1 March 2011

Tick Tock Goes The Lotus Clock

Geneva shows that there's no time like the present to go Lotus.

14.15 CET was the time, the Lotus Stand at the Geneva Motor Show was the place. La Roux's 'In For The Kill' set the scene as the backing track for the Lotus update movie that showed the progress at the head quarters in Hethel during which Group Lotus CEO Dany Bahar reiterated the importance of the task in hand saying: “2010 was the dawn of a new era for Lotus, in 2011 the vision comes to life”.

Time has been the theme for Lotus so far. Whilst the Paris Motor Show with the unveiling of five new models was all about the future, Geneva was all about the here and now.

Alongside reminding people of what's yet to come for Lotus, the Geneva Motor Show provided the perfect opportunity to showcase what's currently on offer, starting with the unveiling of the new 1.6l Lotus Elise Club Racer. In a move that's bound to please the lightweight lovers, the Lotus engineers managed to shave off up to 24kg from the iconic lightweight sports car. This plus the addition of Lotus DPM (Dynamic Performance Management) mode equate to the perfect car for soaking up the spring sunshine.

Sharing the stage with the Elise Club Racer were the latest editions to the award winning Evora family, the Evora S, the Evora IPS and the Lotus Concept Bespoke, a unique collaboration on the Evora S between Lotus Design and customisation specialists Mansory.

Commenting on the Lotus Concept Bespoke, Lotus Director of Design, Donato Coco said: ”The customised Evora showcases the future potential of Lotus product individualisation. We want to test the water first before committing to a full tailoring strategy, feedback here is a really important part of the process. Working with Mansory has been a good experience and we're pleased with the results, but our opinion isn't necessarily what sells cars, let's see what the public think.”

Lotus Renault GP were out in force to show their support at the show, drivers Nick Heidfeld, Vitaly Petrov and Bruno Senna were on stage with the stunning black and gold liveried F1 car. Whilst at the show the team took time to check out the other black and gold stunner, the Evora Enduro - GT Concept, the base car for Lotus' GT2/GTE Le Mans challenger. In an earlier GT4 Endurance variant, this car enjoyed phenomenal success in it's first few outings with a recent podium finish in the hands of Nigel Mansell's sons Leo and Greg at the Dubai 24 hour race.

Commenting on the activity in Geneva, CEO Dany Bahar said: ”For me, this show is about the Evora, particularly the Evora S, it complements the range perfectly, the response from the media so far has been fantastic, we're really proud of it. I think our collaboration with Mansory really showcases the aesthetic potential of the car too, the only limit is your imagination. And on the subject of pleasing aesthetics, I think the Evora Enduro looks incredible in black and gold, I saw the F1 team checking it out and I know Bruno Senna is looking forward to putting it to the test at our track in Hethel.”