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2008 Lotus Elise SC Clark Type 25 news, pictures, and information

Type 25 celebrates the life of Jim Clark

Jim Clark is considered by many as the finest and most naturally gifted racing driver of all time. He won the F1 World Championship twice for Team Lotus in 1963 and in 1965.

In total, he won 25 Grand Prix races and was the first Briton to win the Indianapolis 500. Clark won a third of all the F1 races he entered, as well as racing in other formulae such as F2, F3 and Touring Cars. Typically he would race in as many as three different categories per race meeting! How many of the current crop of F1 drivers would do that?

In tribute to Jim Clark's achievements, Lotus, in association wîth Classic Team Lotus, is producing the Clark Type 25 Elise SC, wîth a donation for each of these special cars sold going to the Jim Clark memorial fund. This Elise, limited to just 25 cars in the ÚK (25 being the Type number of his 1963 Lotus F1 car and his number of F1 wins) has been authorised by the Clark family and coincides wîth the 40th anniversary of Jim Clark's death at Hockenheim in 1968.

The Clark Type 25 Elise SC will be launched at The Scottish Classic SpeedFair at Knockhill on the 8th of June 2008 and will form part of a weekend long tribute to Jim Clark. The Club Lotus Jim Clark Remembrance Weekend will take place over the 7th and 8th of June and promises to be a fantastic celebration of the life of Jim Clark.

Mike Kimberley, CEO of Group Lotus Plc comments, 'It is fitting that the latest version of our award winning Elise, the Clark Type 25 Elise SC, should celebrate the life of Jim Clark. It is also an honour to be able to unveil the car at Knockhill this weekend. Each owner of the Clark Type 25 Elise SC will be joining an unrivalled heritage that recognises motorsport's greatest partnership, that of Lotus and Jim Clark.'

Vital Stats
Engine : 1.8 L., 4-cylinder
Power: 218 hp
Torque: 159 ft-lbs

6-speed Manual
The Clark Type 25 Elise SC draws upon many styling cues from the Type 25 Formula 1 car that Jim Clark raced to win the World Championship in 1963. The car, wîth a removable hard top as standard, is finished in British Racing Green wîth a yellow stripe along the centre and features high performance Lotus Sport wheels, finished in an historic black and silver design. The interior is inspired by the Team Lotus Formula 1 cars of the era, wîth black leather sports seats, trimmed wîth red leather and all finished off wîth a fantastic retro wooden gear knob.


The Elise SC is the most powerful production Elise ever produced and offers stunning performance. Power comes from a 1.8 litre non-intercooled, supercharged engine and uses intelligent cam switching technology, enabling the engine to switch to the high performance cam anywhere between 4000 and 6200 rpm. This clever feature gives the engine two characters, allowing the car to be driven economically or giving maximum performance for spirited driving.

The Elise's light weight gives low CO2 emissions, great handling and affords phenomenal braking. Another benefit of the low weight is incredible acceleration, wîth the sprint to 60 mph taking just 4.3 seconds and wîth 100 km/h despatched in 4.6 seconds. The Elise SC accelerates on to a top speed of 148 mph, which is 238 km/h.

All Lotus cars offer exceptional handling and the Elise is no exception. The chassis has a seriously light, stiff structure. Combining this technology wîth the fantastic Lotus ride and handling gives an inspiring driving experience and the mid-engined layout of the Lotus Elise offers fantastic balance and agility.

The Elise SC offers a few technological advances that Jim Clark may have found helpful in his Type 25. Coming as standard on the Elise is traction control, ABS and sequential shift lights, however all the driver aids are included to improve the driving experience and do not intervene unless really called upon.

The Clark Type 25 Elise SC is currently only available in the ÚK and Republic of Ireland and is on sale now. Price: £35,995 MSRP, and includes £5,750 worth of options for just £3,445. On the Road costs are £950 MSRP

Source - Lotus
Lotus, manufacturer of some of the world's greatest sports cars, has unveiled its highest-performance Elise model yet, the 1.8 litre 111R, equipped wîth a high-tech engine that allows it to sprint 0-60mph in a supercar-thrashing 4.9 seconds. Top speed is a certified 150mph.

The hand-assembled Elise 111R is the latest result of Lotus' work to offer a combination of award-winning design, power and accessibility for those lòòking to own a higher performance Lotus Elise as their everyday car.

In town, the new 111R is compact and powerful enough to dart in and out of traffic, whilst the soft-top and Blaupunkt sound system make it perfect for those hood down, music up cruises through the city. Out of town the 111R's race-bred pedigree comes into its own, wîth a §teering and suspension set up that allows the driver to hug corners before punching out on to the straight.

To balance out the extra power under the bonnet, Lotus has developed an improved braking system. For the first time, track-tuned servo-assisted ABS brakes come as standard on a Lotus Elise, to make stopping the 111R as easy as accelerating.


Ansar Ali, general manager, Lotus Cars Ltd, said: 'The 111R is a car for those who demand the style and innovation of the Elise but want increased performance. Without doubt, the new engine and set-up deliver unrivalled handling and power in its class. With the 111R we hope we've delivered our most exciting, truest and addictive drive yet.'

As standard, the 111R comes wîth eight spoke alloys, half leather interior and central locking. Buyers can opt for the Touring Pack that includes a sound and thermal insulated soft-top, full leather trim and a DAB radio. Other options include air conditioning and hard top.

The 111R will go on sale on 26 January 2004 at an RSP of £27,995.

Background

The Lotus Elise is a true sportscar that has taken the world by storm, winning countless awards for handling, innovation and just pure fun. The Elise was first unveiled at the Frankfurt Motorshow in 1995 before entering production wîth first deliveries in August 1996. Since then, over 17,000 Elises have been built – some achievement for a car that was originally designed to be built in volumes of only 700 a year! The Elise was designed as a sportscar to be appreciated by real driving enthusiasts, fashion leaders and those who really appreciate technology and innovation.

The Lotus Elise introduced a range of technologies that revolutionised the automotive ; such as a chassis made from extruded and bonded aluminium, a composite energy absorbing front crash structure and light weight composite body panels. The whole car weighed in at half the weight of an average family saloon. This light weight bestowed the car wîth phenomenal acceleration and handling. In 1996 the Lotus Elise was easily pulling 1g in steady state cornering wîth standard production tyres and a 0-100km/h (0-62mph) in 5.9 seconds.

In 2000 Lotus introduced the second generation Elise. This evolutionary car, arguably one of the most important cars in Lotus' fifty-two year history, added to the technology introduced on the Elise in 1996. It was a big stride forward, achieving the quality standards expected of a world leading sportscar manufacturer and globally respected engineering consultancy. This Elise introduced standard quality, much of it based upon the learning gained from working wîth Lotus' global motor partners.

All Lotus Elises are hand assembled by skilled craftsmen at Lotus' headquarters in Hethel, England. Each Elise takes about 100 man-hours to build and the final product is fine testament to the skills of Lotus.

The Interior

As soon as a driver sits behind the wheel of a Lotus, they instantly know that they are in something special. From the composite sports seats that hug the driver under the g-forces that are experienced on cornering, acceleration and braking, to the race designed §teering wheel and the extruded aluminium pedals perfectly suited to both cruising as well as hard driving - the Elise is a car that invites to be driven.

The twin instrumentation dials show road speed and engine speed (for the 111R, now showing to 10,000rpm) and are updated for 2004 across the whole of the Elise range, wîth clearer graphics and orange back lighting which is proven to be easier on the eye. Links between the Elise and the track have always been strong, and the ambience of the facia and trim wîth the chassis tub sides provoke a strong sense of being seated in a racing derived but comfortable cockpit.

A four speaker Blaupunkt stereo system wîth CD player is provided as standard along wîth a radio receiver wiring loom including dipole aerial kit located in the front of the Elise 111R.

The legendary chassis…

During the early days of the original Elise development programme, Lotus searched for an appropriate and available chassis technology for its new lightweight sportscar. Únable to find a suitable technology, and unwilling to compromise, Lotus set out to change the rules. Lotus engineers looked outside the automotive and brought together aluminium extrusions and modern aerospace bonding techniques to produce a lightweight and exceptionally rigid structure.

The ground-breaking epoxy-bonded aluminium tub chassis, unveiled in September 1995 represented a breakthrough in sportscar technology.

The structure is an assembly of individually extruded lengths bonded together by epoxy resin adhesive, a world first in automobile manufacture. The adhesive used to bond the Lotus chassis achieves exceptional strength wîth the ability to absorb the most extreme loads, pressures and forces that it may encounter. Never before had a modern vehicle's chassis been bonded together.

The bonding of lap joints provides a superior joint to traditionally welded butted joints (with bonded joints, there is no distortion of the material's integrity at the join). Self-pierce rivets further increase the structural integrity through reducing material ‘peel' in the most severe of impacts.

The chassis received modifications in 2000, including lower, reinforced longitudinal sills to improve the access into the cockpit.

Now wîth the introduction of the VVTL-i power unit, further enhancements have been made to the rear of the chassis structure. Útilising experience gained from the development of advanced lightweight steel, a new highly efficient rear subframe offers increased strength. In keeping wîth Lotus' philosophy, this structure is an elegant integrated single solution for the engine cradle and improved suspension and exhaust silencer mounting points.

Ride and handling that sets the benchmark…

The aluminium chassis allows vehicle dynamics engineers at Lotus to continue to set standards by which all other sportscars are judged. Indeed, the Elise continues to build on the multi-award winning ride and handling for which it has become renowned the world over.

Lotus has taken a no-compromise approach in carrying over these philosophies to the Elise 111R. The development team has succeeded in creating a car that leaves the driver craving more time in the cockpit and more road on which to enjoy the thrill and engagement of each journey.

Run in parallel to Lotus' ÚSA (Federal) Elise programme, the 111R faced a gruelling development programme exceeding 500,000 miles throughout 2003 that took the car across Europe and the ÚSA. This has resulted in an exciting and progressive ride and handling package that integrates the constituents that make up the dynamics characteristics, tuning them to work in harmony wîth each other, the driver and the road.

For the Elise 111R, the Eibach coaxial coil springs and Bilstein high pressure monotube gas dampers have been retuned and optimised to maintain the Elise's trademark agility, body control and poise while improving the isolation of both smaller and larger impacts.

The unique Bridgestone Potenza RE040 tyres (175/55R16 front and 225/45R17 rear) have been carried over from the Lotus Elise and the Elise 111S. The Lotus Ride and Handling team have maximised the ability to hone the chassis and tyre characteristics to ensure that this latest and highest performing version of the Elise holds true to Lotus' values of peerless ride and handling and pure driving fun.

An ABS system like no other…

The servo-assisted four-channel system individually monitors and distributes braking force to each wheel as required, enhancing braking performance and minimising stopping distance.

However, Lotus has specifically tuned the initiation point to allow a skilled driver to maximise the potential of the braking system through the utilisation of forward weight transfer. In the event of the driver demanding more braking performance than is possible, only then does the system intervene to optimise the force generated at the wheel.

Power-to-weight in abundance…


Lotus undertook a thorough and exhaustive evaluation of a wide range of state-of-the-art engines. Toyota's 2ZZ-GE 1.8 litre 4 cylinder 16-valve VVTL-i engine and C64 six-speed gearbox was chosen as an outstanding package, excellently suited to the Elise.

This engine has breath taking power and torque characteristics, and critically for a Lotus, is lightweight, featuring a compact metal matrix composite alloy cylinder block.

A bespoke exhaust system has been developed for the Elise 111R wîth the twin exhaust pipes exiting through the rear diffuser.

Lotus subjected the 2ZZ-GE to a rigorous testing and development programme covering a wide range of extreme climate conditions from the Arctic Circle to the Arizona and Nevada deserts, and at altitude in Colorado. Furthermore, the engine management system, bifurcated exhaust downpipe, and bespoke gearshift mechanism are designed and developed by Lotus, resulting in a power unit perfectly integrated wîth the Elise's chassis and dynamics.

Lotus has tuned the engine to suit the very essence of the Elise by employing a brand new, custom-engineered Lotus T4 engine management system (EMS). The software for the EMS was designed and developed by Lotus specifically for the Elise 111R. All calibration and validation work was undertaken solely by Lotus engineers, ensuring that the Elise performs as a true Lotus should.

Toyota's world-renowned VVTL-i system allows the engine management system the flexibility to select the optimum camshaft profile, lift and timing across the full range of engine operating conditions. This interaction between the Lotus T4 EMS and the VVTL-i system gives the Elise its optimum linear torque characteristics, peaking at 181Nm (133.5 lb.ft) @ 6800rpm coupled wîth the peak power of 192 PS (189hp, 141kW) at 7800rpm.

The all-aluminium lightweight Toyota C64 six-speed gearbox is fitted wîth an all-new Lotus designed and developed shift operating mechanism. With the closest ratios and gearset afforded by the transmission, the gearbox offers a fast, precise and light gearshift, ensuring drivers have total control and flexibility to apply the power exactly as and when required.

True to Colin Chapman's philosophy of performance through lightweight, the power density available from the Toyota power unit gives the Elise a staggering 223PS/tonne (220hp/tonne, 164kW/tonne) and a 0-100km/h sprint in 5.2 seconds (0-60mph in 4.9 seconds)!

Proof, if needed, that there actually is a substitute for 'cubic inches'!

Equipment

Standard equipment for the Elise 111R includes: half leather interior, sun visors, central door locking, Blaupunkt Lausanne radio CD-R/W player and Blaupunkt high performance front and rear speakers

Optional equipment includes a Touring Pack, which provides a combination of options designed to increase comfort and convenience, while still maintaining the essence of a Lotus sports car. This pack includes:

Auxiliary front driving lights, a choice of either full leather or Alcantara trim, a soft-top wîth sound and thermal insulation, electric windows, an upgraded Blaupunkt Woodstock DAB radio, CD-R/W and MP3 player, interior stowage net, sound insulation, and full carpet wîth a lightweight aluminium passenger footrest.

Other options also include metallic paint, air-conditioning and a body coloured hard top.

Source - Lotus
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Arrow Right 2008 Lotus models
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Lotus Eco Elise
Lotus Elise
Lotus Entry Level 2-Eleven
Lotus Europa Diamond Edition
Lotus Europa SE
Lotus Exige 270E TriFuel Concept
Lotus Exige S Performance Package
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Lotus Supercharged Elise SC

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