What is it?
It’s newer than it appears. It’s the Lotus Evora 400 and, although it might look like it has just had a nip and a tuck at either end, apparently more than two thirds of its parts are new or revised.
Most notable among those are the addition of a charge cooler for the Toyota-sourced 3.5-litre V6 engine, allowing the motor a power peak of 400bhp – up 50bhp on the model it replaces. There’s a weight reduction of 42kg, too (which is actually about 60kg given that the new cooling adds 20kg), rendering the kerb weight a gnat’s under 1400kg.
Less obvious but more significant is what has gone on elsewhere. Lotus has revised the extruded and bonded aluminium tub, lowering the sills by 56mm and reducing their width by 43mm in order to make getting in and out of the car easier without affecting the 27,000Nm/deg torsional rigidity. There’s a touch more space in the footwell, too, while the cabin has been revised to make it not just easier to use but also more attractive to look at.
Then there are the even grubbier, even more detailed changes which, this being a motoring piece about a Lotus, I’ll assume you’re interested in.
Mechanically, the AP Racing brakes are similar to those on the old Evora S but are now larger in diameter (370mm at the front, 350mm at the rear), while the steering rack, which is the same 2.8-turn one that gave such exquisite feel before, is mounted lower to reduce bump-steer at the expense of some steering feel. Apparently that's an important change because the Evora 400 has been given more toe-in in order to make it feel more agile, and if you didn’t also reduce the bump-steer it would tramline too much.
Join the debate
jer
Always think
bezor Ta
Too expensive
abkq
Look, I am not a malicious
Beastie_Boy
Indeed?!?! But it's not just panel gaps...
I understand that Lotus has it's followers but are there many that would pay £75k for one of these without looking towards Stuttgart? Or even further afield towards Japan and the ageing Nissan GTR?
Without new cars and it's die hard fans, Lotus is doomed.
Clearly, I'm not a fan on any level but good look to them...
275not599
Good point abkq
Good point abkq. Since Lotus gets the engine from Toyota, the obvious thing to do is order their panel gaps from Lexus.
Ofir
A bit expensive but more
voyager12
If ever Evora could have gotten...
Jonathan Lingham
One Point Four Tonnes...?
russ13b
not really
Cobnapint
When I think about the Evora....
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