Lotus Excel
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| Lotus Excel | |
|---|---|
| Manufacturer | Lotus Cars |
| Production | 1982-1992 |
| Predecessor | Lotus Eclat |
| Class | Sports car |
| Body style(s) | 2-door coupe |
| Engine(s) | 2.2 L Lotus 912 Slant Four |
| Transmission(s) | 5-speed Toyota W58 manual, 4-speed Citroen Automatic |
| Related | Lotus Eclat |
The Type 89 Lotus Excel, built from 1982 to 1992, was a front-engined, rear-wheel drive car based on the earlier Lotus Eclat, which itself was based on the earlier Lotus Elite II.
Toyota engaged Lotus to assist with engineering work on the Supra. During this period, Toyota became a major shareholder in Lotus, later giving up their holding when General Motors bought Lotus.
Part of the deal between Lotus and Toyota included the use of many Toyota components in Lotus' cars. The original Excel (aka the Eclat Excel) used the W58 manual transmission, driveshafts, rear differential, 14x7 in alloy wheels, and door handles with the Supra Mk II, which was made from 1982 to 1986. The engine was the familiar all-aluminium, DOHC 2.2 L Lotus 912 Slant Four (which was used in the Lotus Esprit S3). During its lifetime, the Excel received two major upgrades with the introduction of the Excel SE (a 180 bhp/134 kW engine vs the standard 160 bhp/119 kW engined car) and another facelift in 1989 with the appearance of Citroen-derived mirrors, as featured on the Esprit, and 15 inch OZ alloy wheels to a similar pattern as the Esprit's.
To this day, many Toyota engines under two litres bear many characteristics of Lotus engines.
According to Lotus records, only 1 Excel was manufactured to USA specification. The lack of release in the USA was due to the high emission regulations (which would hinder the cars performance), and poor sales of the car in europe
Future Lotus has recently constructed a five year plan in which a new Excel was said to be created around the 2010 year period, along with a 2+2 coupe and a new Esprit(2009) .
[edit] External links
- Lotus Excel Forum - chat, technical, meetings etc.
- The Original Lotus Excel, Elite, Eclat Owner's forum. Huge archive of information, Pictures, History and more...
- A French-language site showing similarities between coeval Toyota and Lotus cars
- SELOC *TechWiki on the *Lotus Excel
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