Will Lotus Debut a New Esprit for 2006?

New Lotus Supercar May Feature Lexus V8

Theres a distinct love affair between car enthusiasts and Lotus. Time and time again, customers return to the legendary marque simply because few cars deliver such intoxicating thrills at the wheel.

Its been that way since the brands inception. Aside from the ubiquitous Cobra, the Lotus 7 is one of the most popular classic sports cars to ever be reproduced in kit or turnkey form. In more recent years Lotus continues delivering lightweight thrills to Europeans (and soon Americans) with its Elise roadster and recently announced Exige hardtop, while still enticing a handful of select buyers with its long-running Esprit.

But Lotus has ended Esprit production, with few available for sale, leaving the brand and its dealers with only the less expensive Elise and Exige in its lineup - basically two versions of the same car. To put this into perspective, Lotus without the Esprit is the British equivalent to Porsche with no 911. As good as the Boxster is, in Lotus case the Esprit, theres a lot of green left on the table with no supercar in the mix.

While the photos of the car pictured here are purely speculative, the project is real and alive. The rumor mill has the new car featuring a V8 once again, but with power bumped up from 350 to somewhere around 450 to 500 horsepower. It would make logical sense if Lotus worked a deal with its Elise/Exige engine supplier, Toyota, with the obvious choice being a tuned version of the Lexus 4.3-liter V8.

The Lexus engine is all-aluminum, which will help Lotus keep true to its lightweight tradition. The curb weight of this project has been set at around 2,850 lbs - on par with the current Esprit V8.

One remarkable thing about the original design of the Esprit is that it aged very well. Despite the numerous facelifts and mild changes, it still looked fresh on the day the last one rolled off the assembly line. The artists renderings shown here of the new car, whether close to reality or not, look similar to Lamborghinis Gallardo. The stature is short, wide and very, very low.

The headlamps are mounted behind clear lenses as opposed to the retractable units in the previous car. What will be retractable, however, is the rear decklid spoiler, according to reports.

Addressing complaints that the outgoing Lotus had a need for a more rigid body and greater interior room, the new model will feature more headroom and space for the drivers feet, especially.

While Lamborghinis Gallardo, Porsches 911 GT2, and Ferraris F360 Modena each fetching prices in the neighborhood of $150,000 plus, Lotus has been selling the previous Esprit for $93,255. While the new Esprit will offer upgrades in every possible area, dont expect it to be priced too far above the current model in base trim.