The new Lotus Evora is everything a sports car should be; sculptural, stylish and fast; considerably faster than the famous Elise and more refined at speed than the track-focused Exige. Lotus promises its trademark exemplar performance credentials and suggests the Evora will achieve a maximum speed of 160 mph and a 0-60 time at less than 5 seconds!
High-end cars have long been integral to the one-upmanship among the glitterati, but rather than the traditional Bentleys and Bugattis, the A-lister must-have vehicles of the moment are small, environmentally friendly (225 grams of CO2 per kilometre) cars and must include seats for the children. But above all, an it-car must be exclusive, and nothing conveys extreme exclusivity better than the British, hand-built Lotus of which less than 2000 will be made a year for international distribution.
The versatility of the Evora has attracted a varied following, from speed seekers such as Jodie Kidd and Maxi Jazz, to those with an eye for style including Jennifer Lopez and Kelly Rowland.
Celebrity enthusiasts Patrick Dempsey and Jay Leno also made sure they too were first on the list for a test drive, followed closely by J-Lo and her husband Marc Anthony who are already huge Lotus fans and owners of a Lotus Elise. The celebrity couple enjoy the unrivalled driving experience of a Lotus, but are looking for more space for the children. The same goes for Gavin Henson and Charlotte Church, who are keen to have a car that accommodates their young family yet maintains a luxurious, yet sporty persona.
Mike Kimberley, CEO of Group Lotus plc, had this to say about the new model: “The Evora is the biggest milestone for Lotus since the Elise was born 13 years ago. We are currently working at broadening the appeal of the Lotus brand through an aggressive 5-year model plan of which this car represents the first exciting step.”
Keeping with the Lotus tradition, the price tag is not out of reach for those who cannot be found on the internets 'movie database'. The Lotus Evora enters the sports car market at less than £50,000 making this car a real value proposition for those who like to work and play hard! This hand-built phenomenon will be available in early 2009.
ENDS
Notes to Editors:
The Lotus EVORA is the first of three new cars to be included in the new five year business plan. Celebrity fans waiting to drive the car include:
• Amanda Stretton – Driver and new face of F1
• Beyonce – International singer and actress (Destiny’s Child)
• Boris Johnson – Mayor of London
• Daniel Craig – Actor
• Dave Grohl – Musician (Foo Fighters)
• Gavin Henson & Charlotte Church Welsh Rugby International/Singer, child prodigy, TV personality
• Gemma Arterton - Actress
• George Clooney - Actor
• James Martin – Celebrity chef and Motoring reporter
• James May – TV personality and presenter of ‘Top Gear’
• Jay Kay – Musician and Singer (Jamiroquai)
• Jay Leno – TV personality and car enthusiast
• Jodie Kidd – Model,,TV personality and car enthusiast
• Jenifer Lopez and Marc Anthony – International singer and actress/International singer
• Kevin Spacey - Actor
• Mark Ronson – Musician and producer
• Maxi Jazz – Musician and car enthusiast (Faithless)
• Patrick Dempsey – Actor and car enthusiast
• Peter Andre - Singer
• Pierce Brosnan - Actor
• Richard Hammond - TV personality and presenter of ‘Top Gear’
About Lotus
The main operating subsidiary of Group Lotus plc is Lotus Cars Ltd, which has two operating divisions - Lotus Engineering and Lotus Cars. Lotus Engineering is an internationally recognised automotive engineering consultancy based in Norfolk, UK. Global facilities include those in Michigan (USA), Kuala Lumpur (Malaysia), China and offices in Germany and Japan, with rapid expansion in new territories such as South East Asia and the Gulf States.
Lotus Engineering provides comprehensive and versatile consultancy services to many of the world's OEMs and Tier 1 suppliers, offering a full engineering service from initial concept and project design through development and integration of the complete vehicle to meet all worldwide markets and customers to full production. This includes third party 'niche vehicle' engineering and manufacture worldwide.
Lotus Cars builds world class, prestige, high performance sports cars for sale in 37 countries. These include the iconic Lotus Elise, and the Exige and Europa. Lotus is a global high-tech company, expanding rapidly and committed to driving forward technology for both Lotus Cars and its Engineering clients, spearheading research into such areas as hybrids, electric vehicles and renewable fuels.
For more information about Lotus please contact:
PR Department; Group Lotus plc,
Potash Lane, Hethel, Norfolk, UK, NR14 8EZ
Tel: +44(0)1953 608264;
Email: pr@lotuscars.co.uk