This year marks the end of an era for Lotus Cars as it ends the production of its two iconic nameplates, the Elise and Exige, after 25 and 21 years respectively. The cars are being sent to the history books with these Final Editions.
The Final Edition cars include Elise Sport 240, Elise Cup 250, Exige Sport 390, Exige Sport 420, and Exige Cup 430. Besides the UK, the cars will also be available in other parts of Europe.
| Model | Price in UK (including VAT) |
| Elise Sport 240 | £45,500 |
| Elise Cup 250 | £50,900 |
| Exige Sport 390 | £64,000 |
| Exige Sport 420 | £79,900 |
| Exige Cup 430 | £100,600 |
Elise Final Edition
Among other things, the Elise Final Edition cars receive a new TFT driver display with the choice of two screens, one with a conventional set of dials and the other a race car-style with digital speed read-out and a rev counter. The Elise Sport 240 Final Edition, in particular, gains an extra 23 bhp over the Sport 220, for a total of 240 bhp from a Toyota-sourced 1.8L motor. The torque, however, is 244 Nm (180 lb-ft) compared to 250 Nm (184 lb-ft) in the Sport 220.
Anyway, Lotus claims a 0-60 mph (96.5 km/h) sprint time of 4.1 seconds thanks to a power-to-weight ratio of 260 bhp per tonne. The car also comes with 10-spoke Anthracite lightweight forged alloy wheels as standard, measuring 16-inch at the front and 17-inch at the rear, shod with Yokohama V105 tyres (195/50 front and 225/45 rear). The wheels are claimed to be 0.5 kg lighter than the ones on the Elise Sport 220.
In addition, there are optional carbon fibre elements that cut down the weight from 922 kg (2,032.7 lbs) to 898 kg (1,979.8 lbs).
As for Elise Cup 250, it gets aerodynamically optimized components that create 66 kg (145.5 lbs) of downforce at 100 mph (161 km/h) and 155 kg (341.7 lbs) of downforce at its 154 mph (248 km/h) top speed. The list of standard equipment includes Bilstein sport dampers and adjustable anti-roll bars.
Exige Final Edition
As for Exige models, all three Final Edition cars are powered by a Toyota-sourced 3.5-litre supercharged V6 engine. In the Exige Sport 390, the engine offers 397 bhp and 420 Nm (310 lb-ft), which is 47 bhp extra over the Sport 350. The aerodynamics generate 70 kg (154 lbs) of downforce at the rear and 45 kg (99 lbs) up front for a total of 115 kg (253.5 lbs) at top speed.
The Exige Sport 420 Final Edition gains an extra 10 bhp over the outgoing Sport 410 for a total of 420 bhp. The torque here is 427 Nm (315 lb-ft). It is the fastest Exige available, topping out at 180 mph (289.7 km/h), with 0-60 mph (96.5 km/h) completed in 3.3 seconds.
The 430 bhp Exige Cup 430 Final Edition is the quickest among the bunch with a claimed 0-60 mph (96.5 km/h) time of 3.2 seconds. It weighs the same as the 420 at 1,110 kg (2,447 lbs), however, the power-to-weight ratio is 387 bhp per tonne compared to 378 bhp per tonne on the 420. Its aerodynamics is claimed to be balanced at all speeds, with the car generating 76 kg (167.5 lbs) at the front and a further 95 kg (209.5 lbs) at the rear.
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