2005 Lotus Elise Base Convertible 2-door 1.8l on 2040-cars

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Lotus Evora update coming, new models still on hold

The trials and tribulations at Lotus over the past several years haven't put the company in best financial position, and after the dismissal of Dany Bahar as CEO, the automaker seemed rudderless. Jean-Marc Gales (pictured above) is the new captain at the helm of the British sports car brand, and he seems like the complete opposite of Bahar. Where the former boss was hugely ambitious (perhaps overly), the current CEO has crafted a plan for a gradual turnaround under what he called a "logic-based" recovery in a recent interview with Autocar. The most logical part of Gales' plan is focusing on what Lotus can actually do. Instead of launching new products, he wants to continue to refine the current lineup. "We won't have the funds to build all-new cars in the next few years," he said to Autocar. The biggest of these updates includes a heavily revised Evora with more power and less weight to debut at next year's Geneva Motor Show. An even lighter-weight Cup model is planned for later. The Exige will get a revision in 2016. Gales also hints that a future, feather-light model like the 2-Eleven is on the docket, and a crossover is on the drawing board, according to Autocar, though not yet green lit. North America is also a priority. Lotus is forever linked to founder Colin Chapman's axiom to add lightness to the brand's models, and Gales is continuing that history with the Lightweight Lab. According to Autocar, in this huge room the company's models are completely disassembled with each part labeled. The entire staff is invited to come in and make suggestions on places to reduce weight and lower costs. "This brand is like a sleeping princess, but I believe she is starting to wake up," Gales said to Autocar, but he's keeping sales projections modest. Gales wants annual numbers to increase from about 2,000 units this year to 3,000 in 2015 with his streamlined workforce but intends to keep figures at that level for a bit, while the company stabilizes.

Latest Forza Motorsport 5 car pack leaves us scratching our head (in a good way) [w/video]

As we scrolled down the roster of the latest car pack for Forza Motorsport 5, the Hot Wheels Car Pack, our expression became bemused over the strange mix of vehicles that we now have at our disposal. This is quite unlike any of the other sets of DLC Turn 10 Studios has offered. Sure, there are the typical headliner cars – the Lamborghini Veneno and 2015 Audi S3 – that will appeal to the mainstream racing fan or auto enthusiast. But this latest car pack is so jammed full of nuggets of automotive weirdness that it's hard not to get excited. The Hot Wheels pack has no shortage of racers, with a particular focus on historical offerings. A 1939 Auto Union Type D covers the pre-war era of Formula One, while a 1967 Lotus 49 and a 1952 Ferrari 375 represent post-war racing. For a modern twist, a Mazda USF2000 car slots in below the Indy Lights car from the Nurburgring booster pack. From here, things get vintage and weird. There are a pair of delightfully offbeat coupes, in the form of a 1974 Toyota Celica GT and a 1973 Ford XB Falcon GT (here's hoping we get a vintage Holden Monaro in the future). Those two are joined by a 1956 Ford F-100, which your author already plans on converting into a dragster with vinyl flames down the side (because that's what all vintage pickups should be). The new ride we're most excited about, though, is the 1983 GMC Vandura G-1500. Yes, that's the van from The A-Team, and we're sure it will prove to be an excellent canvas for the artists of FM5 to cover with airbrushed, fire-breathing unicorns and mystical, gray-haired wizards (or just poorly painted letters that read "Free Candy"). This latest car pack is the final monthly car pack for FM5, although Turn 10 is quick to point out that while the monthly updates are over, there will still be new batches of cars made available to gamers. As for the Hot Wheels pack, it's available now on Xbox Live for $9.99. Scroll down for the press release from Turn 10 Studios, as well as a video of the newest additions to Forza Motorsport 5's vehicle roster. Forza Motorsport 5 Hot Wheels Car Pack Now Available Turn 10 Studios is bringing the Hot Wheels® Car Pack to "Forza Motorsport 5," available for download today. The pack features a collection of vehicles built from the ground up for the new generation that car fans can collect and customize while putting their virtual driving skills to the test.

Lotus Emira First Edition starts at $85,900

Last October, Lotus priced the Emira V6 First Edition at $93,900 before destination and taxes. That coupe comes with a Toyota-sourced 3.5-liter supercharged six-cylinder making 400 horsepower and 310 pound-feet of torque when fitted with a six-speed manual gearbox, or 317 lb-ft when fitted with a six-speed automatic. Now, the automaker's finally put numbers to the Emira First Edition with the AMG-sourced four-cylinder; it makes 360 hp and 310 lb-ft and costs $85,900 before incidentals. The MSRP is $8,000 less than the forerunner, but $3,000 more than the standard series Emira V6. Copying the template of the Emira V6 First Edition, the four-pot throws in a bunch of extra gear at no cost. The Lower Black Pack, Drivers Pack, Design Pack, and Convenience Pack are included. Twenty-inch diamond-cut two-tone wheels are standard, but silver or gloss black finishes are no-cost options, as are brake calipers in either black, red, silver, or yellow. All the mod-cons in the Emira V6 are here in the Emira, from the 12.3-inch digital gauge cluster and 10.25-inch infotainment screen to the climate control, navigation, and 340-watt KEF audio. Six exterior colors include Dark Verdant, Hethel Yellow, Magma Red, Nimbus Grey, Seneca Blue, and Shadow Grey. The interior offers seven hues, four in various leather shades and three in Alcantara with contrasting stitching. The meat of the matter is that inline-four bought from Germany. Lotus said the AMG M139 motor's been tuned at Hethel for the Emira, its hardware and software tweaked for placement in the middle of the vehicle and to provide a proper Lotus experience. The exhaust is also a Lotus design. It's mated to an eight-speed dual-clutch transmission that's also seen English revision for work in a rear-wheel-drive sports car.  The only way to tell the Emira apart from the Emira V6 would be to get close enough examine the engine cover or read the badge on the C-Pillar. Perhaps handling or exhaust tuning will put them farther apart, but the initial performance specs don't. The Emira is 0.1 second slower to 60 miles per hour than the Emira V6, and maxes out 4 mph short of the Emira V6's 180-mph top speed. That's not a lot of daylight for an $8,000 price difference. The configurator is up now, so shoppers can make up their own minds.