hot to not let everyone say its ... ELISE 2015 
Abstract: this writer likes the current Elise, and no doubt those of you who have wandered a little bit thin for this blog will have it already figured out long ago. And 'perhaps the only car that could, I would buy instantly without thinking about a femtosecond, simply love it to distraction, for me is the sport with the capital "S", I care little whether it is crude, uncomfortable and noisy, if it stinks of the resin used to glue the frame or the coupling of the panels was more precise on a Volvo 80s. And I also like to ignore that large handful of purists reproach that the nearly two tons in excess of the original born in '96. Because the soul, going to look beyond the chiletti put up in the last fifteen years and the icy Toyota Motor, in reality has remained the same.
E 'perhaps for my particular emotional involvement that I can not explain the choice of presenting a concept of the future Elise right now, four years ahead of schedule and just over six months since the last redesign. The new Lotus men want to kill sales of perhaps their best-seller, the car that saved them from the brink of failure? Or perhaps, to want to be malicious, they hope to increase flow in Paris a bad prototype of the Elise has zero, except the name? Donato Coco perhaps smoking a pipe while he designed the 2015 Elise, or maybe he was drunk, or maybe not in full possession of his mental faculties. Go for the new family look and the clean cut style Carr signed by past and Crijns, but the truth is that this concept is ugly and it looks squat. Front clumsy, with a great mouth, surmounted by a pair of tiny lights embedded in a completely flat cofanone (where are the traditional outlets?). At the rear is better, because of a confusion of lines a bit 'twisted that come to naught, even if there is a slight reference to the S2. Go then to understand the meaning of two colors, stupid fashion that Coco was dragged behind the Ferrari.
But if style is completely dissociated from today Elise, under the skin of the gap is less marked: the two key figures are 320 hp and 1095 kg. A comparison of fast, sheer numbers, with past and present: MY1996 Elise S1 had 118 hp and weighed 720 pounds, the Elise S2 2011 has 136 hp and 860 kg This means that the Elise will make 2015 a number of steps in the direction of TT, SLK, Z4, Boxster and company, in fact going to distort the basic principles that led to the birth and evolution of the Type 111.
Elise 2015? No, thanks. VOTE 4
ESPRIT
Since the death of the Esprit V8 in 2004, many rumors (and rendered more or less watchable) have tried to outline a future heir, and after a long wait of the Esprit 2013 is here, in the form of concept, ready to win a place of honor among 458, MP4-12 / C and Gallardo. Even here in references to the past Lotus, near and far, one sees very few. But the new style, the Elise does not work at all, can express himself fully on the Esprit. Low, wide, slender, technological and aggressive, with a touch of Lambo and Italy 458. From the first picture I viewed the style a cut above the MP4-12, although it seems a tad bit less personal than the 458. To be completely honest, I would like to see gone this glass roof (which will probably remain the prerogative of the concept) and the rear wheels seem a bit lost 'in the muscular wheel arches. Under the bodywork lurks a 5.0 V8 capable of 540 or 620 hp depending on the version that allow the Esprit series of exceeding 330 km / h and drop below 3.4 seconds in the sprint from zero to a hundred. The weight will be in 1450 instead of pounds, much in line with the current competition. Perhaps it is too early to tell, but it seems that the new Esprit will be able to do justice to the name it carries heavy below. I like it, and not a little. VOTE
8 
ELAN
E 'little sister miniature Esprit, think of a 911-type relationship Cayman. With over 440 horses provided by a 4.0 V6 is a nice mid-engined coupe, as the Evora, will have the opportunity to be a 2 +2. Stylistically, the relationship with the sister, Esprit is very obvious, perhaps too much for the front, so much so that a careless glance could easily be confused. The latter is successful, even if little appreciated by the official photos released by Lotus. As the price should pursue in the area 911 Carrera, which is around 100 thousand euro for a planned marketing (sigh!) submitted in 2013. Even given the weight it gets interesting: we talk about 1295 kg, or 50 less than the standard Evora currently for sale. It rises only a few doubts about the name Elan is another name for noble recovered from the attic, but the original was a slight front-engine convertible ... clever marketing ploy? Ultimately, the most successful group like the Esprit. VOTE
8 
ELITE 
Of Elite I have already spoken in this post
. My thoughts about it has not changed though, put aside the surprise for the revolution in style and type of car for the "little Lotus", I must say that I started to appreciate it more. And 'big and pesantuccia, although the 1600 kg do not seem out of place given the 5.0 V8 compressed, the 2 +2 configuration, the hard top, the KERS system and the interior iperlussuosi. The photos live As expected, make it more justice to its sleek lines, it seems almost impossible that it is a coupe-cabrio due to the lack of compromise evident on the face style. VOTE 7
ETERNAL
Based (apparently) on the Elite, Lotus is the first four-door of history. I must admit that fundamentalist which I would rather not see nor the Mormon nor the Elite with the Lotus brand on the hood, but if this is the policy implemented by the new CEO, then let's try to put aside prejudices and judge with greater detachment. The Lord is very successful, you can not deny it is an entirely different quell'aborto pasta than called Panamera, by far the most graceful of the new CLS, and dare I say almost as good and balanced the Aston Rapide. While not a big fan of the "four-door coupe" (I call them again sedans, I will be old-fashioned), I must acknowledge that it is becoming an increasingly important market segment, ergo a safe source of wealthy buyers and their liquidity . If you choose to bring cash to focus on models of good taste and fine, then I approve. Just in Hethel do not come up with a SUV ..
. VOTE 7 
CITY CAR (?)
Hidden in one corner was the stuff you see in the picture above. Officially it should be a prototype of the Lotus Engineering
(the section completely separated from the Lotus Cars
that he is a consultant to other houses and to develop innovative projects), in other words, there is hope that as other prototypes in the past this shame never see the light. And 'I dwell on unnecessary to speak further. VOTE 1
Finally, a school report also helms the Lotus. Lotus Cars Ltd.
A great credit must be said: no one would never expected a total revolution as was that of the Paris Motor Show: five concept (City Car excluded) and so many promises, which we hope to see maintained. The cards were thrown on the table and the game is short, perhaps too soon since the first model (Esprit) we will see in dealerships in two years. A model which I entrust the future of the house in anticipation of 2013? I doubt that sales of Evora, as the choice has been enriched by the new S and IPS, is not penalized by the presentation of a range of cars so different. And the Elise? As reported in this article
, more powerful variants R and SC can no longer be sold in our dell'insulso continent because European regulations on emissions, or remain in the list only 136 hp 1.6-Elise. I'm afraid to sell to customers that can draw only limited, consisting of those who do not appreciate the heir unveiled yesterday and those who realize that the 2015 version is not what you look for in a Elise. We'll see, but expectations are not the most optimistic ...
Among the ads has gone a bit 'on the sly that the total reconstruction of the factory in Hethel circuit and annex: the idea is to recreate a mini-flower, a big step forward compared to the former RAF airfield. Still on the track and related activities, I was surprised by the decision of wanting to develop a prototype closed for the LMP2 category. Lotus at Le Mans? The idea excites me more than a little ... Dany Bahar bravo!
Now for the sad note: the style department. Paris 2010 was undoubtedly a huge shock: who expected that the ex-Ferrari Donato Coco and his colleagues have thrown in the toilet today's styles to start from a completely blank sheet? Lotus style, at least what we were accustomed to seeing with Elise and Evora, seems to have entirely disappeared, and a good part of me regrets. Not that the new models are ugly, mind you (the new "Elise" is a different matter), but the cut with the past was just too fast and too unexpected. Maybe it's just a matter of us the eye, perhaps we will move forward to idolize models of the past, or perhaps between a year or two we'll be back here to tell everyone how good they are in Lotus. Honestly, I hope so. The initial
ACBC on the traditional coat of arms in yellow are too precious to see her legacy in a future scialaquata manufacturer anonymously and without personality.
VOTE 6 , encouragement.
Lotus Force!
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