Future Sports Cars Sneak Preview: 2009 to 2012
2010 Lotus Eagle
Codenamed "Eagle," Lotus' new sports car will be unveiled at the London Motor Show.
By Ian Adcock
Lotus is gearing up for its most important product launch since the Elise bowed 13 years ago at the 1995 Frankfurt show. Codenamed "Eagle," Lotus' new sports car will be unveiled at the London Motor Show in late July. It will feature a unique aluminum chassis with a bonded one-piece carbon-fiber roof — including the "A" posts and cantrails — that has a torsional rigidity of 26,000 Nm per degree. "That's slightly more than a Lamborghini Gallardo," said a Lotus insider.
Taking lessons from the Elise's aluminum chassis, the Eagle's version has lower- profile side members to ease ingress and exit from the cabin and, although it uses the same materials and bonding process as the Elise, its modular structure means it can be stretched up to 2.4 in. wider than what's planned for the Eagle, with a wheelbase varying from 95 in. to 118 in. This chassis will also form the basis of a future supercar challenger from Lotus.
Power for the Eagle is rumored to come from Toyota's Camry V-6 in 3.3- and 3.5-liter forms, producing 210 and 268 bhp, respectively, in standard tune. However, sources tell us there could be as many as seven variants in the car's lifetime, including 2-seaters, 2+2s and convertibles. And with Lotus Engineering's engine expertise, the Toyota engine is likely to be in for some innovative tuning and turbocharging to boost maximum power to at least 300 bhp later in its life cycle.
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