In celebration of the most successful Formula 1 car of all time, the memorable black and gold Lotus Type 72 race car, a championship winning innovative machine that was piloted by such notable drivers as Jochen Rindt, Emerson Fittipaldi, Ronnie Peterson and Jacky Ickx. In honor of the old John Players Special, the English automaker Lotus has released the special edition Exige S->ke525 Type 72. Limited to only 20 units for U.K. consumption, another 20 for the rest of Europe and a limited run for destinations like Japan and other select markets around the world.

Just like the cigarette box on wheels from the 1970s, the Exige S Type 72 is painted the familiar JPS black livery with a few gold accents on the body and a set of light weight gold rims to compliment the hand painted Type 72 and Exige S logos. The special edition Type 72 comes from the factory with a performance minded Sport Pack that includes a set of black micro fiber ProBax racing buckets with gold stitching and options like air conditioning and a Limited Slip Differential while the optional Performance Pack boosts power all the way up to around 240 HP while stopping power comes from a set of AP Racing brakes while an enlarged roof scoop sits atop the Type 72. One thing that the modern day JPS comes with that Colin Chapman would have killed for are items like Lotus variable traction control and Lotus launch control, a few trick features that certainly would have given Team Lotus even more of an edge over their rivals at Ferrari and McLaren. The Lotus Exige S Type 72 sprints from 0 to 60 MPH in just 4.5 seconds and can reach a top speed of 145 MPH, starting at €40,332 perhaps this is as close as you will ever want to get to sitting behind the wheel of a genuine John Players Special.

Press release after the jump.

2010 Lotus Exige S Type 72

Specifications
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  • Model: 2010 Lotus Exige S Type 72
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Press release

The Lotus Exige S Type 72 celebrates the most successful F1 car of all time, the Lotus Type 72 Formula One car, which achieved 20 Grand Prix victories between 1970 and 1975.

The Lotus Type 72 was driven by such Lotus greats as Jochen Rindt, Emerson Fittipaldi, Ronnie Peterson and Jacky Ickx and won three Formula One Constructors’ Championships (1970, 1972 and 1973) and two Drivers’ World Championships (the first being won by Jochen Rindt in 1970 and the second by Emerson Fittipaldi in 1972).

The colour scheme of the Exige S Type 72 commemorates the famous and easily recognisable black and gold Lotus Type 72 livery and is finished by the same sign writer who painted racing cars for Team Lotus.

Performance through light weight has long been a Lotus philosophy. The 935kg Exige S Type 72 sprints to 60 mph in just 4.5 seconds and to 100 km/h in 4.7 seconds, before reaching a top speed of 145 mph, 233 km/h. The Exige S Type 72 also offers class leading fuel economy and emissions, with fuel economy of 6.5 litres/100 km (43.5 mpg) on the Extra Urban Cycle and CO2 emissions of 199 g/km.

The Exige S Type 72 is a powerful supercharged mid-engined sportscar that is equally at home on the racetrack or open road. The intercooled engine has VVTL-i technology ensuring impressive performance all the way to the rev limiter at 8500 rpm.
The Sport Pack comes as standard on the Exige S Type 72 which has a bespoke high quality interior, including black micro fibre ProBax sports seats with gold stitching. Each car comes with a special build plate commemorating one of the F1 car’s 20 Grand Prix victories. The exterior of the Exige S Type 72 features unique black and gold light weight wheels and is finished with hand-painted gold Type 72 and Exige S logos, (the Sport Pack also includes a T45 steel main roll hoop, Lotus Traction Control, twin oil coolers and an adjustable front anti-roll bar).
 All Lotus cars offer outstanding handling and performance, and the Exige is no exception offering excellent dynamics and great driver involvement. Lotus ride and handling gives an inspiring driving experience and the mid-engined layout of the Lotus Exige S Type 72 offers fantastic balance and agility.

Luke Bennett, Operations Director for Lotus Cars Limited stated, “The Lotus Exige S Type 72 is an evocative sportscar, combining cutting edge handling and performance with the iconic Type 72 colour scheme, one of the most famous racing liveries of all time. The Exige provides an intense driving experience either on road or track and this limited edition is a worthy car to celebrate such a legendary racing car.”

Clive Chapman, Director of Classic Team Lotus said, “The Type 72 was a very significant car for Team Lotus and indeed for the world of F1. It was a revolutionary design that pioneered the use of side mounted radiators to achieve its distinctive ’wedge’ profile, which delivered a significant aerodynamic advantage. Furthermore, by minimising unsprung weight and using a torsion bar, rising rate suspension, tyre performance was excellent. The Lotus Type 72 design was so advanced that it was competitive for an extraordinary six years.”
 The Exige S Type 72 options include: Air Conditioning, Limited Slip Differential and the Performance Pack, which includes a power increase to 240 PS, larger AP Racing brakes, enlarged roof scoop (compared to the standard Exige S) and Lotus variable traction control and Lotus launch control.

To commemorate the impressive number of Grand Prix wins the Type 72 achieved, Lotus will be producing 20 of this special edition for the UK, a further 20 cars for mainland Europe and there will be a limited run of cars in Japan and selected markets around the world.

Lotus Exige S Type 72 prices:
UK Price: £35,995 MRSP, excluding on the road costs of £950
Euro zone price: €40,332, including delivery and other on the road costs, excluding local country tax.

Exige S:   199 g/km CO2
8.5 l/100 km (33.2 mpg) Combined Cycle
11.9 l/100 km (23.7 mpg) Urban Cycle
6.5 litres/100 km (43.5 mpg) Extra Urban Cycle