Here is another new old Lotus: its fastest, most focused four-cylinder car ever. New Lotus Elise Cup 250 packs 243 hp into a chassis designed to deliver the benchmark in responsive handling and haptic feedback. The car’s enhanced aerodynamics come from a number of additions including a new lightweight rear wing, front splitter, bargeboards and rear diffuser contributing to 125 kg of downforce at 140 mph.
Lotus Elise Cup 250
As the latest car to receive the Cup treatment, the new Lotus Elise Cup 250 bridges the gap between road and track to offer racecar capabilities in a package that can be used every day. Focused on cutting weight and boosting performance, Lotus’ development team has built on the significant updates introduced for the latest Elise, which has already been hailed as a five-star car by the international motoring press. Dry weight has been reduced to just 884 kg (or 860 kg with all lightweight options) and the adoption of advanced lightweight materials including carbon fibre, titanium and aluminium has helped to cut kilos from crucial areas leading to a 0-60 mph in 3.9 secs and a power to weight of 283 hp per tonne.
Lotus Elise Cup 250
Changes to the body include a redesigned lightweight front clam panel with wider radiator apertures and mesh pattern grille, and a new design of rear transom panel featuring two light clusters, rather than four, visually enhancing the design.
The Elise Cup 250 also includes a number of high-performance additions unique to this model. These include revised dampers and ultra-lightweight forged wheels with Yokohama Advan A048 LTS tyres – 225/45 ZR17 at the rear and 195/50 ZR16 at the front.
The base car will set you back £47,000. If you’re happy splashing a little extra cash, there are further weight-reducing options including a £4000 titanium exhaust (-7kg) and a ‘Carbon Aero Pack’ that costs £3400 (-3.4kg).
