There is much to smile about as Lotus introduced their newest Elise. It is true that most people who drive the Lotus are happy, and even the Elise is grinning ear to ear. A revised front bumper, splitter, and clamshell gives the Elise a happy look; something you would expect to see from a smiling character in the movie Cars.
So why the facelift? By implementing a smoother, lower nose with redesigned headlamps, a larger grill, a new engine cover, and a reworked rump, the coefficient of drag of the Elise has decreased four percent. Overall, the size and shape is arguably a bit reminiscent of the MR2, suggests one Toyota dealer Houston TX.
Another new feature for the Lotus Elise is the Performance Package. This package combines last year’s touring package, sport seats, Alcantara upholstery, traction control, dual oil coolers, removable hard top, 16-spoke cast alloys in silver or black with matching rear diffuser, sport dampers, sport springs, Yokohama A048 LTS performance tires, and a harness bar, all for only $3,665.
The Elise also has a new 1.8-liter, 189 hp, Mid-Mounted 4-cylinder engine. Add a supercharger and find yourself with approximately 217 hp. Lotus declares that they have “the lowest CO2 per performance for any petrol high-performance sports car in the world” emitting “under 155g/km of CO2”; impressive!
For around $50,000 can buy you a thoroughly loaded Lotus Elise. It is estimated that the Elise will be in America in April 2010.
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Keep checking back for more news on the Lotus Elise.
