It was MG’s year at the Goodwood Festival of Speed, the Chinese-owned British marque celebrating its centenary the Duke of Richmond’s annual automotive garden party. But it’s the other Chinese-owned British marque that we were focusing on, with Lotus represented on the hill by a plethora of machines, from Grand Prix racers to the latest electrified offerings.

Perhaps the biggest talking point was when the Evija X nose-planted into the straw bales after a dramatically smoky burnout. Despite rumours of a software glitch (sparked by the live commentary), it was confirmed to be driver error. Safety protocol meant that the car couldn’t be run up the hill throughout the weekend, but the damage was only cosmetic. Of the other alternatively-powered Lotuses, it was the turbine Type 56 that stood out. The spectacle is as much about the sound it makes as how the wedgy single-seater looks.

There wasn’t a huge amount of Lotus interest in the Bonhams auction tent, a sole Elan representing our favourite marque. The 1971 DHC, complete with Spyder chassis, sold for £19,550. More static Lotus displays could be found in the Performance Parking areas, with Exiges, Evora, Elises and Emiras represented in decent numbers. There’s also a crazy Hot Car era modified Seven S4 that’s a regular attendee.

The brightest new of the weekend, however, was with the road-going Evija. Gavan Kershaw’s 53.37sec run was enough to make it the fastest road-legal two-seater up the hill.

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