Simplification and lightness

[steve_weegie]

Oh how I wish I could speak but I can't!

Not sure whether that's positive or negative...

Depends how much you like listening to salesmen

[BigD]

All sounds very sensible to me and in the current times of making cars light and efficient I think they are well ahead of the game. Slow and steady wins the race........

[Andy G]

Oh how I wish I could speak but I can't!

If ever something said "Xmas drinks" this is it

[ryallm]

Oh how I wish I could speak but I can't!

You'll be wanting to agree that Bahar was a loony, obviously

[j2 lot]

Oh how I wish I could speak but I can't!

If ever something said "Xmas drinks" this is it

[anthonyyule]

Oh how I wish I could speak but I can't!

You'll be wanting to agree that Bahar was a loony, obviously

[ryallm]

Good article by Richard Meaden in the latest Evo on the plight of Lotus. The general gist is that Gales is doing a reasonable job given the crap he has had to deal with in the fall out from the Bahar shambles, but his hands are tied financially by the Malaysians so he can't do what the company really needs to do to survive, i.e. invest and develop new models.

Pains me to say it but I wouldn't bet on Lotus being around in 10 or even 5 years time. Losses of £118M in 2011, £160M in 2012 and £100M last year. How long until the patience of the holding company finally runs out? Gales really has his work cut out.

None of this stops me wanting an Exige V6 very badly though

[Stephen]

Do you really think the Elise chassis is that ancient? If you look at what is out there it is still pretty cutting edge both in terms of the materials, the mode of construction and the performance. The atom for instance uses a space frame which is a much older technology.

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[ryallm]

Do you really think the Elise chassis is that ancient? If you look at what is out there it is still pretty cutting edge both in terms of the materials, the mode of construction and the performance. The atom for instance uses a space frame which is a much older technology.

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Nothing wrong with the Elise chassis - it is light and stiff, and as the Exige V6 shows, still a fine basis for a great car. It was indeed cutting edge when it came out, but that is over 18 years ago which is pretty ancient in automotive terms. Cutting edge today would be carbon fibre at a lower price point (Alfa 4c or Zenos). Where the base Elise really falls down now is in performance - £28 grand for a car with a 134bhp NA 1.6 just doesn't cut it in an era of 300bhp hot hatches for similar money. At the very least the Elise needs a reskin and a modern turbo 4 pot.

[Stephen]

I would agree re the engine but I am also a huge fan of achieving a fantastic bhp/tonne with a simple engine. Personally I think lotus should have partnered with Honda rather than Toyota.

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