TheLotus Europa S went on sale in 2006 and already the company has announced that it will be going out of production after only four years! Why, you ask? Well, the British manufacturer offered no reason for why they made such a decision. Our only guess is the excessively high price. Another good reason could be the fact that the Lotus Europa was produced as a more relaxed model to the Lotus Elise, but was never as accepted as Lotus had anticipated.
Lotus also announced that the effective date of the shutdown is immediate and, therefore, retailers will not accept any orders for these models. A harsh ending for a "relaxed" automobile.
The Europa S is powered by a 2.0-liter turbo engine producing 200 hp at 5400rpm. The Lotus Europa S achieves around 90% of its maximum torque at only 2000 rpm to give "supercar" levels of acceleration from low engine speeds, propelling the car from 0 -96 km/h (60 mph) in around 5.5 seconds, and 100 mph in around 14 seconds. Maximum speed is approximately 140 mph.
Why do you think the Lotus Europa S is seeing its end?
Diamonds are a girl’s best friend, unless they’re imbedded in a Lotus. This weekend, to celebrate its 60th anniversary, the company will unveil a special edition Lotus Europa Diamond Edition valued at £150,000 (about $262,000).
The interior was upgraded using the finest quality leather for a superior quilted trim, and the one-of-a-kind gear knob and controls feature sparkling diamonds set in cool matt black metal. The diamond scheme is completed with a specially designed rev counter and speed dials that feature diamonds highlighted by hidden LED accent lighting.
A diamond paint job was accomplished by adding glass flakes to high gloss black paint. Tinted glass and black and silver wheels complete the monochrome diamond scheme on the outside.
For anyone getting the idea that all they have to do is steal the car to drive off with the £111,000 worth of diamonds, think again. Although the car has real diamonds, they will be fake when the car is on display.
Press release after the jump.
Full story
This is designer Idries Noah’s vision for a Lotus. Called 2010 Europa i6, the concept is inspired by classic Lotus cars, Europa and Elite.
Is is supposed to be a rear wheel drive car powered by a 2.0L inline 6, both supercharger and intercooler. It would hit a top speed of 165 mph and make the 0 to 60 mph sprint in less than 7 seconds. It would be nice to see Lotus getting inspiration from this one!
Lotus unveiled a new updated and significantly enhanced range of Europa’s at the Geneva Motor Show. The new entry level Europa is priced at 37,500 euro, with the range topping Europa SE available for a competitive 41,500 euro.
These new Europa variants have been designed and developed especially for European customers and will be sold exclusively across Europe from June 2008. The Europa is now available to a larger target audience with the entry level car providing a more accessible way to own a Europa and the SE designed to appeal to those who are even more style conscious and want increased levels of performance.
The Europa SE has attractive and light weight new wheels, which are shod with wider, high performance tyres, for increased levels of grip. These new high performance wheels are larger with 17” rims up front, and larger 18” rims on the rear. The new wheels house high performance AP Racing four pot brakes and larger (308 mm) diameter discs.
Full story
The Europa S, the Lotus that introduces the brand to enhanced levels of practicality and refinement, has a new Luxury Touring Pack Option which stretches the Europa S towards the more luxurious end of the spectrum.
Full story
