Lotus Exige Sport 410 20th Anniversary

Twenty years young: Lotus celebrates the Exige with sensational 20th anniversary special edition.

Elise Classic Heritage Editions

Four new Lotus Elise Classic Heritage Editions pay tribute to the company’s pioneering racing history.

LOTUS EVIJA PRODUCTION COMES ALIVE

Evija’s new Hethel manufacturing facility readied to begin series production.

Lotus launches new Evora GT410

The new Evora GT410 has improved usability and new levels of comfort.

Evija Dynamic Debut

The Evija makes its dynamic debut at the famous Hethel test track.

Evija World Premiere

Evija, the British pure-electric production hypercar, representing Lotus's latest technology and design language, was officially unveiled in London

Lotus Return

Lotus debut the Evora GT410 Sport and Evora GT4 Concept at the 2019 Shanghai International Auto Show.

Exige Sport 410

Exige Sport 410 launched.

Evora GT410 Sport

Evora GT410 Sport launched.

Phil Popham

Phil Popham is appointed Senior Vice President - Commercial Operations for Group Lotus and CEO - Lotus Sports Cars.

70th Anniversary

Lotus celebrates its 70th Anniversary at Hethel in September.

Mr Feng Qingfeng

Geely announces Mr Feng Qingfeng’s appointment as CEO of Group Lotus plc in June.

Geely Majority Stake

Geely Holding Group buys a 51% stake in Group Lotus.

Exige Cup 430

The ballistic Exige Cup 430 is launched on 9th November.

Evora GT430

The ultimate Evora variant, the GT430, is announced in September.

Exige Cup 380

The limited production Exige Cup 380 is revealed in April.

Elise Cup 250

The fastest ever line up of Lotus production road cars was showcased at the 2016 Geneva Motor Show

Evora Sport 410

Lotus’ famous Lightweight Laboratory has been hard at work cutting the weight of the Evora 400 by a massive 70kg.

3-Eleven

Heralding the next generation of Lotus high performance sports cars, the 3-Eleven is the company’s quickest and most expensive series production car ever.

Evora 400

The Lotus Evora 400 was launched at the 2015 Geneva Motor Show.

Elise S Cup

The Elise has never been better.

Automatically Better

The new Lotus Exige Automatic, in either Roadster, or Coupe forms, would be enticingly and automatically better.

Jean-Marc Gales

The multi-lingual, international, automotive businessman took over the reins of Group Lotus plc in May 2014

Elise S Cup

Ready for early press assessments, the Elise Cup S would be the most focused version of the still box-fresh Elise.

Evora Sports Racer

A visually enhanced and optimised version of the mid-engined 3.5 litre Evora is launched, available in both naturally-aspirated or supercharged variants.

Exige S

Lotus Exige S voted joint winner of evo's "Car of the Year 2012"

Goodwood 2012

Lotus headlined the world's biggest car culture event in the summer.

Exige S Roadster

The first time an Exige model has been offered with a factory-fitted soft top roof.

DRB-HICOM

Malaysian DRB Hicom Bhd. purchase a majority stake in Lotus' parent company Proton Holdings Bhd

Hethel Test Track

The Lotus test track at Hethel was renovated in 2011 and officially re-opened on 21 June

Lotus Range Extender

Lotus Engineering unveil the supercharged, extremely compact, lightweight, low-cost engine and generator designed specifically for hybrid electric vehicles.

Sound Technology

Lotus Engineering and HARMAN create the next generation intelligent pedestrian warning system

Elise Club Racer

The Elise Club Racer is announced as a stripped-back, even lighterweight version of the Elise.

"The Engineer" Awards

Project Omnivore wins first place in the Automotive, Rail and Marine sector while the Fuel Cell Hybrid Taxi triumphs in the energy sector.

Lotus returns to F1

The iconic Lotus name returned to Formula 1 for the 2010 season after a more than 15 year long absence.

2011 Elise

The 2011 Lotus Elise has as a new evolution body design and features the new high technology 1ZR-FAE 1.6 litre engine

414e

At the International Geneva Motor Show Lotus Engineering unveiled the Lotus Evora 414E Hybrid concept

Evora Carbon Concept

The Evora Carbon Concept was unveiled at the Geneva Motorshow.

Evora Cup

The Lotus Evora Cup was unveiled in January at the Autosport International

Type 124

The Lotus Evora Type 124 Endurance Racecar was developed from the award-winning Evora road car

Evora Awards

Evora wins a multitude of awards, including the prestigious Top Gear Magazine's 'Sportscar of the Year...

Range Extender

Lotus Engineering, unveiled the Range Extender engine at the Frankfurt International Motor Show in a series hybrid vehicle.

2-Eleven

The Lotus Sport 2-Eleven GT4 Supersport race car asserted itself at the pinnacle of the 2-Eleven range

Project HOTFIRE

Lotus Engineering celebrated being awarded 'The Engineer Technology + Innovation Award of 2008'

Clark Type 25

Launched as a limited edition to celebrate Jim Clark's genius as a driver.

Lotus Lightweight Structures

Group Lotus plc, announced the creation of Lotus Lightweight Structure

Evora Launch

The all new Evora is unveiled

World Record

Lotus went into the Guinness Book of Records for the biggest meet of any marque

Sport Exige GT3

Secures victory in the 2006 British GT Manufacturers Championship

APX

At the Geneva motor show Lotus Engineering unveiled APX ("Aluminium Performance Crossover" ) vehicle

Lotus Sport Exige

The 400bhp 850kg GT2 specification race car debuted in 2005,

20,000 Elise

20,000th Lotus Elise Drives Off The Production Line, making it the most popular Lotus ever.

New Exige

At the 2004 Geneva Show, Lotus presented the new Lotus Exige on the world stage.

Elise 111R

Lotus launched the new 189hp Lotus Elise 111R.

End of an era

The last Lotus Esprit rolled off the production line

Canaries

Lotus became the shirt sponsor for Norwich City Football team

100% Proton

PROTON become 100% shareholders in Lotus Group International Ltd.

Queen's Award

Lotus Cars were awarded the Queens Award for Enterprise.

Extreme Concept

Lotus, famous for taking things to extremes, provided support to Coventry University design student, Ted Mannerfelt.

New Elise

The new generation Elise was launched, with improved performance, styling, handling and quality.

Lotus Design

The new bespoke Research and Development Centre at Hethel opened in July.

Exige Launch

On the eve of the inaugural round of the Autobytel Lotus Championship race series, Lotus thrilled the crowds by unveiling the new Exige.

Elise Sport 160

In response to enthusiasts demand for even more performance Lotus responded with the introduction of the Sport 160

M250

Lotus revealed an all-new mini-supercar concept that fitted into the range between the Elise and Esprit. 

VX220

The Opel Speedster/ VX220 concept was shown, and the sports car went on to be built at the Lotus factory in Hethel.

Elise 111S

Lotus launched the Elise 111S at Geneva Motor Show.

Esprit Sport 350

The lightweight and big-braked Esprit Sport 350 supercar was released as a dramatic limited edition model.

340R

At the Birmingham Motor Show in October, Lotus revealed the stunning 340R as a concept car.

50th Celebrations

In September Lotus hosted its 50th anniversary celebrations with a party at Hethel

Millennium Product

The Elise was chosen by the Design Council as a prestigious ‘Millennium Product'

1000th Elise

The Elise proved more of a hit than even Lotus expected.

Test Cells

HRH Prince of Wales officially opened a new £3.5 million engine test cell block.

Living Logo

Lotus staff create the ‘Living logo’ in the grounds of Ketteringham Hall

Innovation Award

The Elise became the darling of the world's motoring press.

Esprit GT3

At the Geneva Motorshow the Esprit S4 GT3 was well received by both public and press.

Esprit GT1

The all-new Esprit GT1 racer was unveiled at the Paul Ricard circuit in France.

Proton

Proton announced it had acquired an 80% majority shareholding in Group Lotus plc.

Elise

The Elise was unveiled at the Frankfurt Auto Show, to the obvious delight of the press and public.

Feature Marque

Lotus was the featured marque at the Monterey Historic Automobile Races in California, USA.

50,000

Lotus produced its 50,000th car in the March of 1995.

GT Race Programme

The Lotus GT race programme was brought in-house in preparation for an all-out assault on UK sports car endurance racing.

Team Lotus Disbanded

Spiraling costs led to the disbanding of Team Lotus at the start of the F1 season, closing an important chapter in Lotus history.

British National GT Series

Out on the race track, an Esprit Sport 300, driven by Thorkild Thyrring, won the British National GT series.

Police Stop

An Esprit S4 ‘Police Car’ was produced, demonstrating that there was no point running from the law.

Esprit S4S

The S4S came with 300bhp, new wheels and tyres, and revised suspension settings.

Lotus Sport 110

Multiple successes with the Lotus Sport 110 carbon-composite bicycle.

Elan S2

The Elan S2 was launched at the Geneva Motor Show.

Team ONCE

The new Lotus Sport 110 road bike made its debut on the gruelling Tour de France.

Esprit S4

The Esprit S4 had a minor facelift and a range of mechanical refinements including power-steering as standard.

Bugatti Ownership

Bugatti International of Italy bought Group Lotus from General Motors.

SID

Lotus Engineering remained busy with the extraordinary 'SID' (Structure Isolation Dynamics) research vehicle.

Chris Boardman

Chris Boardman won the 4000m Pursuit Gold Medal at the Barcelona Olympics on the Lotus Superbike.

Sport Esprit X180R

Doc Bundy, driving the Sport Esprit X180R, took the Drivers' title in the Sports Car Club of America World Challenge for 'street-legal' cars.

M200

The M200, a futuristic concept sports car based on the Elan caused a stir at the Frankfurt Motor Show in September.

Team Lotus

Team Lotus became privately owned by a new management consortium led by Peter Wright and Peter Collins.

Elan Award

The Elan received the British Design Council award. 

Showroom Stock Series

In the USA, a works-supported team of three Esprit Turbo SE's entered the 'Showroom Stock' race series.

Lotus Carlton

The legendary Lotus Carlton (Lotus Omega outside the UK) was launched.

Type 101

The Lotus Type 101 introduced the normally aspirated 3.5 litre Judd V8 engine.

Elan

The Elan (Type 100) roadster was launched at the London Motorfair.

Esprit Turbo SE

The launch of the most powerful Lotus supercar to date.

Type 100T

Formula One World Champion, Nelson Piquet joined Lotus, following Ayrton Senna’s departure.

40th

In celebration of the company's 40th anniversary, a limited edition Esprit Turbo was produced.

New Esprit Turbo

At the London Motorfair the new Esprit Turbo made its debut.

Camel Colours

Camel became Team Lotus' new major sponsor, and Honda the new engine supplier.

General Motors

General Motors acquired 100% shareholding of Group Lotus plc.

Excel SE

The Excel SE is announced at the London Motor Show.

Chrysler Corporation

Contracted with Lotus Engineering to develop a family of high performance 16-valve engines for its future range of passenger cars.

Ayrton Senna

Ayrton Senna replaced the departing Nigel Mansell.

Etna Concept

Toyota

At the request of Lotus, Toyota acquired a 16.5% stake in Lotus.

Type 92

The Lotus Active Suspension System was announced

Anthony Colin Bruce Chapman

Died suddenly from a heart attack at only 54 years of age.

2+2 Excel

It was neatly styled, powered by a 160bhp 2.2-litre Lotus twin-cam engine, and handled superbly.

Type 91

With Elio de Angelis at the wheel, the Lotus Type 91 won its first Grand Prix Formula One race at the Austrian Grand Prix.

For Your Eyes Only

The Esprit Turbo shot to stardom, featuring strongly in the new Bond movie 'For Your Eyes Only.'

Twin Chassis

The FIRST car designed with a carbon fibre monocoque, and two chassis.

Party Time

The awesome Esprit Turbo was launched in tremendous style at London's Royal Albert Hall.

Wingless Wonder

The Type 80 “Wingless Wonder” F1 race car is introduced, to be driven by Mario Andretti and Carlos Reutemann. 

Royal Visit

HRH Duke of Edinburgh visited the Hethel factory.

Sunbeam

Chrysler UK (Talbot) called in the Lotus Engineering to help develop a high performance version of the Chrysler Sunbeam.

F1 Dominance

Team Lotus dominated Formula One, achieving 12 pole positions, and 8 wins, and winning the double.

Type 78

The FIRST car to manage airflow under the car including ground effects.

The spy who loved me

The name's Bond... James Bond...

JPS MK 2

The FIRST car to incorporate adjustable suspension.

2+2 Eclat

The Esprit was to reappear shortly afterwards at the London motor show, in company with the new 2+2 Eclat (Type 76).

Esprit

At the Paris Motor show Lotus stunned the world with the premier of the dramatic Guigiario-styled Esprit (Type 79).

Safety Trophy

The Elite was awarded the DON Safety Trophy by the UK Minister of Transport.

JPS Mark 1

The Type 76 Formula One car, dubbed the John Player Special Mark 1.

2+2 Elite

Lotus' first 4 seater sports car was launched, the attractively shaped Type 75 Elite.

No. 6

Lotus won the Constructors Championship for the sixth time

Texaco Star

Lotus causes confusion by naming its next race car the Type 74, a type number already given to the Europa.

Esprit

The Lotus Esprit concept, designed by Ital Design, is shown for the first time.

Type 72

Emerson Fittipaldi won both Constructors' and Drivers' Championship.

New Engine

Europa became one of the worlds quickest production sports cars.

F1 Double

Victory came again in both the Constructor's and Driver's championships.

Jochen Rindt

Rindt was tragically killed at Monza before the season's end.

Type 72

Team Lotus unveils the innovative Type 72 formula one car that went on to achieve twenty grand prix wins.

Elan Sprint

In the January the famous Elan Sprint sports car was introduced.

Type 63

The Type 63 became the FIRST F1 car to use the wedge shaped front.

Seven S4

Vastly different from its predecessor, the S4 was designed to be sold to a much wider public through an all-new dealer network.

S2 Europa

Lotus launched the S2 Europa.

Type 49

The FIRST use of Aerofoil wings in F1.

Gold Leaf

The FIRST commercial sponsorship in Formula One.

Another Double

Graham Hill drove to victory winning the Constructors’ and Drivers’ titles for Lotus  again.

Jim Clark

Jim Clark tragically died in a Formula 2 race at Hockenheim.

Type 50

The more spacious Type 50 Elan +2 went into production

Type 49

The FIRST car to be powered by the legendary Cosworth-Ford DFV V8 engine.

Type 47

Soon after the Europa went into production, work began on the Type 47, a Cosworth-Ford powered racing version.

Type 45 & Type 46

The enhanced Elan S3 drophead made its debut, followed by the mid-engined Europa road car.

Type 43

The FIRST F1 car to use the engine as a structural member. 

Move to Hethel

It was in this year that Lotus moved to a purpose-built factory based in Norfolk.

Type 36

Type 36 Lotus Elan fixed head coupe made its debut.

150.686 mph

Clark also won the famous Indy 500 race in the USA with a new record.

Another Double

Jim Clark brought home another double for Team Lotus, winning both constructors’ and drivers F1 championships.

Type 33

The Type 33 was an evolution of the monocoque Type 25.

F1 Winners

With Jim Clark at the wheel of the Type 25, Lotus secured its first Formula One Constructors’ Championship, and the Drivers title.

Type 28

Lotus assisted Ford in winning the British Saloon Car Championship.

Type 29

Chapman developed his first Indianapolis car, with a power to weight ratio of over 800bhp per ton.

Type 26

The Type 26 Lotus Elan was introduced.

Type 25

The 25 was the FIRST F1 car to use a revolutionary fully stressed ‘monocoque’ chassis design.

Type 24

Lotus introduced the Type 24 with a conventional chassis at the start of the ’62 Formula One season.

Type 21

The Type 21 was the FIRST F1 car to use a reclining driving position.

Type 20

Keen to maintain Lotus’ pre-eminence in Junior racing, Chapman developed the Type 20.

Mid-Engine Principle

Focused on winning, Chapman adopted and improved upon the mid-engined layout of the successful Cooper race cars.

The move to Cheshunt

The factory moves from the original showroom on the outskirts of London, to a new purpose-built facility at Cheshunt.

Group Lotus PLC

This is the year Chapman established Group Lotus

Le Mans

The Eleven achieved a historic win in the 750cc Class of the Index of Performance at Le Mans

Lotus Seven

The Lotus Seven was launched as a ‘no-frills’ sports car.

Early Production

The Lotus 11

Developed as a descendant of the Mark 9

Team Lotus is set up

The team comes into being.

The Lotus Engineering Company

Chapman formed the Lotus Engineering Company

Mark 3 Circuit Racing

The first circuit racing car was designed; the first to actually be called a Lotus

Chapman's 2nd Trials Car

During his leave periods from the RAF, Chapman built his second trials car

Humble Origins

Founder, Anthony Colin Bruce Chapman, studied structural engineering at University College in London