2006 Lotus Elise 2dr Convertible on 2040-cars

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Lotus renames Russell Carr its head of design

There's been a changing of the guard at Lotus recently. The legendary British sports car manufacturer fired its controversial chief executive Dany Bahar and replaced him recently with Jean-Marc Gales. And now it's named a new chief designer. Or rather, renamed its old one to the post.
That designer is the appropriately named Russell Carr, who had previously held the post until Bahar brought in his former compatriot Donato Coco (with whom he had previously served at Ferrari) and charged him with designing a series of ambitious but ill-fated concept cars that debuted at the 2010 Paris Motor Show and were subsequently axed on Bahar's way out. Now Coco has been shown the door as well, effective at the end of this month. In his place, Carr - who has been with Lotus since 1990 - has been given back his old job after having been demoted to playing second fiddle to Coco for five years.
Although both Gales and Coco both served in senior positions at PSA Peugeot Citroën, Gales didn't join the French automaker until 2009 - the same year that Coco joined Lotus, five years after having left PSA to work at Ferrari.

Lotus planning new 400-hp 2-Eleven successor [UPDATE]

UPDATE: A previous version of this post suggested the Evora's new 400-horsepower V6 might find its way into the Elise, but sources indicate that it wouldn't fit. The text below has been updated accordingly. It's been nine months since Jean-Marc Gales took over as the new head of Lotus, and as Top Gear recently discovered, the former Peugeot chief is cleaning house. Gales doesn't put himself in the camp of past Lotus execs (Dany Bahar chief among them) who've reasoned that the company can only succeed if it introduces new and more upscale products. Instead he's focusing on the brand's existing models – namely the Elise, Exige and Evora – but don't think that means they'll just be skating by. On his watch, Lotus recently introduced the Elise S Cup (apparently the first model it ever introduced on schedule) and the new Evora 400 (ahead of schedule), and there are plans for more. Though Gales apparently has no intention of producing an engine in-house, the Toyota-based 3.5-liter supercharged V6 – now producing 400 horsepower and 302 pound-feet of torque – is slated to be slotted into the Exige as well. Perhaps most exciting, though, is the prospect of a successor for the 2-Eleven. That windowless speedster was the most extreme interpretation of the Exige, packing just 252 hp but weighing less than 1,500 pounds. The next version would weigh considerably more – closer to 2,000 pounds – but pack that new 400-hp engine to drive the power-to-weight ratio through the roof (if it even has one) in pursuit of a Nurburgring lap record. Don't expect it to switch to carbon fiber construction, though: Like his colleagues at Ferrari, Gales is convinced that aluminum is the way to go, offering comparable weight-saving benefits but at a fraction the cost. To ensure that these new products don't disappear in a cloud of tire smoke and irrelevance, Gales is also overhauling the way Lotus markets its cars. For one thing, he's opening new showrooms in key markets like Paris, Berlin, Monte Carlo and Abu Dhabi. For another, he's making sure Lotus actually keeps a database of its customers, something which it almost unbelievably didn't bother with until now. Those might not be the most exciting aspects of the business, but if that's all it will take to keep Lotus in the game, we're all for it. Featured Gallery Lotus 2-Eleven track car View 18 Photos News Source: Top GearImage Credit: Lotus Lotus lotus 2-eleven

Lotus Motorcycles C-01 now 'ready for the road'

When we first laid eyes on leaked images of the Lotus Motorcycles C-01, we wondered if its laid-back, sport cruiser shape was really appropriate for a motorcycle bearing any connection with Colin Chapman and the company's famous "add lightness" mantra. We've now seen official pictures of the bike in multiple color schemes, including classic black and gold, British racing green and even a variant that resembles Martini livery, and while we think it looks pretty cool, our opinion hasn't really changed.
Perhaps we shouldn't be surprised that the C-01 isn't an embodiment of the Lotus ethos, as the company that intends to build it isn't really Lotus at all, its builders - German racing firm Kodewa and tuner Holzer Group - merely having licensed the name of the British sportscar maker. It was designed by Daniel Simon, who once worked for Volkswagen and consulted for Bugatti and is the man credited with creating the reborn Tron Light Cycles. Still, looking past its questionable heritage, the C-01 looks pretty darn awesome, and there are some interesting bits that have us looking forward to the production version that's reportedly due within the next two months.
As expected, power comes in at 200 horsepower, courtesy of a modified version of KTM's 1,195-cc V-twin engine. The chassis is made up of steel, titanium and carbon fiber, with a seat height of about 28 inches. Its wheelbase, at about 65 inches, is a full 10 inches longer than a real street-legal superbike, and its front end is raked way out in front with a 19-inch wheel. Those dimensions mean we shouldn't expect much racetrack prowess, unless its rider is only planning on going in a straight line. Indeed, with a claimed dry weight of under 400 pounds, the Lotus Motorcycles C-01 ought to be mighty quick down the quarter mile.