Lotus Unleashes the Elise Cup S
A few weeks ago we published some spy shots of some type of Lotus bombing around the Nürburgring with some pretty extensive body and aero modifications. I hoped thought that maybe, finally that Lotus was bringing out a brand new Elise like they said they would be doing. I guess my hopes were just dashed. Lotus just revealed that the mule we spotted was actually the brand new Elise S Cup.
The Elise S Cup is a road going version of Lotus’ track only Cup R. The new Cup S gets a massive 1500% increase in down force at top speed and is over three seconds a lap faster around the Lotus test track, which I believe is Dunsfold Airport, also known as the Top Gear Test Track, than the previous generation Elise S.
While Lotus wants to build its brand more, the problem I see with this car is that it is still not legal in North America, missing out on a very critical market that is definitely up and coming in the world of track day cars.
The car does boast a whole bevy of interesting parts that would make it a giant slayer around these parts, like a fully integrated roll cage, and all the necessary components for the buyer to install a fire suppression system in case they want to take it to the next level.
Essentially, all Lotus did was slap a license plate to its track only version and called it a day. Still, do you really care about the company being a bit lazy when you get this?