Auto Eroticism: Lotus Espirit

Lotus is stepping up their game.

The famed automaker has played the backburner to bigger brands from Britain such as Jaguar, Bentley, and Rolls Royce in the last couple of decades. But, as Tamara Warren reports at Life + Times, they're looking to make a big splash in the coming years, starting with the Espirit.

The unveiling of concept car is a landmark occasion for an auto designer. Lotus design director Donato Coco punctuated this point when the British company introduced six new cars at the Paris Motor Show last fall, fresh from his design studio. In less than two years on the job, Coco’s bold and sweeping strokes have redefined the look of contemporary Lotus cars as a premium marque designed to tangle with the biggest luxury brands. The Esprit, Elan, Elite, Elise, Eterne and the Lotus City Car — the Ethos hatchback— are a glance at the ambitious plans Lotus CEO Danny Behar hopes to achieve in the next product cycle.

The Esprit, a voluptuous two-seater mid engine supercar, is the first of these concept cars that will come to market in 2013. “This will be the first car that is completely new and will represent what we’ve been doing here for the past year,” Coco says. The car will speed from 0 to 62 mph in 3.4 seconds to reach a top speed of 205 mph.

While the angular features of the Espirit remind me of a Lamborghini, that's not necessarily a bad thing (aside from occasionally having the following convo with a young chick, who will likely be unfamiliar with the Lotus name: "Is that a Murcialago?" "No, it's a Lotus." "Oh."). And, since Lotus is targeting Porsche's share of the supercar market, the Espirit will likely be available at a fraction of a Murcialago's cost. If you've got a spare $150K lying around, I'd suggest you call up Lotus right now to place an order.