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Lotus Elise S

Lotus have re-introduced a new entry level model back into the Elise line up by installing Toyota's 1.8 litre VVTi into their fantastic little sports car.
Like the Toyota VVTLi engine used in the Elise 111S, the VVTi is currently used in a variety of Toyotas, including the Generation 7 Celicas and the Mk3 MR2s, though these cars are both about to be dropped by Toyota.
It was almost inevitable that Lotus would take this route to re-introduce an entry level car to the Elise range. Physically, the Toyota sourced engine is almost identical to the VVTLi so fitting it into the Elise couldn't have been much of a problem; in fact the VVTLi is basically a VVTi with extra horses thanks to clever work by Yamaha and Toyota.
Despite it's lack of horses compared to the VVTL-i engine (134bhp in the Eilse), the VVTi is a great engine, and in the lightweight Elise it should be good for a 0-60 time of less than six seconds, which is still a good bit quicker than the outgoing MR2.
Reliability of the VVTi engines is fantastic and the torque output is a healthy 127lb ft so for every day driving the new car should offer lots of fun for a price of around £24,000 which is a significant saving off the £28,000 list price of the VVTLi engined 111S.

Other Information

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