LONDON: Lotus has revealed the Elise 250 Special Edition. Only 50 will be produced to celebrate the company’s 50 years in Norfolk, 172km north-east of here.
The car is based on the Elise Cup 250 launched earlier this year, but offering a raft of exclusive components as standard.
It comes with a supercharged 243hp engine, a 0-100kph time of 3.9 seconds, and a hand-finished interior.
Tipping the scales at 899kg, the car uses carbon fibre and aluminium. Powered by a 1.8-litre 4-cylinder engine, the Elise 250 Special Edition cranks out 243hp at 7200rpm and 250Nm of torque between 3500rpm and 5500rpm. This, along with the car’s 899kg kerb weight, contributes to the 270hp/tonne headline figure.
Carbon-fibre components are standard such as a front splitter, rear wing, tailgate and front access panel, all giving the car high kerb appeal.
The Elise 250 Special Edition is available in choice of four colours, each a long-standing favourite over the last 50 years. Classic metallic blue, red, yellow and white finishes are all complemented by ultralight forged wheels in silver, or black as an option. An optional carbon fibre hardtop roof panel is also available.
The same attention to detail continues inside, with the carbon-fibre sports seats finished in either dark blue or dark grey leather, and stitched with a choice of contrasting colours. The car’s door trim is given the same hand-stitched finish.
The new car laps the company’s Hethel test circuit in 1 minute 34 seconds, the fastest recorded time for a production road-going Elise. The car carries over the same suspension and braking components from the Elise Cup 250, including Bilstein sports dampers and Eibach coaxial coil springs and double wishbone suspension. AP Racing twin-piston front calipers, and Brembo single-piston rear calipers work in conjunction with the track-tuned ABS system.
Fitted with a six-speed manual gearbox, the Elise 250 Special Edition includes an Electronic Differential Lock as standard to give better traction and faster exit speeds when cornering.
The new Elise also features driver selectable ESP modes, providing ‘Sport’ and ‘Race’ settings. Proportionally increasing throttle response, lowering traction slip thresholds and removing understeer recognition, it allows enhanced control before the system intervenes.
An integrated in-car entertainment system can also be specified, including iPod connectivity and Bluetooth functionality, along with air conditioning, cruise control, auxiliary driving lights, full carpets, floor mats and enhanced sound insulation.
The new Elise 250 Special Edition can also be personalised through the Lotus Exclusive programme.
It retails for £47,900 (RM254,000).
Keyword: Lotus Elise 250 Special Edition debuts