Classic Team Lotus is reigniting its YouTube channel, and one of the first videos of the new era was some rare footage of the Lotus Mark VIII. The recently unearthed footage has been unseen for decades, and shows the Mark VIII behind the scenes undergoing testing and racing in 1954. When it was first revealed, the Mark VIII was unlike any other racing car. The … Continue reading Video: Lotus Mark VIII testing in 1954
If you’ve read Issue 39 of Absolute Lotus (in the shops at the time of posting this), you’ll have seen the Shapecraft Elan that’s bedecked in 1970s modifications. Far from being in the usual race trim, it’s instead sporting a vinyl roof and Revolution four-spokes. It reminded us of another Lotus that had been hidden away since the most garish decade – a Seven S2 that … Continue reading Psychedelic Lotus Seven barn find at rest since 1972
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 … Continue reading Lotus at the Goodwood Festival of Speed
Motor Sport magazine has named its Race Car of the Century… and the prestigious honour went to the Lotus 49 Continue reading Type 49 crowned Race Car of the Century
It’s a simple enough concept: open up a field, invite Lotus owners to join a picnic and watch as close to 100 examples of the marque assemble for a sunny afternoon. That was Richard Hinton’s idea when he posted on the Historic Lotus Register’s Facebook page late last year about the event he was proposing, and that’s exactly what occurred on the first weekend of … Continue reading From Mark VI to Eletre at the Lotus Picnic
In Issue 36 of Absolute Lotus, the innovative Lotus Exige 270E was featured as a tri-fuel car running on petrol, ethonoal, and methanol. Developed as an environmentally friendly alternative to mass electrification, it represented a significant step forward in the “e-fuel” concept. Consequently, it demonstrated promising potential for addressing carbon emissions in the transport sector. Continue reading The case for internal combustion
One of the greatest spectacles provided by historic motorsport is the little versus large battles, Whether it’s Minis going up against V8 saloons or nimbles Lotuses battling big-banger GT cars. Throwing together grid of cars that approach the business of going fast in completely different ways always provides spectacular, close racing. This on-board video from the Lotus Elan of Nigel Greensall provides exactly that. This … Continue reading Video: Plucky Lotus Elan battles AC Cobra
Club Lotus’s annual trackday at Castle Combe is one of the largest regular gatherings of Lotuses and for 2024’s event the sun shone on the Wiltshire circuit. The gates are open to all enthusiasts of the marque, but track access is exclusive to members of Club Lotus. Not everyone takes to the track, but for those who don’t want to drive at full pace the … Continue reading Gallery: Wedges on track at Castle Combe
Long before Top Gear became a programme about smashing up classic cars for a laugh and yelling ‘poweeer!’ down the lens while igniting tyres on a runway, it had a Thursday night slot and wasn’t afraid to get right into the technical details of a car. We’re fortunate that it was in this incarnation of the show that it turned its attention to the then-new … Continue reading Video: Mesmerising Esprit Active Suspension demonstration
This is an abridged version of the story first published in Absolute Lotus magazine in 2020 A trip around the M25 on a weekday morning wouldn’t usually be a cause for excitement, but as I sit in the driver’s seat of this Evora GT410 Sport I can tell this isn’t going to be a typical trip into London. It may have been just as slow … Continue reading Long read: Lotus’s London landmarks
Lotus has created some of the most recognisable forms in automotive history. From the diminutive Elan through the wedge Esprit to the utterly original Elise, the marque’s back catalogue is filled with distinctive hits. But sometimes people have looked at the cars and decided they could improve upon what’s in front of them. Here are five restyled Lotuses from the Absolute Lotus magazine archives… IWR … Continue reading Looks deceive: 5 restyled Lotuses
Meet the Lotus Evija X, a Nürburgring specialist version of Hethel’s electric hypercar. On Friday 13 October 2023, it set the third fastest ever lap of the Green Hell, and Lotus has just released the on-board footage of its 6min 24.044sec run. That compares to the Volkswagen ID.R’s time of 6min 05.336sec and the Porsche 919 Evo’s 5min 19.545sec. The difference here, though, is that … Continue reading Video: Lotus sets third fastest ever Nürburgring lap
UPDATE: Race Retro 2024 has been cancelled due to local flooding. Details on the organiser’s website. Tickets are on sale for this year’s Race Retro – and you can save money on advance tickets by using this link and using the code ABLOTUS. Immerse yourself in the sights and sounds of iconic competition cars, motorsport legends, and a festival of speed with our live rally action. … Continue reading Gear up for Race Retro 2024
Eau Rouge with a Ford DFV at full chat. There can’t be many more evocative experiences in motorsport, but it’s one that sadly very few of us will be fortunate enough to live it for real. This on-board video, featuring Nigel Mansell’s Lotus 87B, might be the next best thing. Never mind what it looks like, though. With sound quality that does the subject justice, … Continue reading Video: Spectacular Lotus 87B Spa on-board
In the Venn diagram of Lotus enthusiasts and grammar pedants, there’s quite a number in the overlap. Certainly that appears to be the case if our email inbox is anything to go by every time a reader is irked by our use of the plural ‘Lotuses’. They’re quick to cite a press release issued by Lotus Cars in 1969 in which Hethel HQ decreed that … Continue reading The plural of Lotus is…?
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