Car magazine brings us a few more snippets about the Lotus Europa -- the Proton-owned company's forthcoming Elise-based GT car.
It's been confirmed that it will house the Vauxhall Astra's turbocharged 2.0-litre engine, and will be based on the Elise's aluminium bonded chassis, but won't share any body panels. It'll weigh around 920Kg, only about 60Kg more than an Elise 111R, giving it a power to weight ratio of 214bhp/tonne.
This means the motor's 197bhp and 184lb-ft of torque will rocket the pocket GT to 60mph in some five seconds. However, as Clive Dopson told PistonHeads at Shelsley Walsh, though a more relaxed car, it's still a driver's car.
It looks nothing like the Elise, having a more flat-fronted nose, possibly mandated by pedestrian safety legislation, punctuated by three gaping airscoops. The headlamps are inset but a totally different shape, while the coupé shell provides 30mm more headroom, and as a result has a 911-ish shape to it. There's an overhang at the rear to create a luggage space.
The price looks to be around £30,000, putting it squarely in competition with the Nissan 350Z, Porsche Cayman and BMW's Z4 Coupé.
Only 450 will be made and you can expect to see it next June. We can't wait...
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