Lotus Elise R : BEAUTY and THE BEST

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With the latest Elise R, Lotus appears to have a car to reach a wider market than ever before. Jonathan Crouch drives it

In buying a real roadster with premium performance, you tend to end up going in one of two directions. You either get an everyday sportscar like a Porsche Boxster or a Honda S2000. Or you opt for something rawer. Something that, though tiresome on the morning commute, will, on the right road on the right day, reward in a way you'll remember. Something like a Lotus Elise.

On this basis, a car capable of satisfying both buyers ought to clean up. Well, the Lotus Elise R featured here isn't that car. But it's as close as you're likely to get. This 189bhp Toyota-powered Elise derivative began a whole new era for Group Lotus, with new money, new marketing and a new engine. On price it sits just above the Elise S (powered by a de-tuned 134bhp version of the same engine). And just below the range-topping supercharged SC variant. If you haven't driven an Elise for some time, you'll find that all these cars feature some significant improvements over earlier models. Before we get to those, let's talk about the Elise R's engine since basically, it's much of what this car is all about. In 189bhp form, the unit in question is essentially the same 1.8-litre VVTL-i Toyota powerplant you'll find in that company's Celica T-Sport sports coupe, though with Lotus' own T4 Electronic Control Module. Quite enough, given that it powers a car weighing just 862kg, to take this Elise to near supercar speeds: 0-60mph in 4.9s, 0-100mph in 13.0s on the way to 150mph and, courtesy of 4-channel anti-lock brakes, 0 to100mph and back to 0 again in just 17.5s. To be fair, the cheaper 134bhp Elise S isn't much slower but before you compare the two variants directly, factor in that Elise R buyers get the benefits of Lotus' `Touring Pack' thrown in. This includes leather or suede-effect interior trim, additional sound insulation, auxiliary front driving lights, electric windows, an interior stowage net and a full interior carpet. Then there's the impressive upgrade to the stereo system which takes the shape of a DAB digital radio with built-in CD and MP3 player. The Elise R is also differentiated from the Elise S through 8-spoke alloy wheels and raised `LOTUS' lettering on the rear.

"That this Elise's Toyota unit is the best engine for the job is evident within just a few hundred yards. â€¦."

As for Lotus' recent changes to the Elise, these include new standard and optional equipment including lighter weight components, airbags, traction control and limited slip differential, enhanced trim, adjustable suspension and a new ProBax driver and passenger seat. A new range of colours has been added, ranging from standard solid shades to metallic and fashionable lifestyle colours. Four equipment packs are now available, two containing touring options and two containing sports options. Light Emitting Diode (LED) rear lights with integrated reflectors are now standard. When compared to conventional filament bulb lights, the LED brake lights illuminate 0.2 seconds (two-tenths of a second) quicker, which is equivalent to one Elise length at approximately 70 km/h (approximately 43 mph). The LED rear lights are also 36% lighter (around 0.6 kg total) than the conventional filament bulb lights. Other changes include a new window seal fitted around the door that reduces the wind-noise into the cabin substantially, and a non linear tachometer / rev-counter dial with the unit spacing between 3000 rpm and 10,000 rpm being greater than the spacing between 0 rpm and 3000 rpm. For security, central locking is now (at last) standard. That this Elise's Toyota unit is the best engine for the job is evident within just a few hundred yards. The soundtrack from the twin rear tailpipes is so throaty that in the standard car, you'd swear the optional sports exhaust was already fitted. And the powertrain mates perfectly with a wonderful 6-speed gearbox with ratios borrowed from the Celica T-Sport allied to a Lotus gearshift mechanism. This powerplant's party piece is the way it switches cams at 6,200rpm, giving a glorious surge of extra power that you can't help wishing was available further down the rev range. Still, it's a treat when you get to experience it, offering a seamless stream of acceleration all the way up to the 8,200rpm red line. Torquey too, with 181Nm (133.5 lbs.ft) of pulling power. It all equates to a useful power to weight ratio of 220bhp/tonne. Lotus founder Colin Chapman would have approved. He would also have endorsed the way that this car holds its value. The most recent CAP figures suggest that after 12 months/10,000 miles, your Elise will still be worth 82% of what you paid for it. Not that we should be evaluating any Lotus in such cold, boring terms. This one, after all, is the finest car the company has yet produced. Fine in terms of build quality: my test car had much higher standards of fit and finish than you'd normally expect from Lotus. Fine in terms of refinement: it's still no Boxster but you could do a long motorway trip in this car without dreading it. But most of all, fine where it really matters: in terms of pure, unadulterated driving satisfaction for which in this case, you've no need to pay by having to live with a car that's just irritating in the day to day urban sprawl. The stiff springs and carefully honed dampers help here, meaning that the car doesn't crash from one pothole to another like early Elise's did. The far more supportive ProBax sports seats are a useful improvement too. The Elise R isn't perfect of course. The quality of interior trim is still unlikely to stand the test of time in the style of a German rival: just check out the flimsy sunvisors for proof of this. But then few of the currently targeted customers are likely to be keeping their cars long enough for this to be a problem. And that's about it on the debit side, unless you resort to carping about the tiny boot or the fiddly removable roof mechanism, in which case you probably shouldn't be considering this car in the first place. As a halfway house between an everyday sportscar and a real racer, the Elise R is hard to resist - which is just as well, given that future plans for company expansion demand that Lotus look beyond merely selling to enthusiasts. Boxster and BMW Z4 buyers must all be converted to the Lotus way of thinking if company owners Proton are to continue with the stream of investment seen since they bought the last few shareholdings to take full control of the business in 2001. Will it happen? Well it all depends on whether these people can be persuaded behind the wheel of an Elise R. Driving is believing.

Facts At A Glance
CAR: Lotus Elise R
PRICE: £28,461 - on the road
INSURANCE GROUP: 20
CO2 EMISSIONS: 196g/km
PERFORMANCE: Max Speed 150mph / 0-60mph 4.9s
FUEL CONSUMPTION: (urban) 24.4mpg / (extra urban) 45.6mpg / (combined) 34.4mpg
WILL IT FIT IN YOUR GARAGE?: Length/Widthmm 3717 / 1740mm