The Lotus Evora soldiers on with significant visual
and technical upgrades and a new name: the Evora GT. Aimed at the U.S. and
Canada, it’s the quickest and most powerful street-legal Lotus, and it’s
already up for grabs with an MSRP of US$ 96,950 Stateside.
Replacing the Evora 400 and Evora Sport 410, the
2020 Evora GT is available in two seating configurations, 2 or 2+2, and puts a
3.5-liter supercharged, six-cylinder engine to use. It develops 416 hp, while the torque output depends on the selected transmission.
Equipped with the standard six-speed manual, the
Evora GT packs 430 Nm of torque. Meanwhile, with the optional
six-speed auto, it’s good for 450 Nm. Should you want the most
agile version of the car, then you’ll have to opt for the stick shift, which
promises to do 0-96 km/h in 3.8 seconds and max out at 303
km/h. The auto ‘box model is 0.1 seconds slower and maxes out at 280
km/h.
Stopping power is provided by the AP Racing brakes,
with four-piston calipers front and rear, plus 2-piece cross-drilled and
ventilated brake discs which are larger at the front and smaller at the rear.
The sports suspension package, with Eibach springs and Bilstein dampers is standard.
As for wheels, the Evora GT sits on 8×19-inch front and 10.5×20-inch rear
10-spoke alloys, shod in Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2 tires.
The sleek silhouette of the sports car has been
dictated by the aerodynamic enhancements. Thus, its more efficient air
management, made possible by the new front lip, front wheel arch louvres,
carbon fiber ducts behind each rear wheel vent and rear diffuser, have allowed
it to generate up to 64 kg of downforce, double than the Evora 400.
With a weight of 1,408 kg for the stick shift model, the Evora GT
is 32 kg lighter than the Evora 400.
Contributing to the weight reduction by 22
kg is the optional Carbon Pack, which includes the carbon fiber front access
panel, roof panel, tailgate with integrated spoiler and diffuser surround.
Another 10 kg have been shaved off thanks to the optional titanium
exhaust system.
Inside, Lotus has added black Alcantara and
twin-color stitching on the dashboard, door panels, center console and
transmission tunnel. The Evora GT also has a carbon fiber instrument binnacle,
magnesium steering wheel wrapped in Alcantara and leather, Sparco bucket seats
with carbon fiber backs, and a 7-inch touchscreen display with Bluetooth, Apple
CarPlay, Android Auto, sat-nav and reversing camera. Bespoke leather is
optional.