Lotus to Build V8 Engine

Lotus is planning to power the new Esprit with its own design for a V8 engine, company boss Dany Bahar has revealed to Autocar.

The company is currently doing a feasibility on the possibility of an all-new, Hethel-engineered V8 which would appear in the 2012 Esprit and a V6 for the new Elan and other models he admitted.

“We have done three engines for other manufacturers; why not do it ourselves?” he said. “The engine is the heart of a sports car; we should do our own product.”

Lotus engineering chief Wolf Zimmerman also revealed that the planned three-strong family of mid-engined Lotuses that will start with the Esprit will share a common platform, brakes, suspension and electrical systems.


Bahar also revealed that customer reaction to the new Esprit being powered by a Toyota V8, as was originally planned, was behind the decision.

“In the mind of sports-car enthusiasts, Toyota power might not be good enough” 

But the final decision on whether Lotus will green light the cash for engine development will be taken at the end of January. “The decision then will be purely financial,” said Bahar.


source: Autocar