Lotus CEO Dany Bahar has thrown down the gauntlet, proclaiming the company’s upcoming Esprit model will be a more “authentic” driving experience than the Ferrari 458 Italia and McLaren MP4-12C.
The new-age Esprit is still about two years from its production launch, but Bahar guarantees that the car will “have the character and emotion” that he claims the McLaren MP4-12C lacks. Bahar says the Esprit is adhering to its development scheduled, with the first prototypes slated to hit the track this November.
Lotus will find tune the new Esprit on Germany’s famed Nurburgring as well as the Indiada circuit in Spain. Lotus is also putting the finishing touches on a new test track at its Hethel headquarters.
When it launches in the spring of 2013, the Esprit will be the first car to use Lotus’ new in-house designed V8. Lotus originally planned to source the Esprit’s V8 from Toyota, but Bahar says the new mill will be 80kg lighter and 40 percent smaller than the Toyota unit. If Lotus was planning to use Toyota’s 4.6L V8, that means the new motor should displace about 2.8L. Despite its small size, the Esprit’s V8 is expected to produce 570 horsepower.
Look for the first spy shots of the Lotus Esprit to surface by year’s end.
References
1.’New Esprit…’ view
