2011 Lotus Evora 2+2, Canyon Red/ Oyster, Manual, Low Miles, Serviced!! on 2040-cars

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Kimi Raikkonen moving to Ferrari?

Kimi Raikkonen, easily one of our favorite current drivers in Formula 1, may be making a move from Lotus to Ferrari, according to a Finnish tabloid called Ilta-Sanomat. Raikkonen, who won the driver's championship in 2007 with the Italian brand, is in high demand and is also rumored to have options on the table from Red Bull and his current team.
Of course, a move by Kimi to Ferrari means at least one of the Maranello-based outfit would need to find another ride. Driving ace Fernando Alonso has publicly voiced his displeasure with the Ferrari chassis, and rumors have the Spaniard considering a move to Red Bull to replace Mark Webber. Buckle up, folks, this Silly Season is shaping up to be bumpy...

This might be a Lotus SUV test mule

These photos could be our first look at the Lotus SUV in test mule form. The body on the chassis is clearly that of a Lynk and Co. 01 SUV, but the underpinnings are something different entirely. Perhaps the most telling bit of all is the location in which our spy shooter caught the vehicle. We're told that this was shot dangerously close to Lotus' headquarters in Hethel, England. Using a Lynk and Co. body to test the Lotus SUV makes sense when you take into account who owns both companies. Geely happens to own Lotus, Lynk and Co. and Volvo, so they're all under the same roof at this point. These spy photos appear to be hiding a chassis that doesn't exactly fit correctly under the body, though. The front fenders are far wider than they are on the 01, and the rear fenders also look like they've been messed with to fit the much larger rubber. It has a wider, more aggressive stance than the Lynk and Co. SUV, lending more evidence to this being a Lotus SUV test mule. We'd expect a Lotus SUV to handle as well as anything in the class, so all these things do make sense if that's what it is. As for what could be powering the British SUV, that's another story. This tester has yellow caution tape covering where the gas cap is on the 01 SUV, no visible exhaust and a big, yellow high voltage sticker on the windshield. All of that tells us it's most likely electrified in some form. We didn't have intel that the Lotus SUV would be electric previously, but there's every chance they could go down that road. The Lotus 130 hypercar is going to be all-electric. And Volvo sells plug-in hybrids now, so the tech could be borrowed from there, too. Of course, Volvo doesn't have the same priorities as Lotus does with weight reduction and handling, so don't consider anything a done deal quite yet. We can't actually confirm that the vehicle in question is a Lotus underneath, but hopefully more photos and information make their way to us soon. There's still a long way to go in the development process if Lotus is only testing on mules now, so look for plenty more to come on this vehicle.

Lotus hits the track with new Elise S Cup R

If you want to take a Lotus to the track but the Exige V6 Cup is a bit too much to handle, the boys from Hethel have a new offering that may be of interest.
The new Elise S Cup R features all the track-tuned bells and whistles of its six-cylinder brethren, including a competition-spec aero kit, adjustable suspension, Yokohama racing slicks on 17-inch forged alloys, tow hooks, remapped ECU, cross-drilled and ventilated disc brakes and an interior with a HANS-compatible bucket seat, six-point racing harness and quick-release steering wheel. But instead of a heavier and more powerful V6, the Elise S Cup R "adds lightness" with the same 1.8-liter supercharged inline-four with 217 horsepower and 181 pound-feet of torque as the road-going Elise S. Yet with all that track-tuned gear, it's a good four seconds per three-mile lap faster than the showroom stock version in the automaker's testing.
Interested parties can pick one up in the UK for £39,125 (before taxes, equivalent to about $63k) and either lap it to their hearts' content at private track days or enter it in one of the dozen Lotus Cup series operating around the world. Lotus only released this one photo (click above to enlarge), but you can check out the full specs in the press release below.