Monday 8th September 2014

Lotus Elise S Cup confirmed

Turns out that Nurburgring prototype was exactly what we thought it was!

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When Lotus puts 'Cup' on a production model, it's likely to be a fairly focused kind of sports car. Such is the case with the Elise S Cup, the roadgoing version of the Cup R racer launched last year.

Really is this with numberplates

Carrying a very similar aero package to the racer with a jutting front splitter, the winglets, barge boards and rear wing/diffuser arrangement it certainly looks purposeful. It isn't for show either, the bodywork tweaks generating 66kg of downforce at 100mph (compared to 5kg for the Elise S) and 125kg at the 140mph top speed (8kg for the S). Note also the fixed roof. So it's a track focused Elise with a roof that isn't an Exige; understand? The result of the tweaks is that the Cup is three seconds faster around Hethel than the standard supercharged car.

That the Comfort Pack in an Elise Cup includes sound insulation and a passenger footrest says a lot; a standard Lotus is spartan and the Cup is one stage further still. A competition-spec roll cage is standard, as are wiring harness changes that mean a fire extinguisher and and kill switch can be retrofitted if you do actually want to make a race car. They're on the options list with airbag delete, FIA-approved seats and a lightweight battery. Quite serious then.

There isn't yet a RRP for the Elise S Cup, with Lotus only announcing it will cost 'around £43,500 including VAT' but excluding on the road cost. That would make it around (as we're being approximate still) £8K more than a Cup Racer Elise S. Interestingly, a Caterham Seven R500 is £43,055, perhaps less sophisticated in its pursuit of speed but no less thrilling. Could make an interesting comparison... Lotus has said the Elise Cup 'will be available for purchase through the dealer network', implying an on-sale date is due very soon.

[Ex Boy Racer]

I was thinking that it seemed expensive until the caterham comparison was made. Puts things in perspective a little...

Saw an Exige S Roadster at a dealer stand at the weekend. Cool piece of kit - moved on a long way in just a couple of years. Seriously desirable.

[kambites]

Puts it rather close to the Exige.

[james_gt3rs]

Ex Boy Racer said:

I was thinking that it seemed expensive until the caterham comparison was made. Puts things in perspective a little...

I think an R500 is in a different league of speed though!

[mrdemon]

does it have a BHP tweek ?

240bhp would be nice to see.

or 260 to match the old style of cup cars.

[GTEYE]

All well and good.

Does anyone actually buy them though? I'm sure I read that Lotus sales are seriously low these days, which is a real shame, but perhaps reflecting the lack of any properly new models.

[Ex Boy Racer]

james_gt3rs said:

Ex Boy Racer said:

I was thinking that it seemed expensive until the caterham comparison was made. Puts things in perspective a little...

I think an R500 is in a different league of speed though!

Agreed. And don't get me wrong, I'm a Caterham man through and through. But as an item, looking at what you get for your money, the Lotus is good value vs the Caterham.

[otolith]

Sales are low but improving recently. Presumably the intention of launching cars like this is to do something about that...

[kambites]

Lotus had registered 153 cars in the UK in 2014 to the end of August, which is better than last year. Not sure what the target was but the UK is not their main market and hasn't been for some time.

Edited by kambites on Monday 8th September 11:48

[otolith]

Wonder how much of their market is not UK?

[kambites]

otolith said:

Wonder how much of their market is not UK?

I might be making this up, but I seem to remember reading somewhere that the UK is <10% of their market these days.

[foxhounduk]

for the price its an interesting proposition. exige v6 cup still takes the biscuit for me though

[kbf1981]

kambites said:

Lotus had registered 153 cars in the UK in 2014 to the end of August, which is better than last year. Not sure what the target was but the UK is not their main market and hasn't been for some time.

Edited by kambites on Monday 8th September 11:48

This. They sell around 1650 cars a year or did so in last 12 mo I think? Most sales aren't UK but China etc...

I think they're aiming for 3000 now, or were in last DRB press release.

[Ozzie Osmond]

Looks like a 4-pot Exige S to me....

[Ozzie Osmond]

.... lets hope that somewhere behind the scenes at Lotus there's someone actually working on a proper, new 2-seater road car.

[moribund]

Ozzie Osmond said:

.... lets hope that somewhere behind the scenes at Lotus there's someone actually working on a proper, new 2-seater road car.

Not being funny, but why?

What issues with the Elise need a new model to address?

[otolith]

The elderly and fat people have problems getting in and out, I suppose.

[wowman]

In an era where the common perception of the term "sports car" is associated with electric seats, room for golf bags, Svarovski and million-zone climatronics, where you get more loudspeakers than cylinders, Lotus makes a clear statement:
this! is! a! true! sportscar!

Thank you, Lotus.

[braddo]

wowman said:

In an era where the common perception of the term "sports car" is associated with electric seats, room for golf bags, Svarovski and million-zone climatronics, where you get more loudspeakers than cylinders, Lotus makes a clear statement:
this! is! a! true! sportscar!

Thank you, Lotus.

In this case the S-Line Audi ride quality will actually have a proper point, being able to lap a track all day.

[Impasse]

otolith said:

The elderly and fat people have problems getting in and out, I suppose.

http://www.thelotusforums.com/latest-news/our-news...

[MJK 24]

2014 sales target was set at 2,000 cars and they're on track to hit that early/mid November.