Open-top Lotus Evora 400 planned

This Autocar image shows how the open-top Lotus Evora 400 could look

Roadster version of the hottest Evora in the works, with 400bhp and a chassis as stiff as the coupé’s

A roadster version of the Lotus Evora 400 will be launched, boss Jean-Marc Gales has revealed to Autocar.

The new model will follow the introduction of the 400bhp V6-powered Evora 400 coupé, which is set to go into production next month.

“We are working on it now,” said Gales at the recent Goodwood Festival of Speed.

Gales said the Evora 400 would lose no structural rigidity when converted from a coupé to a convertible due to the design of its extruded and bonded aluminium tub chassis.

“It’s a quicker build,” the Lotus boss said, “as the chassis is a tub, so there’s no impact with the roof off.”

The roof of the Evora roadster will be made up of two removable panels weighing 3kg each. The panels can be stored on board behind the front seats.

Gales, who has driven the model in its development, said the Evora roadster is crucial for the firm in North America in particular, where half of all sports cars in the Evora segment are open-top.

The Evora roadster is otherwise expected to match the spec of the Evora 400 coupé, including its supercharged 3.5-litre V6.

New versions of the Elise and Exige are also in the works, said Gales. “The next Exige and Elise will be faster and lighter,” he said, a formula that will be true of all future Lotuses under Gales’s reign. Cars will also be more practical for everyday use.

Gales said the firm is on track to sell 3000 cars this year, up from just over 2000 last year and around 1200 in 2013. That’s in part down to an expanded dealer network. Lotus has 50 more dealers than this time last year, with another 20 planned this year.

On Lotus’s finances, Gales said: “We will be cashflow-profitable in this financial year and profitable in the financial year beginning 1 April 2016 for the first time in 60 years.”

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