The Esprit was finally revealed at the Paris Motorshow on 30th Septmeber 2010. The car features a mid-mounted 611bhp 5.0-litre V8. The top speed will be 330 km/h and acceleration will be 0-100 km/h 3.4 seconds, The Esprit is due in the spring of 2013.

The new Esprit weighs 3,200 Lbs and is powered by the same forced-induction 5.0-liter V8 that's in the Lotus Eterne super sedan. That means an 8,500rpm redline, 612 HP and 530 Lb-Ft of Torque. Ditching Toyota power is clearly one of the upsides of the new, more complicated Lotus.

The Esprit will be rear-wheel drive only and is only available with a dual-clutch flappy paddle gearbox. Something good for enthusiasts and something bad for enthusiasts. Regenerative braking will be optional.

Taking cues from the old Esprit, the Esprit Concept plunks its engine amidship, though instead of honoring the turbocharged four-cylinders that powered the originals, the concept makes do with a meaty supercharged 5.0-liter V8. That V8 will look familiar to fans of the Lexus IS-F. The two-seater will produce 620 horsepower, accelerate from 0-60 in under 3.5 seconds and then blast onward to a 205-mile-per-hour top speed. The plan is to bring the production version to market in the spring of 2013 with a price tag around $175,000.

Lotus claims 0-60mph in 3.5 seconds and 3.2 seconds respectively. Expect a top speed of 195mph. The Esprit will weigh 1,495kg, emit 250g/km of CO2 and will be available as a Coupe and a Convertible, rivalling models like the Ferrari 458 Italia and Audi R8 V10 Spyder. The firm quotes a price tag of £110,000 for the entry-level Coupe.

Like the Elan, Elite and Eterne, the Esprit will feature a seven-speed double-clutch gearboxes as standard and be based on a variation of Lotus’ Versatile Vehicle Architecture chassis. Double wishbone suspension and continuously variable dampers will be standard.

The Eterne is a true four door, four seater sports GT. It’s the ultimate expression of refined style, sophistication and grace. But wait. An elegant, graceful sports car? Surely not.
A sports car by definition can’t be graceful. Powerful, exciting, aggressive yes, but not graceful. Yet here it is, the ultimate paradox - the Eterne. Power and grace, performance and elegance, beauty and strength all in one stunning package.

The Eterne would be Lotus' first four-door sedan if it makes the showroom, powered by the same Toyota-sourced 620-horsepower 5.0-liter V8 employed by the new Esprit. A hybrid drive system is optional, comprising electric motors and a Formula-1-style KERS energy recuperation system. The Eterne will be offered in both rear- and all-wheel-drive forms with a full hybrid transmission that's good for 196 mph and a 0-60-mph time of 4.0 seconds. It's projected to cost $190,000.

With a 5.0 litre pressure charged V8 engine delivering up to 620 PS the Eterne is aiming for best in class performance and efficiency.

In keeping with the rest of the new line-up, the Eterne will benefit from hybrid technology.

Dany Bahar, Chief Executive Officer of Group Lotus, said: “The Eterne is sensational to look and as with the rest of the range it also over delivers in all other aspects as well. Similar to the Elite, it’s a car of perfect contradictions, it’s compact yet spacious, high performing yet low emitting, relative lightweight yet still reassuringly solid.”

Here are the first leaked photos of the Lotus Eterne four-door sedan, set to debut officially at the Paris Motor Show. We have no details about the car's performance, but it's clear Lotus has built the vaguest luxosportsedan in history.

The 2010 Lotus Elise is everything you’d want in a performance-tuned track racer, but not a luxury sports car. Drivers of the Lotus Elise buy it for only one reason: to burn rubber. "This roadster is for those who want a street-legal go-kart, as many weight-reducing measures-such as a lack of creature comforts-endow it with rare agility and race-car-like performance," writes Car and Driver.

Thanks to its new shape, the Elsie's aerodynamics have improved compared to the outgoing model, with the car's Cd down 4 percent. Lotus says the reduced drag will result in a bump in fuel economy.

The big change is the addition of a new entry-level model, dubbed simply the Lotus Elise. The base Elise model comes with a 1.6-liter engine developing 134 horsepower and 118 lb-ft of torque. Although about on par with many entry-level compact models, the Elise's lightweight design ensures overall performance is not compromised, with the two-door still able to scoot from zero-to-60 in just 6 seconds. Top speed is capped at 124mph.

The test car was one of the first three fitted with the box. Therefore Lotus must have made the car by mid September at the latest, to allow for the road test. The gearbox must have had to be made up in August/September. The decision to make a 5 speed box must therefore have been made some two to three months before, May or June 1972.

Lotus press news issued 17 October 1972 at the Motor Show announced “The Elan Sprint/5 is the latest version of one of the world’s most popular and out and out sports cars. Now in its tenth year of production the vehicle appears for the first time with a five speed optional gearbox.”

The Elan was Britain’s pre-eminent 1960’s sports car. The genius that was Colin Chapman, aided by a talented small team of designers, notably Ron Hickman, had conceived the Elan in early 1963 as a replacement for the Elite. The imaginatively designed backbone chassis, brilliant suspension and sparkling twin cam engine, allied to a pretty body, combined to make a winning car, successful not only amongst the discerning motoring public, but also on the track.

The Elan Sprint was the last version marketed, between 1971 and 1973, following the Series 1, 2, 3 and 4. Essentially, the Sprint was an up rated S4, fitted with a more powerful version of the Lotus twin cam engine. Though there are some who see the Sprint as a tuned S4, there is no doubt that Lotus intended it to be a separate version of the Elan (an “S5” in effect) and that it was marketed as such. The Sprint has become one of the more sought after Elan types and now they are relatively few in number. This site recounts the story of the contemporary Sprint and does not deal with what has happened since it was dropped by Lotus from their line up in August 1973. All the photographs and articles on this site are from this period only, too. One reason I was prompted to set up this site was because some owners and potential purchasers remain unsure as to what constituted a genuine Sprint, since some S4 owners (and indeed the factory) upgraded their cars to Sprint specification. For those interested in tuning the twin cam engine, brakes, suspension and in renovation, there exist a good number of resources on the internet and in published data.

A stunning front-engined GT, the new Lotus Elite boasts a 620hp V8 engine, F1 inspired KERS technology and more besides and sees Lotus taking on the likes of the Ferrari 599, Aston Martin DBS and Mercedes SLS AMG.

Bold stuff for a relatively small, specialist car builder from Norfolk. But the Elite is just one of whole new range of Lotus cars due to be unveiled at Paris and indicates an aggressive new policy of expansion.

The original Lotus Elite of 1957 used ground-breaking fibreglass technology, this new concept version - a 'production intent prototype according to Lotus' - similarly innovative and due on sale in 2014.