From the 1950's into the new millennium: fast, stylish, smart and sophisticated
Anthony Colin Bruce Chapman, an engineer by profession and a keen racing driver, built his first racing car in 1948 and Lotus as a company came into existence in 1952 when Chapman formed the Lotus Engineering Company.
In 1957, along came the Lotus Elite Type 14 and the Lotus Seven (later the Super Seven) and Chapman's cars were considered the most stylish on the road and some of the most impressive on the race track. In 1958, he took Lotus into Formula 1 with the single seater Lotus Type 12, and after refining the model, produced the Lotus Type 18 which, driven by Stirling Moss, won the Monaco Grand Prix in 1960.
A mere two years later, Chapman unveils the Lotus Elan - a sportscar by which all others come to be judged. The Elan enjoys an unrivalled 11yr production run and to this day remains one of the most innovative sportscars ever produced.
In the same year, Chapman also introduced the Lotus Type 25 into Formula 1. With the legendary Jim Clark behind the wheel, the car won four Grand Prix and Lotus only missed winning the constructors' championship by a single point. The following year Lotus won that title and Clark, still in the Type 25, won the driver's championship - a double that is repeated again in 1965.
In 1966, Chapman moved the company into a purpose built factory at a former American World War 2 airfield in Norfolk, where it remains to this day. The factory covers 55 acres and has a 2 mile test track which has seen the inaugral drives of some of the world's finest road and race cars.
With a new factory at his disposal, Chapman designed, tested and produced several new Lotus cars in quick succession: the Europa, the (Type 45) Elan S3, and the Elan +2. On the race track, he introduced the Type 49, powered by the legendary Cosworth-Ford DFV V8 engine. With the Type 49, Lotus brought the first ever full car commercial sponsor into Formula 1 - with the car liveried in the colours of the tobacco company, Gold Leaf.
The 1970s saw Lotus introducing more cars onto the racetrack and onto the British roads. Jochen Rindt, Emerson Fittipaldi, and Mario Andretti helped Lotus win more Formula 1 constructors' championships and driver's championships than any other team at the time. Chapman then introduced The Sprint, the four-seater Elite, the Eclat and The Esprit - which becomes James Bond's new company car in The Spy Who Loved Me in 1977. The decade ends with Lotus agreeing to help complete design and development of the new Delorean Motor Company car in Northern Ireland.
In 1980 Lotus launched the mighty Esprit Turbo, in 1981 Nigel Mansell joined Team Lotus and James Bond got an Esprit Turbo for For Your Eyes Only. In 1982 the powerful Excel replaced the Elat. At the end of 1982 Colin Chapman died, aged 54.
A year later, Lotus designed, developed and launched one of the motor industries greatest innovations: active suspension. The system used computers to control a hydraulic suspension system that keeps a car's body level whether it is cornering, accelerating, braking or traversing a bumpy surface. Today numerous car manufacturers have adopted active suspension and the British Army use the system in some of their tanks. In 1984 Lotus underpinned their commitment to becoming a major automotive engineering consultancy by opening two of the most sophisticated computer controlled engine test cells in Europe - a investment costing £500,000.
1985 saw Ayrton Senna join Team Lotus and start an unrivalled career in Formula 1 winning several races in his Type 97T. Lotus was busy at its factories with business worth £31m on its order books from around the world - up from £3m the previous year.
Remodelling of the Esprit Turbo and the introduction of new Esprit models took place over the next few years. In 1989 the Turbo SE version managed 0-60mph in 4.7 seconds and a new front-wheel drive Elan is launched with a patented 'Interactive Wishbone' front suspension set-up to allow for superior handling and roadholding.
At the beginning of the 1990's Lotus agreed to help Vauxhall produce a four-door saloon, the Lotus Carlton, and Paul Newman raced one of the company's new Esprits in America.
In 1992, Britain's Chris Boardman took the Gold Medal at the Barcelona Olympics in the cycling 4000m pursuit. He was riding a revolutionary bike designed by Lotus. The Lotus 'superbike' helped Boardman smash the World 5000m Pursuit record by more than 8 seconds. These were just the first of Boardman's numerous records which he claimed while riding the Lotus bike.
In 1995, Lotus produced its 50,000th car but also pulled out of Formula 1 racing . But the company bounced back and stunned the public and press alike with the launch of the unique Lotus Elise at the Frankfurt Motor Show. Technically advanced and super-light, the Elise delivered 0-60mph in under 6 seconds for a price tag of less than £20,000.
In 1996, the Lotus Elise enters production and in its first full production year, the Elise became the darling of the motoring press and picked up countless awards for its brilliant handling and design. Lotus Engineering continues to expand with HRH Prince of Wales officially opening a new £3.5 million engine test cell block in late November.
In 1997, Lotus sold the 1000th Elise and unveiled uprated versions of the Esprit V8 The company also invested £7.5 million in 19 new state-of-the-art test cells (raising the total at the Hethel site to 42), to accommodate major new engine build and development programmes. A further £1.5 million is spent on a new paintshop facility and £7 million is invested in a new Research and Development Centre.
The world's finest sportscar becomes the worlds finest electric sportscar with the unveiling of a powerful electric Elise research vehicle proving that you can have an electric car and fantastic performance all in one.
In 1998 the company marked the 50th anniversary of Chapman's first race in his original Lotus with both the launch of the Official Lotus Club and a party for owners and enthusiasts from around the world at its Norfolk Headquaters. A Dual-Fuel Elise was also unveiled - a research car which runs on both conventional petrol and compressed natural gas (CNG).
The following year Lotus announces its return to motorsport and a partnership with General Motors to build a sportscar for the American company. The Opel Speedster/Vauxhall VX220 will be built by Lotus for the worldwide market.
The new millennium brought a new car from Lotus: the Exige - an exhilarating and well mannered road car, with the feel of a track car. The company expanded further affield with the opening of new Engineering facilities in the USA and Malaysia making it a true global company.
Lotus ended 2000 by unveiling the new generation Elise with improved performance, styling, handling and quality. It gets built in the new £6 million manufacturing facility at Hethel along side the Opel Speedster / Vauxhall VX220. This state of the art manufacturing facility builds cars at up to a rate of 5000
The first year of the new millenium saw Lotus buiding more cars than ever before in its 53 year history and unveils to the world at the end of the year, the 2002 Model year of the Lotus Esprit, celebrating 30 years of Britain's greatest supercar.
In 2003, Lotus announces it will be entering the USA market with the Lotus Elise in 2004, will be introducing a new Lotus Exige also in 2004. Lotus are also working on an all new Lotus Esprit which will hit the roads in a few years time.
