Lotus has just launched four new limited
edition versions of the Elise Classic Heritage Edition, which pays tribute to
the automaker’s racing history. As you can tell, they all feature familiar
Lotus motorsport colour schemes, and production is limited to just 100 units
globally.
All variants of the special edition are
based on the Elise Sport 220, so it’s powered by the Toyota-sourced,
Yamaha-designed 2ZZ-GE 1.8 litre supercharged four-cylinder petrol engine. It
makes 220 PS at 6,800 rpm and 250 Nm of torque at 4,600 rpm, which is good for
a century sprint time of 4.2 seconds. Power is routed to the rear wheels
through a six-speed close-ratio manual transmission.
The automaker left the mechanical bits
pretty much untouched, although it does feature a set of two-piece disc brakes.
Customers can specify a fibreglass hardtop roof, lightweight lithium-ion
battery and lightweight titanium exhaust as well, but these will add to the
cost.
So, for £ 46,250, what do you
actually get? A raft of options as standard, starting with the DAB
digital radio with four speakers, air-conditioning, cruise control,
ultra-lightweight forged alloys with racing livery finish, black carpet with
floor mats, matching interior trimmings, and additional detailing on the doors.
The blue and white variant however, get red Alcantara seat centres.
Speaking of which, the four variants are
differentiated by their exterior colour combinations – black and gold
(references the livery of the Lotus Type 72D driven by Emerson Fittipaldi in
the 1972 F1 season); red, white and gold (inspired by the Lotus Type 49B
piloted by Graham Hill in 1968); blue, red and silver (Nigel Mansell’s Type 81
in 1980); and blue and white (Lotus Type 18 design from 1960, the first Lotus
F1 car to achieve pole position and victory in Monaco at the hands of the late
Sir Stirling Moss).
All of the aforementioned equipment and
accessories, Lotus says, cost an astonishing £ 11,735 if customers were
to specify them separately. With the Elise Classic Heritage Edition, these cost
just £ 6,350 on top of the base Elise 220 Sport, which it says
represents “outstanding value for money.”
