While Lotus may only be known for building driver-focused sports car powered by turbocharged Toyota engines these days, the English brand has a long history of motorsport success.
To celebrate this success, a series of exclusive Elise Heritage Edition cars have been released that wear the colours of some of the most iconic Lotus race cars to win on the world stage.
First up is the black and gold livery, which is arguably the most iconic colour scheme to be worn by a Lotus Formula 1 car. Back in the day, the 1972 Type 72D topped five races with Emerson Fittipali in the hot seat.
The blue, red, and silver and silver scheme celebrates the Type 81 F1 car that Mario Andretti, Nigel Mansell, and Elio de Angelis drove back in the 1980 F1 season.
Taking inspiration from the Type 49B F1 car that Graham Hill drove back in 1968 is the red, white, and gold livery.
And finally, the blue and white car pays tribute to Lotus' very first Formula 1 car to achieve a top spot at a Grand Prix, which was driven by the great Stirling Moss.
On top of these colour schemes, these new Elise models over a fair bit of kit over the standard car. Just 100 cars in total will be built each coming with an individual plaque recognising the build number.
This extra kit comes in the form ultra-lightweight forged wheels, two-piece brakes, and a special interior.
Like all Elise models, power still comes from the 1.8-litre turbocharged Toyota engine that produces 161kW and 250Nm of torque. Despite these low figures, a 0-100km/h time of 4.1 seconds is achievable thanks to lack of weight.
