1979 Lotus Esprit S2, 2.0l on 2040-cars

Auto blog

Turns out the 2020 Lotus Evora GT is one of the best sounding cars on sale

Toyota has built plenty of engines that sound the business. We know the company has it in them, but what comes out isn’t always enthusiast-focused. Yet, hereÂ’s a fairly normal Toyota 3.5-liter V6, sitting in the middle of a Lotus. YouÂ’ll find it under the hood of a Toyota Camry, but here it is sitting under the engine cover of this 2020 Lotus Evora GT. Of course, Lotus hasnÂ’t dropped the engine in there without Lotus-fying it. This one has an Edelbrock supercharger with an integrated water-to-air charge cooler, plus a special calibration and tune from Lotus. In the Toyota, the base engine makes 301 horsepower. This Evora GT is putting out 416 horsepower and 317 pound-feet of torque. It also breathes through a set of pipes that the Brits would call ace. Check out the video at the top to get a taste of what we heard for a week straight. Our Evora GT was equipped with the standard exhaust. ThereÂ’s an optional titanium exhaust that drops 22 pounds from the curb weight, but Lotus says that it doesnÂ’t actually sound all that different. What does make a difference in the sound is changing the drive mode. ThereÂ’s a valve that opens in the exhaust when you select Sport mode or press the exhaust button. This drastically changes the sound heard from the cabin. In normal Drive mode, the exhaust is muted and just hanging out in the background. ItÂ’s shockingly quiet, but perfect for highway cruising because the drone goes away. Sport mode completely changes the tone and unlocks a sweet wail we didnÂ’t know the Toyota V6 had within it. ThereÂ’s no computer-enhanced or synthesized noises to be heard here. ItÂ’s all real. Taking it one step further in Race mode unlocks the tiniest bit more noise, Lotus says, but itÂ’s hardly noticeable in practice. We found the best experience was in Sport mode, since that reigns in traction control, retains stability control, and boosts throttle response by a bit. 2020 Lotus Evora GT View 6 Photos Under tunnels and overpasses — and this does feel weird to say, knowing the engineÂ’s origins — thereÂ’s a hint of Formula one car sound in there. WeÂ’re talking F1 from a few years ago, not the boring turbo engines of today. The way it shrieks and screams off walls, completely immersing you in the echoing sound, is intoxicating. Very few cars can match the Evora in sound quality, and thatÂ’s impressive considering some of the noisemakers car companies put out these days.

The time Elon Musk paid $1 million for James Bond submarine car that cost a couple $100

Tesla CEO Elon Musk landed himself in court after insulting a diver who criticized his plan to rescue a Thai soccer trapped in a cave using a purpose-built mini submarine. Which reminded us that Musk's interest in submarines started years ago. The story begins in 1989, when a couple from Long Island put every barn-find hunter to shame by paying $100 for a locked storage unit, and cracking it open to find a 1976 Lotus Esprit buried under a pile of blankets. That's a cool find, the S1 Esprit is sought-after among enthusiasts, but CNBC reported they quickly learned their car was modified to star in the 1977 James Bond film "The Spy Who Loved Me." Ignoring Colin Chapman's "light is right" motto, the producers alchemized the Lotus into a fully functional submarine by welding in the wheel arches and the underbody, and adding winglets for more stability. Four propellers powered by a battery pack housed in the cabin moved the Esprit under water, and the coupe gained front-mounted missile launchers. The modifications reportedly cost $100,000. The couple had never seen a James Bond movie; they likely assumed it was a mad scientist's kit car, or a science fair project gone wrong. The $100 purchase price represents about $207 in 2019 dollars, so the unsuspecting buyers could have easily sold it as a parts car, made a small amount of money on it, and ended up with a free storage unit. However, they became aware of the Esprit's significance in Hollywood history when truckers identified it over CB radio while they were hauling it home. lotus-esprit-submarine-in-action-1 View 3 Photos They weren't collectors, and storing a submarine is terribly impractical, so they commissioned a cosmetic restoration and asked auction house RM Sotheby's to sell it in 2013. An enigmatic buyer paid $997,000 for the non-running movie prop. Musk later revealed himself as its new owner. "I was disappointed to learn that it can't actually transform. What I'm going to do is upgrade it with a Tesla electric powertrain, and try to make it transform for real," he announced. Even billionaire-owned project cars sit for longer than planned, and there's little evidence the Esprit is in swimming condition, let alone capable of morphing into a submarine at the simple push of a button. If it could, we're certain Musk would have hyped it up on Twitter. But while stalled projects normally draw the ire of loved ones as they take up garage space, Musk's turned into a well of inspiration.

Lotus to receive $16M government grant

Troubled British automaker Lotus is getting a second infusion of cash following a 100-million-pound ($161.5-million) investment by its parent company DRB-Hicom that was made in August. The substantially smaller investment, a mere 10 million pounds ($16.2 million), comes from the British government's Regional Growth Fund.
The fund, which is part of a 3-billion-pound ($4.8-billion) fund to spur economic growth in the UK, will allow Lotus to invest even further in research and development as it seeks to reinvent its lineup of lightweight sports cars. The fund will also allow the UK-based outfit to provide further training for its new crop of employees.
"This grant is part of a wider strategy for Lotus created to ensure we thrive and grow. We are responding to increased global demand for our cars and engineering consultancy services and this grant will help to position Lotus as the forefront of global automotive innovation," said Aslam Farikullah (shown above with UK Business Secretary Vince Cable MP), the chief operating officer at Lotus.