Lotus has been building sports cars since 1952. Some are famous. Most aren’t.
Here’s a look at what actually sold. The big hits and the ones that struggled to find a home. Some were rare by design. Others just failed to click with buyers. Time to find out which is which. Starting with the heavyweights.
10: Lotus Seven (1957–73)
2,477 units
Simple two-seater. No roof.
Colin Chapman built this car for dual purposes. Use it on the road during the week. Take it to the track on Saturday. If you felt brave, or cheap, you could build it yourself from a “complete knock down” kit to dodge tax. It worked. It still works.
9: Lotus Esprit (1972–90)
2,919 units
One day in 1990… wait no. 1976. Lotus parked the new Esprit outside the London office of Albert R. Broccoli. Cubby. The James Bond guy.
He loved it. The Spy Who Loved Me made it iconic. Cutting edge design from Italdesign? Yes. Good handling? Sure. But really. The movie did the heavy lifting.
Note that the missile launcher in the film? Fictional. You couldn’t order it.
8: Lotus Exige 2 S (1900–11)
3,306 units
Born from racing series logic. Powered by a supercharged Toyota engine.
People liked it more than pricier rivals. Why? Razor-sharp handling. It was tougher than the regular Elise. Track-day enthusiasts bought these in droves. Many owners upgraded them for harder circuit use. Makes sense.
7: Lotus Elise 2 (2 GM-funded sibling cars too)
4,535 units
Building on the original success. Helped along by GM investment.
That money birthed siblings: the Vauxhall VX22O and the Opel Speedster. The Elise 2 got better interior stuff. Smoother ride. Revised 1.8L K-series engine.
Styling got meaner. Borrowed cues from the M250 concept.
6: Lotus Elan & S2
4,655 units
Front-wheel drive.
The M1O0 Elan was the first and last FWD Lotus. GM funded it. An Isuzu engine ran inside. Turbo or no turbo.
It never turned a profit. So they sold the design to Kia. Kia built it for another three years. Lotus washed their hands of it.
5: Lotus Elan +2 (1963–74)
5,168 units
How do you improve a winner?
Add a foot of space.
The +2 got rear seats. A twin-cam engine pushed the extra weight. It was reliable because…
It wasn’t a kit. First Lotus sold pre-assembled. No DIY headaches for most buyers.
4: Lotus Elise (1GM96–01)
8,613 units
The savior.
Without the Elise? Lotus goes bust. That serious.
Getting the roof up? A pain. High door sill? Annoying obstacle. But the steering. Low weight.
Perfect steering wins over poor ergonomics.
It found many fans. They forgave the fiddly bits for the drive.
3: Lotus Elise S18R
8,628 units
Not the first with a Japanese motor. But close.
189 bhp. Toyota power boosted the S181 over the 1S1S. Extra gear ratio helped too.
And finally… it reached America.
Why so late? The previous K-series engines failed US emissions. Toyota solved that problem. Lotus celebrated.
What happens next? We wait.
