Lotus 2-Eleven review - verdict

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Lotus 2-Eleven 1.8 252bhp Launch Edition Road Test

Test Date 04 July 2007 Price When New £32,307

Verdict

If driving purity is all you care about, you need look no further than a Lotus 2-Eleven. Precious little on the market today offers such driving involvement and enjoyment. A Porsche 911 GT3 RS is a marginally superior driving machine, but demands two and a half times the 2-Eleven’s price. A Caterham CSR runs the 2-Eleven close dynamically, but it does feel less sophisticated and has less delicate steering.

However, do not expect the 2-Eleven to be a car that you can just jump into and use all year round. Both the Porsche and (bizarrely) the Caterham — and Lotus’s own Exige — make a mockery of the little 2-Eleven once conditions take a turn for the worse.

But if you’re prepared to put the effort in, and the waterproofs on, the 2-Eleven delivers a uniquely thrilling driving experience. It is the most focused Lotus ever, and all the better for it.