Lotus has long been more about handling and
lightweight design than raw power. The latest flavor of the Lotus Elise, which
isn’t offered in the US, is the Lotus Elise Sprint. The big feature of this car
is the use of carbon fiber to reduce the weight of the already light Elise even
further. Sprint buyers get a car that is 41 kg lighter than other versions with
a dry weight of 798 kg.
The Sprint also gets a new front and rear design and
significant interior upgrades. The Sprint can be had with either the 1.6L
naturally aspirated engine or the 1.8L supercharged engine. With the lighter
weight the car can reach 0-96 km/h in 5.9 seconds with the base engine or 4.1
seconds with the supercharged version.
Weight is saved via a lithium-ion battery, lighter
wheels, new carbon race seats, and a carbon access pane, polycarbonate rear
screen, and light roll hoop cover and engine covers. The Elise Sprint base
starts at £ 37,300 while the Sprint 220 with the larger engine starts at
£ 44,300. Both Sprint versions are available now.
