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Lotus says the electric Evija is a trailblazer that will influence future cars

Lotus, a company known for making nimble sports cars, is stepping outside of its comfort zone to develop a 2,000-horsepower electric hypercar named Evija. Battery technology is heavy, so the limited-edition coupe won't be a featherweight like the Elise, but the firm's chief engineer told Autoblog it will be imbued with Lotus-ness. Keeping weight in check is easier said than done when you're dealing with four individual electric motors and a 70-kilowatt-hour lithium-ion battery pack. Matt Windle, the man in charge of the company's research and development department, explained the widespread use of composite materials like carbon fiber helps offset the mass. He cited clever packaging as another weight-saving measure. The part the steering column is mounted to is also used as a ducting for the HVAC system, for example. "We try to combine many requirements into one part to keep the weight down," Windle said. All told, the Evija (pictured) tips the scale at about 3,700 pounds. That's remarkably light for an electric hypercar, but it's heavier than any Lotus model in recent memory. And yet, Windle assured us it will still feel like a Lotus behind the wheel. That's partly because the battery pack is where the four- or six-cylinder would be in a mid-engined car rather than directly under the passenger compartment. This configuration gives the two passengers the impression of being wrapped in the cockpit while lowering the center of gravity. "We have the ability to deliver the driving dynamics and the performance that customers expect from a Lotus. It's the same dynamic setup, but with a different propulsion system," Windle pointed out. Lotus will initially cap Evija production at 130 examples, so there likely won't be enough units to fill demand, but that's par for the course when it comes to halo models. The numerous lessons learned from the project will trickle down into other models in the coming years, however, and the company has several products in the pipeline. "People do not understand that Lotus is still going. We want them to know we're still here, that we can still innovate," Windle said. "[The Evija] is not just a standalone product. The design language and the content that's in the car will give us direction as we shape future products that are coming. You'll see it as a trailblazer."

2022 Lotus Emira revealed with two engine options, Evija-inspired looks

The final internal-combustion-powered Lotus has been revealed: the 2022 Lotus Emira. The styling looks like a blend of the outgoing Evora and the all-new Evija electric car. It also features two choices of engine, one of which comes from AMG. The Emira's nose has the closest resemblance to the electric car, particularly in the headlights and the vent openings on either side of the hood. But the whole car has a softer, more rounded shape like the EV rather than the old Evora. It has very large intakes on each side, and a slim, wrap-around taillight at the back. The body fits over a typical Lotus bonded-aluminum chassis, and the company says the lightest version of the car will weigh around 3,100 pounds. Two kinds of suspension are available, the standard Tour setup and an optional and stiffer Sports version. Also noteworthy is the inclusion of hydraulic power steering, rather than electric. Powering that chassis is your choice of engines. It will launch initially with the same supercharged 3.5-liter V6 from the Evora. Next summer, it will be offered with a turbocharged 2.0-liter four-cylinder from AMG. Lotus says three transmissions will be available: manual, automatic and dual-clutch transmissions. It didn't say which pairings of engine and transmission would be available, but we expect the V6 to get the manual and automatic options, while the four-cylinder gets the dual-clutch transmission (just as it does when in Mercedes A-Class-related cars). The company also says power will range from 360 to 400 horsepower. This will get the car from 0 to 62 mph in under 4.5 seconds. The interior is fairly minimalist, but definitely more advanced than recent Lotus offerings. Most surfaces are covered in fabric, leather or Alcantara. It has two screens for instruments and infotainment. The former has a 12.3-inch screen, and the latter has a 10.25-inch touchscreen. Features include Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. There's only seating for two, and cargo space is split between a 5.3-cubic-foot trunk and a 7.3-cubic-foot area behind the seats. The Emira was revealed this week at the Goodwood Festival of Speed. Pricing for the U.S. has not been announced, but it will cost under 72,000 Euros in Europe. That comes to around $85,000 in the United States. We should know more about specifications and pricing closer to when it goes on sale sometime this year.

Lotus F1 Team reveals new E23 Hybrid

Lotus is keen to leave a lackluster 2014 Formula One World Championship campaign behind it and race forward towards a new era, and this is the car with which it hopes to do so. The new E23 Hybrid is the twenty-third chassis to come from the Enstone-based team. As with the new Williams that was the first new chassis revealed for this year, the principal difference you can see is the more conventional nose to replace the twin-tusk setup of the E22, but there's more to it than that. For starters, it's the first new Lotus to pack Mercedes power after the team parted ways with Renault – the manufacturer that used to own the team and which has powered every car the team has built since Benetton signed with the French automaker way back in 1995. It also packs a completely new suspension setup after the original FRIC design in the preceding E22 was banned mid-season, forcing Enstone engineers to go back to the drawing board halfway through the championship. Word has it that, after earlier rumors suggested the team might not even make it back onto the grid, new sponsors will be added before the season gets under way in Melbourne on March 15 with the Australian Grand Prix. To pilot the new car, Lotus has retained the same two drivers as last year in Romain Grosjean and Pastor Maldonado. The team is hoping to perform better this season than it did the last, when it finished the constructors' championship way down in eighth place – the same result it achieved in 2009 under Renault ownership and the worst it had performed since the Toleman days in 1983.