Brown is the new green for Lotus

Expert Rating:

Introduction

Of all the carmakers in the world, Lotus isn't the first answer you'd give if someone asked "who's the greenest?" Yet, the Norfolk maker's core remit is about a green as it comes: make everything as light as possible, using as little as possible.

Of course, the primary reason Lotus has always done things that way is because weight blunts performance - and Lotus is all about thrills at their very purest. Mercifully, lightness also ensures that huge power isn't necessarily needed to provide huge speed, which in turn means relatively low CO₂ emissions. But what if Lotus took things even further in order to exploit its coincidentally green fingers?

What is it?

It started life as a standard Lotus Elise S, except its maker has been pottering away with a huge bag of locally sourced hemp. That doesn't mean Lotus's Hethel HQ has been unusually hungry of late - it's still doing all its smoking with tyres on the test track. Rather, it's now beating panels out of greener stuff.

The formula is this: take an Elise body, replace the fibreglass roof, bonnet and spoiler with a hemp fibre based material and add a couple of wafer-thin solar panels. Inside, lose the carbon fibre seats and replace them with more hempy goodness - this time coated with a polyester resin and upholstered in a natural wool fabric. Then, liberally sprinkle that same material around the cabin; add a lightweight stereo, some lighter alloys, a wooden gearstick top and some natural fibre carpets... and Anita Roddick's your auntie: a very organic Lotus.

How does it drive?

Well, because the hemp and wool overhaul makes the Eco Elise 32kg lighter than its Elise S basis (exactly five stone), it's essentially 32kg better. There are no performance stats, but it's bound to be a bit quicker than the S (it feels it), which is no slouch itself posting a 0-60mph time of 5.8 seconds, yet its ecological benefits are laudable: CO₂ is slashed from 196g/km to 184g/km and economy goes from 34mpg to a supermini-rivalling 42.7mpg. The mid-mounted 1.8-litre VVTi engine is unchanged, so you get the same raw, mechanical noise behind your ears.

And of course you also get the familiar Elise cornering experience. For our money the base model S offers an unmatched blend of price, pace and unintimidating handling fun - and this one's the same. We're loathe to use it, but the often trotted out 'go kart handling' phrase is never truer than with this car: the unassisted steering is as pure as it gets, the feedback from road into fingertips and backside is as clear as purified water. It's as undiluted and enjoyable a driving experience as you'll get while still enjoying shelter from the rain.

It's not perfect, though. It could do with at least some steering wheel adjustment to suit taller drivers, the gearshift can feel a little clunky and long of throw, and the sills are so tall and wide that getting in and out is a fitness regime in itself.

Planet hugger or planet mugger?

As sportscars go, this doesn't just hug the planet, it positively jumps into bed with it. For example, it took us from central Newcastle to Stansted airport - around 270-miles - on a single tank of fuel, and we weren't on some 54mph economy drive either. You can drive it as hard as you like and you won't constantly be checking the fuel gauge with dread; it's the quintessential 21st century sports car.

But thinking further afield, all the locally sourced hemp, the water-based paint and the natural wool upholstery means that the Eco Elise is greener over its entire lifecycle: from the carbon-soaking photosynthesis of the hemp plants, to the biodegradable nature of the paint and the process of spraying it. And if all this stuff means we get to drive proper cars for longer, rather than electric shoeboxes, it's good enough for us.

Verdict

The Eco Elise is, of course, a prototype at this stage - and a one some way from reaching production. That said, its eco friendly paint will colour all Lotus production cars from next year, and Lotus told us that the hemp seats actually performed better in crash testing than carbon fibre ones do, thanks to its increased flexibility; hemp bends further than carbon fibre before snapping.

And, because hemp fibre is cheap, light, strong, in abundant supply from Lotus's local dealer and, most importantly, organic, there's no reason why Lotus can't make the switch at some point soon. We only hope that doesn't mean all its cars will come with interiors akin to grandma's old sofa. Yuck.

Lotus should be applauded for knocking this thing up at all - let alone in the mere ten weeks it took from green light to green car. Of course, some of it is gimmicky - the 'lightweight stereo' is pretty useless at the business of picking up radio frequencies and sounding good, so we'd rather have the heavier one, thanks. And the solar panels provide just enough energy to power a light bulb. Still, it's a proper step forward and a whole heap of fun. It's not perfect, but we love it.

Mark Nichol

Thursday March 26