We were pretty excited when we heard that Lotus will debut the much anticipated Lotus Eagle at the 2008 Geneva Motor Show last month, however all we got to see was front module of the chassis. Now we’ll have to wait 11 weeks until the London Motor Show to see the whole thing.

Nonetheless, our friends over at CAR, have the low down on the upcoming Eagle that will be fit above the Elise, Exige and Europa in the Lotus range. Carrying the same engine from the U.S. market Toyota Camry, the Lotus Eagle will be powered by a V6 engine that produces 262-hp along with 248 lb-ft of torque.

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Along with the Lotus Exige 270E Tri-fuel concept, Lotus will display the new updated 2008 Lotus Europa at the 78th Geneva Motor Show that kicks off tomorrow. Lotus has added a new entry level Europa priced at £27,950 MSRP / €37,500 while the range topping Europa will cost £32,995 MSRP / €41,500. The Europa range is designed and developed only for European customers and will be sold exclusively in Europe from June 2008.

Power comes from a mid-mounted 2 liter turbocharged engine tuned in the SE to produce 225 horsepower and a peak torque of 221 lb-ft. 0-60mph in the SE comes in at 5.5 seconds with a top speed of 143 mph.

Click through for the press release.

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Lotus Engineering, a division of Lotus, will unveil its latest creation at the 78th Geneva Motor Show next week. The new Lotus Exige 270E Tri-fuel is a study of Lotus’ research for a transition from today’s standard fuels to the sustainable, synthetic fuels of the future.

Running on any mixture of gasoline, bioethanol and methanol, the Lotus Exige 270E Tri-fuel is powered by a 1.8 liter 2ZZ-GE VVTL-i engine with a supercharger and intercooler package from the Exige S. The car produces an output of 270hp with a peak torque of 184 lb-ft, an increase of 51hp and 25 lb-ft over the standard gasoline Exige S. 0-60 comes in at 3.88 seconds with a top speed of 158 mph.

Click through for more images and the press release.

Lotus Exige 270E Tri-fuel Gallery:

   

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Lotus will show the first glimpse of the much anticipated Project Eagle at the 78th Geneva Motor Show. While we won’t get to see what the car will look like until its full unveiling at the British Motor Show in July, Lotus will showcase the front module of the chassis next week. The exhibition showcases part of the advanced technology being used to build the Project Eagle and the latest development of the Lotus Versatile Vehicle Architecture (VVA).

Lotus said that development of the Project Eagle is ‘advancing rapidly,’ with prototypes already going through testing in Northern Europe at Lotus’ headquarters at Hethel, England. Yeah, we saw those “spy shots” earlier this week. What perfect timing to release this glimpse of the front module.

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So how do you justify dropping £34,000 ($67,722) on a Lotus Elise? Let Chris Harris from AutoCar explain it to you in this 9 minute test drive of the new range-topping Elise.

Refresher: The Lotus Elise SC is powered by a 1.8 liter 2-ZZ VVTL-i engine that produces a total of 220 horsepower and 156 lb-ft of torque. 0-60 comes in at 4.4 seconds.

Click through for the video.

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Our friends over at CAR Magazine have spotted the new 2+2 coupe going under some cold weather testing ahead of its London Motor Show debut in July. After checking the registration, CAR has learned that power will come from a 3.5L V6 from Toyota.

As Lotus already uses a Toyota engine in its Elise, this V6 is expected to be the same engine used in a number Toyota models in its lineup. Output is expected to be around 262 horsepower with a peak torque of 248 lb-ft. The engine also passes U.S. emissions legislation, which is important for Lotus so they can sell the Eagle on the stateside.

The car should arrive on the market around October 2008.

Head over to CAR to see the rest of the shots.

Lotus announced today that it has created a new research and development group focused solely on electric and hybrid vechiles. Lotus says that the introduction of the group shows Lotus’s interest in the increasing importance of hybrid and electric cars.

The group will be led by Phil Barker, who has been with Lotus since 2003 as an Executive Engineer working on hybrid and electric vehicles. CEO, Mike Kimberley said that he is very pleased with the formation of the new team and said that it will support the company’s strong global growth on ecological technologies.

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Ex-McLaren designer, Jim Dowle, is working on a new British sports car with hopes of having a running prototype within the next 18 months. Jim Dowle previously worked under Gordon Murray in the design and development of both the F1 road car and the SLR.

The car, which is being described as a competitor to the Lotus Exige, will have a number of engine options including a mid-mounted 200 horsepower motor and will weigh 870kg (1914 pounds). Dowle says he is more focused on making the car fun to drive rather than producing a car that’s built for outright line speed.

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The guys over at AutoCar have caught the upcoming Lotus Esprit testing in cold-snowy weather of Sweden. After running some DVLA records and matching the license plate, AutoCar has learned that the prototype is powered by a 4.4 liter V8 engine. Lotus sources have previously said that BMW may be the supplier for Lotus’ 2011 Esprit.

It’s possible that the new Lotus Esprit will carry the 4.4 liter twin-turbo V8 engine from the new BMW X6, but will most likely be tuned to develop 500 horsepower.

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That brand new Audi S5, Lotus Exige S or Corvette Z06 you’re dying to own may seem a little expensive now but one day those very cars could be collector items that you could auction off for a couple of hundred thousand dollars at the Barrett-Jackson Auction in Scottsdale. Hagerty Insurance, an insurance company that specializes in protecting collector cars, has created a list of 10 new cars for sale in 2008 that it believes have the greatest potential to be collector items in 15-20 years.

And according to their list, even the frugal consumer can one day auction off his/her car for a couple of hundred thousand dollars – well, if you’re willing to wait 15-20 years. Prices of the cars on the list range from $12,000 to more than $70,000, while horsepower ranges from 70 to more than 500.

Click through for Hagerty’s list.

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Just weeks after Proton Holdings concluded talks with Volkswagen about a potential partnership, another Malaysian company has reportedly inquired about buying Proton’s share in Lotus. According to a report by Reuters, a ‘Malaysian carmaker’ has contacted Proton about buying its 63.75 percent stake in Lotus.

Edge news paper says that Proton faces two obstacles if it decides to sell Lotus. Proton has an agreement to sell Lotus technology to a Chinese company and it also needs Lotus technology for future products it plans on introducing.

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Speed and style are still the operative words for sports cars, but they’re getting plusher and more luxurious, thanks in part to an aging consumer base.

Sales of sports cars in 2007 show that the rich are getting richer, and as the average age of sports-car buyers steadily creeps up, more models with added luxury and amenities are rolling into showrooms.

Click through for the list of ForbesAutos Top 13 Hottest Sports Cars of 2008. We’re not going to lie, we’re a bit disappointed to not see the BMW M3 Coupe and Sedan, Mercedes C 63 AMG and the Lexus IS-F on the list.

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Celebrating the 40th anniversary of production at its factory in Hethel Lotus has announced the new ‘Elise S 40th Anniversary Limited Edition’ for its European market.

The 2008 Lotus Elise S 40th Anniversary Limited Edition gets a burnt orange premium paint job, painted rear diffuser and wheels, leather trim with orange stitching, painter center consol, colored brake calipers, build plate and country specific decals. The car also comes with a 40th commemorative letter signed by the CEO of Lotus that you can definitely not do without.

Click through for the press release and images.

Lotus Elise S 40th Anniversary Limited Edition Gallery:

   

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