Clear your head of all thought and then allow just one word to float through the void. That word is "Lotus." Now see what joins it. Maybe it's James Bond's Esprit outrunning the 'copter chick in The Spy Who Loved Me. Or perhaps it's Jim Clark winning Indy, or Ronnie Peterson indulging in one of those endless 100-mph slides he enjoyed so much.
Whatever it is, I can pretty much guarantee it involves hard-core driving. And so it should, for that is the essence of Lotus. A Lotus that is less than great to drive makes no more sense than a limo without legroom. But that is exactly what the company has just produced in the 2007 Lotus Europa S.
Lost as a Lotus
This gives me no pleasure at all, for I love Lotuses in general and the Elise and Exige in particular. They subscribe entirely to the vision that Colin Chapman had for his fledgling company half a century ago: They're small, light, eye-wateringly quick and utterly focused on the road ahead. Yeah, they're cramped, there's not much space in the trunk, and you'll go deaf after a few hours at the wheel, but who cares when you're having this much fun? Remove even part of that fun, as Lotus has with this new Europa S, and all the other faults you would so readily tolerate and even perversely enjoy, start to dominate the driving experience.
But really, we should feel sorry for Lotus, for had things gone according to the original plan, this coupe would never even have worn a Lotus badge, much less been given the opportunity to besmirch the memory of the original and gorgeous 1966 Europa.
The car was conceived by its Malaysian parent company, Proton, and is based on neither Elise nor Exige. Instead, it's a spin-off of the Lotus-built and -developed Opel Speedster that ceased production last year. It would have been badged a Proton, and its purpose was to sprinkle a little much needed stardust on the company's bland image. But then Proton ditched the idea, but not the car, handing it over to Lotus to deal with.
Power from The General
The result is an awkward-looking midengine coupe, but powered by a turbocharged 2.0-liter GM four-cylinder, not the shrieking 1.8-liter Toyota unit used in both normally aspirated and supercharged form in other Lotus products. With a slightly longer wheelbase than the Elise and cut-down doorsills, the Europa S is marginally easier to climb into and out of but you still end up tumbling in and struggling out.
Spartan luxury
Inside you'll recognize the dash layout from any other Lotus, but at this price and given its more luxurious brief, the Europa looks woefully spartan and lacking in quality. Indeed if you look around, there is little evidence of the business-class credentials Lotus claims for it. For while there are electric windows, air-conditioning, central locking, leather seats and unfathomable satellite navigation system, this is the minimum you would expect for the money: £41,500 (about $77,000 U.S., if the car was coming to the U.S., which it isn't).
But at least the driving position is fine, despite the nonadjustable steering wheel. You sit low, with the steering near your chest, as if you're wearing the car. Then you remember the 200 horsepower behind you, the fact that it has just 2189 pounds to propel, and that Lotus claims 60 mph in just 5.5 seconds away and, for a moment, you think it might be OK after all.
Done in by the engine
And at first, it is all rather promising. Driven gently, the engine is clearly more refined than the very vocal Toyota motor; the softened suspension serves up a distinctly comfortable ride even on poorly surfaced Brit back roads; and all the weighting for controls, from the pedals to the steering, are just right. That's a pure Lotus trait. The only problem is, you're not driving it like a Lotus should be driven. So you find the road, the nerve and the right frame of mind, sink your foot to the floor and wait for the fun to begin.
And that, in a nutshell, is the problem. You have to wait. Every time you hit the gas, that turbocharged engine has a little think and then delivers what you asked for. In a normal car, you'd forgive it and might even expect it, but a Lotus needs to react to your foot as swiftly as your foot reacts to your brain, otherwise the chain of command is broken and that sense of being part of the machine is lost. You can't even execute heel-and-toe downshifts, not because of poor pedal layout, but because by the time the engine responds to your kick of the throttle, you're already in the next gear.
Not coming to America...sigh (of relief)
The shame of it is that the Lotus side of the Europa, the chassis, remains sublime. The steering is precise enough to make most coupes feel sloppy by comparison, grip levels are such that no sane person will unstick it on a dry road, and the brakes are simply mighty. But it's no better in any of these regards than the most basic of Elises despite costing nearly half again as much. And it makes little sense as a Grand Touring car either: Cabin noise levels are too high and the gas tank too small to make covering serious distances much more than a chore.
All of which leaves me to conclude you should be glad the Europa is not on sale on the American side of the Atlantic. It means the U.S. can enjoy the wonderful, brilliant and proper Lotuses that remain true to their creator's vision without having your view of the marque polluted by the needless and compromised sideshow that is the Europa S. Truth is, it doesn't feel like a Lotus, but an underachieving imposter wearing Lotus badges. Which, of course, is exactly what it is.
Whatever it is, I can pretty much guarantee it involves hard-core driving. And so it should, for that is the essence of Lotus. A Lotus that is less than great to drive makes no more sense than a limo without legroom. But that is exactly what the company has just produced in the 2007 Lotus Europa S.
Lost as a Lotus
This gives me no pleasure at all, for I love Lotuses in general and the Elise and Exige in particular. They subscribe entirely to the vision that Colin Chapman had for his fledgling company half a century ago: They're small, light, eye-wateringly quick and utterly focused on the road ahead. Yeah, they're cramped, there's not much space in the trunk, and you'll go deaf after a few hours at the wheel, but who cares when you're having this much fun? Remove even part of that fun, as Lotus has with this new Europa S, and all the other faults you would so readily tolerate and even perversely enjoy, start to dominate the driving experience.
But really, we should feel sorry for Lotus, for had things gone according to the original plan, this coupe would never even have worn a Lotus badge, much less been given the opportunity to besmirch the memory of the original and gorgeous 1966 Europa.
The car was conceived by its Malaysian parent company, Proton, and is based on neither Elise nor Exige. Instead, it's a spin-off of the Lotus-built and -developed Opel Speedster that ceased production last year. It would have been badged a Proton, and its purpose was to sprinkle a little much needed stardust on the company's bland image. But then Proton ditched the idea, but not the car, handing it over to Lotus to deal with.
Power from The General
The result is an awkward-looking midengine coupe, but powered by a turbocharged 2.0-liter GM four-cylinder, not the shrieking 1.8-liter Toyota unit used in both normally aspirated and supercharged form in other Lotus products. With a slightly longer wheelbase than the Elise and cut-down doorsills, the Europa S is marginally easier to climb into and out of but you still end up tumbling in and struggling out.
Spartan luxury
Inside you'll recognize the dash layout from any other Lotus, but at this price and given its more luxurious brief, the Europa looks woefully spartan and lacking in quality. Indeed if you look around, there is little evidence of the business-class credentials Lotus claims for it. For while there are electric windows, air-conditioning, central locking, leather seats and unfathomable satellite navigation system, this is the minimum you would expect for the money: £41,500 (about $77,000 U.S., if the car was coming to the U.S., which it isn't).
But at least the driving position is fine, despite the nonadjustable steering wheel. You sit low, with the steering near your chest, as if you're wearing the car. Then you remember the 200 horsepower behind you, the fact that it has just 2189 pounds to propel, and that Lotus claims 60 mph in just 5.5 seconds away and, for a moment, you think it might be OK after all.
Done in by the engine
And at first, it is all rather promising. Driven gently, the engine is clearly more refined than the very vocal Toyota motor; the softened suspension serves up a distinctly comfortable ride even on poorly surfaced Brit back roads; and all the weighting for controls, from the pedals to the steering, are just right. That's a pure Lotus trait. The only problem is, you're not driving it like a Lotus should be driven. So you find the road, the nerve and the right frame of mind, sink your foot to the floor and wait for the fun to begin.
And that, in a nutshell, is the problem. You have to wait. Every time you hit the gas, that turbocharged engine has a little think and then delivers what you asked for. In a normal car, you'd forgive it and might even expect it, but a Lotus needs to react to your foot as swiftly as your foot reacts to your brain, otherwise the chain of command is broken and that sense of being part of the machine is lost. You can't even execute heel-and-toe downshifts, not because of poor pedal layout, but because by the time the engine responds to your kick of the throttle, you're already in the next gear.
Not coming to America...sigh (of relief)
The shame of it is that the Lotus side of the Europa, the chassis, remains sublime. The steering is precise enough to make most coupes feel sloppy by comparison, grip levels are such that no sane person will unstick it on a dry road, and the brakes are simply mighty. But it's no better in any of these regards than the most basic of Elises despite costing nearly half again as much. And it makes little sense as a Grand Touring car either: Cabin noise levels are too high and the gas tank too small to make covering serious distances much more than a chore.
All of which leaves me to conclude you should be glad the Europa is not on sale on the American side of the Atlantic. It means the U.S. can enjoy the wonderful, brilliant and proper Lotuses that remain true to their creator's vision without having your view of the marque polluted by the needless and compromised sideshow that is the Europa S. Truth is, it doesn't feel like a Lotus, but an underachieving imposter wearing Lotus badges. Which, of course, is exactly what it is.
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