Evora 400 Roadster

[Bravo73]

I think that the upcoming Evora 400 Roadster deserves it's own thread. Especially in light of a recent JMG US interview:

"I had the U.S. in mind when I came [to Lotus]; that was one of my first projects. The Roadster is first. It’s going to appear in summer 2016. The Roadster is easily done because we have a tough chassis and a composite body, and we already have the rollover bar incorporated, so taking the roof off is relatively easy. We can do it for a small amount of money. The A-pillar is reinforced. What we have in mind is two carbon-fiber roofs below 7 pounds each, which you can easily take off and store behind the rear seats. It’s basically a targa. We call it a Roadster. I drove a prototype last month, and it’s amazing. You can hear the engine note much more strongly than on the Evora 400. That will give us the second big boost after the 400."

From http://www.automobilemag.com/features/news/lotus-ceo-jean-marc-gales-talks-evora-400-future-suv/ (also linked in the JMG era thread). 

[FredP]

What's wrong with my topic? hehe

 

 

 

[Bravo73]

Sorry. 

Tried a quick search but nothing obvious came up. I blame my 'phone. 

[Ccd]

Two follow up models have been promised: 1) a roadster (primarily aimed at the US market); and 2) a lighter, faster 400.  My guess is that Lotus is trying to create as many variations on the 400 as it can in the US market because it will not have any other car until sometime around the 2020 MY. 

[NedaSay]

If it was to do this we would get this:

and then something in the spirit of this :

A roadster and a spider because the evora is worth it...

and then something more like this with the 450bhp engine package:

I do know that Lotus is on a shoestring budget so I'm not holding my breath on the spider thingy but it would look really good, also as Lotus is prepping an AWD SUV, I'm wondering if Lotus will try to put and Haldex diff between the front wheels ... But it is just me going a little crazy.

 

 

[Kalli]

The roadster will have a number of cosmetic differences to the 400 - including the side intakes - far more swoopy looking. From what I've been told, the side intakes will be more Lotus Elise S1-like, where they flow into/with the bodywork. But early days, so that might not be the case when it's finalised. 

[Ccd]

Here is what the US sports car market generally looks like:  the biggest seller is the Corvette at 20,000-30,000 cars per annum.  The next largest seller is the 911 in all its variants with around 6,000 per annum.   Every other car (Boxster/Cayman combined, TTs, etc) are around 2,000 or less.  The market for sports cars has not been expanding so it appears you can only grow by taking volume away from someone else.

At the Evora's price point in the US, there is stiff competition from Porsche (Cayman/911) and Jaguar (F-Type).  Just above that price point are some more expensive 911s, the Mercedes GT, and the Audi R8.  Lotus will have to carve out a niche (and an identity) in from this crowd and, in the short run, Lotus has to do this with only the Evora.  I've read that Lotus wants to sell around 700 cars per annum initially between the hardtop and the roadster in the US.  If those sales goals are met or exceeded, then Lotus might look to further variations on the Evora.  A spider would be cool, if it could be designed a minimal cost and would sell enough additional cars to make a profit.  My guess is that we may see a 450 hp Evora when Lotus does a model refresh, which Lotus may have to do in a couple of years to keep pace with the new Porsche turbo Caymans/911s.

Personally, I'm concerned about Lotus' prospects in the US.  I'm just not sure they have the budget to let the public know they exist.  I was flipping thru several 2016 Buying Guides that come out this time of year by major US car mags and Lotus was not even listed.  When Porsche comes out with the new turbo cars, you know Porsche will suck up all the auto journal space and Lotus could be quite forgotten.  The Evora could end up being the best car nobody has ever heard of here.

[Bibs]

Not much different to over here then! 

[Ccd]

Personally, I think a targa style roadster might be a big hit.  The new Vette is basically that.   And Porsce has introduced a retro looking 911 Targa.

 

[j2 lot]

I think Lotus isn't listed in the US buying guides as they don't sell anything there just now until the type approval is sorted out as none of the cars meet the new safety regs for smart airbags (?) 

Hopefully the Evora will change that when it lands over there 

[Bravo73]

A few more details:

"Next big addition to the range will be the Roadster, which we'll see in November. As previously discussed, it'll be a 'Targa' style roof with two removable carbon fibre panels weighing just 3kg each. They'll be quick to remove and easily stored behind the rear seats, promises Gales. Think new Boxster Spyder levels of faff here in that it'll require a little more manual labour than many are used to. With a similarly focused and appealing pay-off, we hope. Mechanically it'll be identical to the Evora 400, with comparable weight and performance,  but it'll have a style and look of its own thanks to an entirely new rear clam." (My bold).

From http://www.pistonheads.com/news/ph-britishcars/lotus-looks-ahead/33458

[Kalli]

From what i've gleamed from a couple of sources, the rear clam is more 'swoop'. The air intakes I believe might be more along the lines of the old S1's intakes - just less 90's  . Mind you, that was a couple of months ago it was mentioned.

[C8RKH]

I live in Scotland and have a bald head - so the chances of me buying an Evora Roadster are slim unless the wife buys me a nice Harris Tweed flat cap for xmas. However, Al will have a red one, and I am sure on the odd day of sunshine I can blag a ride with him, or look after it for him whilst he is playing with his gazillion tonne work thing

Hmmm, but then I am currently sporting a rather nifty full beard so maybe with a face lift....

 

[PaulCP]

Launch in November (presumably 2016) for  UK or US?

If UK then let's hope that the marketing dept get their act together and November is just a model launch date with sales beginning in the Spring, otherwise Lotus may well be left wondering why their new roadster isn't selling well at the start of Winter

[Bibs]

5 minutes ago, PaulCP said:

Launch in November (presumably 2016) for  UK or US?

Both I'd imagine but I don't think they'll get a lot of orders from Northern USA either! 

[LotusLeftLotusRight]

They'll be quick to remove and easily stored behind the rear seats, promises Gales

Really? Easily stored behind the REAR seats? Sounds too good to be true!

[Bibs]

I think the engine may have something to say about that. I've asked Lotus to contact PH to clarify. 

[Inkyfingers]

I've never been a massive fan of convertibles, but I'm quite interested in what the roadster will look like, particularly if, by some miracle, it still has rear seats.

[Kier]

On 12/15/2015 at 15:46, PaulCP said:

Launch in November (presumably 2016) for  UK or US?

If UK then let's hope that the marketing dept get their act together and November is just a model launch date with sales beginning in the Spring, otherwise Lotus may well be left wondering why their new roadster isn't selling well at the start of Winter

I did think myself when I read it, that winter was an odd time of the year to launch a roadster!  

[Bibs]

The PH article has now been corrected. 

[CocoPops]

So if they store behind the front seats, that kind implies it's a 2 seater only...

[C8RKH]

Yeah!  Enough of this +2 nonsense, that's what a Ford Galaxy is for......  hahahahahahahahaha......

Kids and passengers just add dead weight and Colin would not be happy with that......! 

[Colin G]

On 8 October 2015 at 03:13, NedaSay said:

 

 

 

 

 

For me it has to be something along the lines of the second car, I don't see the point/attraction of the first, but that's probably just me.

[NedaSay]

Well it will be a targa so it is definitely more along the lines of the first car.

The second car requires more engineering budget, even though that engineering cost could have been split between Lotus and Spyker... But as Spyker went under the B6 Venator roadster status is in limbo at best. The car was originally designed with a full cabrio variant in mind but with limited budget it's harder to bring it to market I guess.

The first car requires a lot less engineering, tooling, production cost... And considering the way JMG is following the ethos: light is right, it makes a lot more sense ; the car should be on par in terms of weight with the coupe and will have its own rear bonnet design. Expect formal presentation in Geneva with the car going on sales in the fall.

[DaveC72]

I seem to remember on my factory tour back in February that the current line up were all designed roadster first and then made in to coupes?  Hmm.  No 400 then, so wonder if the new lower sills have an impact?