The Lotus Elan was one of five concept sports cars presented by Lotus at last year's Paris Auto Show while it also made a quick stop at the LA motorshow that followed in November. Now that the concept studies have made it back to the England, the folks over at Paultan visited the British firm's headquarters in Hethel and shot this video showing the Elan's digital instruments in action. The panel consists of a large LCD screen flanked on either side by two smaller components. You can watch the video clip after the jump.
Remember Hennessey’s barnstorming, 1,200 hp (895 kW) Venom GT? Well its back and the journalistic titans at Road & Track have driven it. And there’s a video, to boot. Weighing in at a lithe 2,685 lbs (1,218 kg), the phenomenal Venom GT builds on Hennessey’s experience with tuning the Viper, 5th generation Camaro and various Cadillacs, among many others. It’s a simple formula, really. Big power + light weight = big fun.
Hennessey first takes a Lotus Elise, arguably one of the best mass produced, lightweight track cars ever made. They strip it down the chassis, lengthen it and rebuild it with a slippery, restyled body that offers the right mix of down force and engine cooling. Then they swap out the Elise’s 1.8 L turbocharged four-pot for a twin-turbo variant of Chevrolet’s 6.9 L LS9 V8, add carbon ceramic brakes and a KW adjustable suspension setup and et voila, the Hennessey Venom GT.
So what’s the verdict? Well, you’ll have to watch the video and make up your own mind. A small hint, but that’s all I’m giving away: the GT is capable of doing 135 mph (217 km/h) in 3rd gear. If that doesn’t make your automotive blood boil, then nothing will.
Hennessey intends to build just 29 of the cars over three years, with a price topping US$600,000 (€455,373). If this were any other car by any other tuner, I’d call that outrageous, but this is a Hennessey and the culmination of all their engineering knowhow. Believe the hype: there’s a new king and his name is Venom GT.
To show that the brand is going through a metamorphosis after the presentation of five new models at the Paris Show, Lotus has joined forces with award winning French artist Gérard Rancinan to create seven artistic images that will be showcased alongside a new book by French writer, Caroline Gaudriault, at a special event in Los Angeles on Friday, November 12.
As you may have guessed, the collection of photos is called "Metamorphosis" and the focus is on the five new Lotus models that made the trip to this year's Paris Motor Show: the Esprit, Elan, Elite, Elise and Eterne, plus two extra large montages.
Gérard Rancinan creator of Metamorphosis commented: "I can see a clear artistic link between the work of Lotus and my photographs in terms of commitment, the relevance of the subject matter, the audacity of the creator, the beauty of the gesture and the perfection of the object. We are engaged in a dialogue which takes place on the same terrain: the world of art."
For a sneak preview of the collection, check out the official teaser video below.
Some say you can't make a Lotus any better. Well, maybe they haven't head of Hennessey and its SEMA Show-bound Venom GT. The American firm's new toy is based on the Lotus Elise and, in its flagship version, comes equipped with an out-of-this-world 1,200 hp (895 kW) twin turbocharged V8 engine sourced from the Corvette. Power is sent to the rear wheels through a six-speed manual gearbox.
The V8-powered sports car also gets race-spec disc brakes sourced from Brembo with 15.2-inch diameter carbon-ceramic rotors and 6-piston aluminum calipers.
According to Hennessey, the Venom GT tips the scales at 2,685 lbs (1,220 kg). Estimated performance figures say that, this hypercar, will go from 0 to 60 mph (96 km/h) in just 2.4 seconds, and to 200mph (322 km/h) in 15.6 seconds.
In comparison, the Bugatti Veyron completes the 0-200mph sprint in 24.2 seconds. Hennessey's proposal tops out at a jaw-dropping 267mph or 429km/h.
For those that find 1,200HP a tad too much, Hennessey will also offer two more iterations of the V8 engine, one producing 725 hp (541 kW) and the other 1,000 horses (746 kW).
"We are very excited to have the opportunity to show our Venom GT in the Mobil 1 display at this year's SEMA show," said company founder and president, John Hennessey. "We first announced our interest in developing an ultra lightweight, ultra powerful sports car – the Venom GT concept – nearly three years ago during SEMA."
"Driving the Venom GT is a thrilling experience," Hennessey adds. "It is a driver's car, a supercar with a soul that will give you as much speed and performance as you dare ask of it. If you ever wanted to experience flying a military fighter jet, the Venom GT offers a similar visceral thrill of speed and performance. It's the quickest, fastest and most exciting vehicle that I have ever driven."
The American company said it plans to build just 10 Venom GTs per year. Until you can get your hands on one, take a look at this teaser video. It will make you want it even more.
