You may have heard Lotus is planning an Espirit replacement for 2020.
With backing from parent-company Geely, it should be pretty good. But c'mon - how could it beat 1990's awesome Lotus Carlton?
Back in the day you pretty much had one superlative choice when it came to a fast, four-door sedan: the BMW M5. But that was before Lotus took an ordinary, bog-standard Vauxhall Carlton and turned it into one of the most outrageous sedans of its time.
Thanks to the addition of two Garrett T25 turbochargers and a water-to-air intercooler - as well as a heavy-duty six-speed gearbox shared with the VN SS Group A Commodore (the maroon one) - the Lotus Carlton now generated 281kW/511Nm. That's about 41 per cent more torque than the then current M5!
Not only was the Lotus' handling, acceleration, and top speed lauded at its release. It was also criticised.
You see, the premium German brands had just entered a gentleman’s agreement and electronically restricted almost all of their cars to 250km/h. The Lotus? That could hit 281km/h, easy.
Combine this with the fact that the UK's police cars could only stretch to around 140km/h, and you can imagine how the Lotus stirred more than its fair share of trouble.
Lotus Carlton or SS Group A? Tell us in the comments below
