Auto Car | Lotus Elise Club Racer 2010 | British manufacturer of sports and racing cars Lotus has managed to make one of the lightest models on the market even lighter by introducing a new variant of their considerably successful car Lotus Elise.
The new breed, called The Lotus Elise Club Racer, is expected to debut at the 2011 Geneva Auto Show. The Norfolk-based car maker released the Lotus Elise Club Racer to prove that working on new fancy models or being deeply involved in Formula 1 have not distracted them from their main job, which is making light and nimble sportscars, what they refer to as "performance through lightness".
Taking the philosophy that gave the company legendary status (if not blockbuster sales) to even greater extremes than the standard Elise, the Club Racer shaves pounds everywhere possible. Lotus engineers have managed to get rid of a further 24kg (53 lbs) from the 876 kg (1,931 lbs) of the standard production model. The reduction in weight has been achieved thanks to a stripped-to-the-bare-bone approach, such as lighter seats, the motorsport derived lightweight battery and the deletion of noise insulation.
This stripped-out track-focused version of the Elise is 24 kilograms lighter than the standard car and is powered by a 149g CO2/km 1.6 liter engine. The diet has been really hard and they've tried many things such as motorsport derived lightweight battery and the deletion of noise insulation to make the car lighter.
It will also have greater handling than the standard Elise since it comes with a Sport setting for the DPM (Dynamic Performance Management) that makes even the clumsiest drivers feel like Michael Schumacher! DPM combined with improved agility courtesy of Lotus finely tuned sport suspension and an adjustable anti-roll bar will make the Elise Club Racer equally versatile for both road and race track fun.
DPM is basically an advanced, performance-focused stability control system, it helps newer track drivers learn the game with less risk, and can be completely disabled for the experienced drivers. The car also benefits from Eibach for springs and Bilstein for dampers.
As Lotus chief technical officer Wolf Zimmerman put it, "The traditional Lotus approach of reduction and purity has led to one of the most zeitgeist and contemporary sports cars around... The new Club Racer will definitely give these people something extra to get their teeth stuck into. This car epitomises everything that's cool about the Elise - it's fast, raw, responsive and a huge amount of fun to drive."
Priced at £27,500 / €34,450 / $46,750, the Elise Club Racer marks the new entry level sports car from Lotus. Customers can choose from a range of six exterior colors (Sky Blue, Saffron Yellow, Ardent Red, Aspen White, Matt Black and Carbon Grey), plus various bespoke design elements.
It will be available in Europe, but it's not yet clear if the U.S. will get the 1.6-liter-powered track/street special. Look for more details when it hits the Lotus stand in Geneva in a few weeks.
Source : www.auto-types.com
The new breed, called The Lotus Elise Club Racer, is expected to debut at the 2011 Geneva Auto Show. The Norfolk-based car maker released the Lotus Elise Club Racer to prove that working on new fancy models or being deeply involved in Formula 1 have not distracted them from their main job, which is making light and nimble sportscars, what they refer to as "performance through lightness".
Taking the philosophy that gave the company legendary status (if not blockbuster sales) to even greater extremes than the standard Elise, the Club Racer shaves pounds everywhere possible. Lotus engineers have managed to get rid of a further 24kg (53 lbs) from the 876 kg (1,931 lbs) of the standard production model. The reduction in weight has been achieved thanks to a stripped-to-the-bare-bone approach, such as lighter seats, the motorsport derived lightweight battery and the deletion of noise insulation.
This stripped-out track-focused version of the Elise is 24 kilograms lighter than the standard car and is powered by a 149g CO2/km 1.6 liter engine. The diet has been really hard and they've tried many things such as motorsport derived lightweight battery and the deletion of noise insulation to make the car lighter.
It will also have greater handling than the standard Elise since it comes with a Sport setting for the DPM (Dynamic Performance Management) that makes even the clumsiest drivers feel like Michael Schumacher! DPM combined with improved agility courtesy of Lotus finely tuned sport suspension and an adjustable anti-roll bar will make the Elise Club Racer equally versatile for both road and race track fun.
DPM is basically an advanced, performance-focused stability control system, it helps newer track drivers learn the game with less risk, and can be completely disabled for the experienced drivers. The car also benefits from Eibach for springs and Bilstein for dampers.
As Lotus chief technical officer Wolf Zimmerman put it, "The traditional Lotus approach of reduction and purity has led to one of the most zeitgeist and contemporary sports cars around... The new Club Racer will definitely give these people something extra to get their teeth stuck into. This car epitomises everything that's cool about the Elise - it's fast, raw, responsive and a huge amount of fun to drive."
Priced at £27,500 / €34,450 / $46,750, the Elise Club Racer marks the new entry level sports car from Lotus. Customers can choose from a range of six exterior colors (Sky Blue, Saffron Yellow, Ardent Red, Aspen White, Matt Black and Carbon Grey), plus various bespoke design elements.
It will be available in Europe, but it's not yet clear if the U.S. will get the 1.6-liter-powered track/street special. Look for more details when it hits the Lotus stand in Geneva in a few weeks.
Source : www.auto-types.com
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