hedgerley

Definitely inspired by the Esprit - flat windscreen, the roofline, side window/quarter light/flag, centre line, pointy front end. Absolutely. But I don't think the 135 will be an Esprit reboot. The 135 is I think more of an Elise/Exige/Alpine class. The Esprit reboot has to be the big two-seater GT, hopefully Type 136/7, to complement the 4 door sedan, Type 133. And I think that better fits with the Britishvolt timeframe for next gen technology, maybe even dry cells.

The Autocar piece from two weeks ago is now online for anyone that missed it. https://www.autocar.co.uk/car-news/features/worth-weight-lotus-emira-first-ride

Not sure this has been posted. Looks good in motion. The filming referred to is I think is a Discovery Plus documentary.

Screen looks similar to me, almost squarish on both shots. I'd be more concerned about the steering wheel boss - Lynk & Co - with the tape hardly disguising it all. Lotus wheel not available yet, or are we looking at a future Lynk & Co SUV and not the 132? What a game this is......

As it happens, that's how it's described. "Imagine a more muscular Evija inspired body on 23 inch wheels and you won't be too far from the mark" according to the design team insiders...

New issue of CAR. 6 page spread, reckoned to be very close to the real thing. But they would say that wouldn't they. Certainly makes for an exciting read 👍

Confirmation again of the "four door sports coupe" Type 133, contrary to some reports saying it was an SUV coupe, whatever one of those is 😏

This☝️. 133 has been described as a 4 door sedan, hence my opening post on the 133 thread.

Probably more to do with their F1 ambitions if it happens at all. https://www.carmagazine.co.uk/car-news/industry-news/mclaren/bmw-and-audi-in-bidding-war-for-mclaren/

Next week's Autocar if anyone is interested....

Was just composing a similar reply myself @freefall_junkie I think describing Emira as a reskinned Evora is rather disingenuous. I see the progression and incremental improvements in the chassis, in its broadest sense, as the evolution of a design philosophy for sports cars that Lotus got right from the very beginning, with the Elise S1. The experience gained over the last 25 years, along with the technology improvements, and their ever broadening partnerships, has allowed Lotus to evolve that philosophy. Whilst the basic concept is similar, in its execution, Emira is a whole lot different to Evora. Don't fix it if it ain't broke would sum it up for me.

Which they have corrected. All hail our mighty leader and keyboard warrior @Bibs

Whilst not overly enthusiastic, Harris has on occasion been blown away by a Lotus. I know it's quite a few years ago (look how much hair he has) but it's worth checking out what he thought about the Exige S back in the day. I suspect and indeed hope we'll see something similar when he drives the Emira.

Whilst no doubt true @jimichanga, eCoTY is a shortlist based on NEW performance cars from the previous 12 months. Lotus have only been releasing variations on a theme for the last few years as we know 😟

Popped up in the EVO archive today. Probably my all time favourite car video, filmed on my favourite road less than an hour from home. I led a LEGS run on this very route a few years ago; what a great day that was 😎 I had a brief chat with Henry at the 60th Anniversary do at Hethel (he was admiring Dave Minters 'oldest Elise on the road', which I was parked next to) and he said it was one of the best drives he'd ever done. And he loves Scotland, for obvious reasons. Enjoy the video. https://www.evo.co.uk/aston-martin/aston-martin-vantage/204423/an-aston-martin-vantage-n430-and-the-old-military-road-evo

Porsche (911 GT3 Touring) comes third. THIRD. In EVO's Car of the Year. I had to go for a lie down. BMW M5 CS came first. Wonder if Emira will feature this time next year and where they will place it.

Haven't seen anything on why he sold it, until this in the latest "Other News" snippet in the latest Octane. Forgive me Harry, but that seems to be a rather feeble excuse to me 😕

Just read CAR magazine's write up on track and out on the road with Gavan Kershaw in the V6 touring set up validation car. You guys getting your Emira next year are so, so lucky. Even from the passenger seat first impressions sound like Lotus have knocked it out of the park. So envious.....

For info only. As I said, I think I've said enough already. But pleased I was proven right 😉 https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/formula1/59681314

I was just about to post that BBC link as my last word on the matter. By launching an official investigation, its clear the FIA recognise something went seriously wrong in Abu Dhabi. I think I'll now sign off this particular dialogue. As for that Dieter Rencken statement, what complete and utter b******t. Just about the only good thing that came out of Sunday's race was how magnanimous Lewis was in defeat, an utter gentleman, which I believe was entirely genuine. Certainly Max recognised and appreciated the gesture. And why would Toto and Mercedes senior management comment given they are planning to appeal the rejection of their protest? As the police say, we can't comment on the ongoing investigation, which the FIA are now getting on with. Keeping their countenance is exactly the right thing to do, not go bleating to the press. I guess I am one of the 5 you a referring to Ruud. I've always tried to avoid getting personal and no its not my day job. But my posts and opinions, as well as others, have I believe been borne out in the FIAs statement this afternoon. Its been a healthy debate, so as I said above, I'll be leaving it now. Until we get the verdict of course 😉

Massi was on a hiding to nothing and I do have some sympathy for him. In the heat of the moment, being yelled at by both team leaders, he made a bad call. Given the choice of a finish under the safety car (dull, unedifying etc etc) or manufacturing a last lap sprint 'to give Max a chance' and have a "motor race, Toto" he made the wrong decision, not just in the majority of fans opinions but many of the drivers and the F1 pundits as well. I accept that letting all 8 lapped cars through would probably have taken them in to the last lap and under the rule of 'safety car in at the end of the next lap', with no lap 59 or 60, it would have finished under the safety car. But that decision would have been consistent with the regulations and the precedent set by Massi himself (as I mentioned, see the Eifel GP, 2020) We'd all have a bit of moan and get on with our lives. But he only let 5 cars through and called the safety car in early, that's what it boils down to. Given the furore his decisions have generated, its clear that adhering to the regulations and precedent would have been the least worse choice. That's why I think we should understand why he took the decision he did. That's all I'm saying. I've absolutely no problem with Max winning the championship, he thoroughly deserved it based on 21 races and a 50/50 shot at the title in the final race. if Lewis had been told to hand the lead back on lap 1 after his off track excursion and it was Max leading on lap 50 when the accident happened, I'd argue the point just as much, although I doubt Christian Horner would have agreed with Massi if the situation was reversed 😉

Don't disagree with your final lap analysis @jimichanga but it gives no credit whatsoever for the racing on laps 1-50. As I said in my earlier post, Lewis put in a dominating performance up to that point, banging in lap record after lap record, managing his tyres, negotiating back markers and generally making all the other drivers look pretty second rate, even MV who ended up 12 seconds and 5 lapped cars behind him with 8 laps to go. Even on his newer softs that gap would have been extremely difficult to overcome. Mercedes didn't get his tyre strategy wrong. They chose to keep him out to maintain track position which he would have lost if they had brought him in - as with all these decisions it was a calculated gamble. They were not to know that Latiffi would stuff it in to the wall later in the race. Bono explained this when Lewis queried the decision, which he accepted and got on with the job of extending his lead. Without that safety car Lewis would now be World Champion. If the decisions about lapped cars and the use of the safety car had been consistent with previous decisions (by Massi himself, see his statement during the 2020 Eifel GP at the Nurburgring - "There’s a requirement in the sporting regulations to wave all the lapped cars past”) then Lewis would be World Champion. No, what we had was a bizarre reinterpretation of the regulations and application of a rule that I don't think has ever been used before, to give Max the opportunity to have a go in that final lap. And yes it was awesome and he deserved to win - that lap. I don't subscribe to any particular conspiracy theory, but I'm afraid Max's world champion status will be forever tarnished. And yes, I standby what I said about Massi, he does have questions to answer that I don't think his rejection of the Mercedes appeal adressed at all.

Having slept on it, I have to get this off my chest........ Regardless of the regulations, for me this shows what an abject hypocrite Horner is. He repeatedly demands 'let them race' but can't acknowledge that's exactly what Hamilton did. Notwithstanding the first lap incident he spent 50 laps building his lead, his team managing the pit stop strategy, he managing his tyres. A key part of racing is safely negotiating back markers, who themselves are fighting for position. Hamilton did this cleanly and with little fuss. He built a 12 second lead over Verstappen and for good measure put 5 back markers between them, with just a few laps to go. Horner admitted that the Mercedes was just to quick for them and they would need a miracle to get back on even terms. As he's done many times, Hamilton's raw speed and race craft put him in an unassailable position, building his lead over an entire race. If that's not racing then I don't know what is. Then the accident and safety car. The message went out that no drivers would be allowed to unlap themselves. That decision dictated Mercedes strategy for the final laps, leaving Hamilton out as he would lose track position. RBRs last throw of the dice was to put the softs on 'just in case' that miracle happened. Then Horner got on the phone to Massi, imploring him to get the lapped drivers out of the way so the two drivers 'could race'. When Massi buckled and changed his mind, he reduced 58 laps, the race and indeed the whole season to a one lap shoot out that RBR were certain to win. Everything Mercedes and Hamilton had done for the previous 50 laps was thrown out, the slate wiped clean. Its no wonder Wolff reacted the way he did. The decisions made by Massi clearly favoured RBR, ignoring or misrepresenting the regulations along the way. This is clearly evidenced by not letting the other three drivers unlap themselves before the restart, so they 'could go racing' as well. Sainz didn't get a chance to have a go at Verstappen, Tsnoda didn't get a chance to have a go at Sainz and Bottas couldn't go after Tsonda. No, only Max benefitted from Massi's ineptitude and in my view, his collusion with RBR. The excuse of there being only one lap left so he had to pull the safety car in at that point to allow them to go racing - "it's a motor race Toto" - is pathetic; the rules were bent/ignored to ensure it didn't finish under the the safety car, which, whilst unedifying, should have been the way it finished, according to the regulations (even though the accident had been cleared. I wonder if Liberty Media put pressure on Massi to ensure we got a different champion? Now Horner is saying Mercedes are desperate with their protests and appeals, that Max won fairly. This is hypocrisy of the highest order and one of the worst crimes against the 'spirit' of motor racing I've seen in 40 years of watching F1, up there with Schumacher taking Hill out and Senna shunting Prost off. I've got no problem with Max wining the title, either driver deserved it. Neither do I have a problem with him capitalising on the decisions made. The guilty parties here are Horner, RBR, Massi and the stewards. And for me, rather than the race itself, I'll remember how gracious Lewis and also his Dad were in defeat. What an utter gentleman. And breathe......

I'd like to know how much Latiffi was paid to stuff it in to the wall 😄 The sport has form - remember Nelson Piquet crashing deliberately in 2008, at Singapore? Oh hang on, his son, who has just won Formual E, has a sister. Who happens to be Max's girlfriend. Talk about conspiracy theories.....

There you go @Giniw