2016 Lotus 3-Eleven: Simplify and Add Power

Only the most die-hard Colin Chapman fan would want Lotus engineers to “further simply and add more lightness to” the already minimalist Exige. I assume there are least 311 rather wealthy, hardcore, proponents of Chapman’s philosophy, as this is what Lotus have done with the new Lotus 3-Eleven, essentially an Exige S sans roof, imbued with a 450-hp version of the supercharged 3.5-liter Toyota V6 from the Evora 400.

According to Steve Cropley, Editor-in-Chief of Autocar UK, the 3-Eleven begins with a bonded and riveted aluminum monocoque tub, similar to those found in Lotus’s other models, but significantly strengthened for this particular application. Chassis rigidity and low mass are the hallmarks of track-focused vehicles like the 3-Eleven; its body is made of a new composite material which is said to be 40% lighter than standard fiberglass and its use is a first for a production vehicle.

Two versions are planned for production—Road and Race—the latter comes with an FIA-approved seat, six-point harness, on-board fire suppression, racing data logger and an Xtrac sequential six-speed paddleshift gearbox; the former gets an traditional H-pattern six-speed box with a racing clutch.

Now here’s where Lotus really come into their own. The 3-Eleven Race version weighs in at under 900kg dry (1984lbs.). It doesn’t take much to move an aluminum tub wrapped in a lightweight composite, and when you put 332-ft lbs. of torque to it, it really moves—allegedly the 3-Eleven can hit 60 mph from a dig in less than 3.0 seconds. This would put it into the class of hypercars like the McLaren P1 and Porsche 918 in terms of outright acceleration, which is remarkable in itself, but Lotus also claim the 3-Eleven can hang with the best at the automotive world’s biggest bragging site: the Nürburgring.

Related: Top 5 Nürburgring Monsters

Lotus combined two separate sector times for an aggregate lap time of 7:06. They were unable to complete a full-timed lap as they did not have the full-course to themselves. Critics have also gone on record stating that the two combined sectors eschewed a small portion of the track so the lap time is far from representative. Still, Lotus test driver Marc Basseng feels the 3-Eleven could do seven minutes even on a completely clear track, which would definitely justify its lofty price tag—one that automotive media outlets feel is too steep given the similarity between its less expensive counterparts.

Search: Lotus Cars For Sale

The 3-Eleven goes into production February 2016 and UK customers will begin taking delivery in April 2016. The Road version is priced at £82,000 ($129,000) and the Race version starts at a slightly startling £115,200 ($181,000). Production will be limited to 311 units. As of yet, its unsure if the 3-Eleven will make it to the US market.