London Motor Show 2008

IFR Automotive (a Spanish design and technology company) took the oppertunity of the London Motorshow to debut their new luxury sports car in the shape of the ‘Aspid’. It’s powered by a 400bhp supercharged 2.0L four-cylinder engine, combine this with a curb weight of just 699kg, and the Aspid can pull off an amazing 0-62 mph in 2.8 seconds. IFR are adament the car is luxury despite the impressive weight claims, space age materials have been used to create the reductions at no expense to the occupants comforts. The weight has been kept down to around 85kg in the chassis and all electricals have been simplified while still maintaining a lot of luxury equipment, such as the sat-nav. This will be another one we’ll look out for tommorow!

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Today at the press day for the London Motorshow at Excel, the Lotus Eagle project was officially unvieled as the Lotus Evora. The car weighs just 1349kg and has a 3.5litre V6 Toyota engine with a power output of 276 hoursepower. The interior is a massive improvement from what we have come to expect from Lotus, this marks a real step by the company to promote their cars in the US market. The functionality of the car does not stop at a comfortable interior however, its a 2+2 which means theres plently of space, something which the US market apparently demands…

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Lotus released the first picture of their Lotus ‘Project Eagle’. The official name of the ‘Project Eagle’ is still to be announced at the launch of the car at the London Motor Show next week. Set out in 2006, the Lotus Eagle is the first of 3 new models to be seen in the next 5 years from Lotus as a part of growth plan initiated by Lotus CEO Mike Kimberley.

The Project Eagle will be a totally new 2+2 sportscar with a mid-mounted 3.5-liter V6. Producing 280hp, the V6 enables the lightweight Lotus to sprint from zero to 100 km/h in less than 5 seconds and reach a topspeed of 160 mph. But Lotus has always been famous for their fantastic handling that allows for a lot of fun both on- as off the track. Lotus engineers report that the Project Eagle is much faster around the Nürburgring than the Elise and more stable at speed than the Exige, so that promises a lot for the new Lotus Eagle!

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More ‘green’ news today: Lotus will present a new environmental friendly concept based on it’s Elise at the London Motor Show later this month. Lotus took the environmental friendly further than taking down the fuel consumption and carbon emissions alone. The green technologies used in the Eco Lotus Elise include the use of sustainable materials including hemp, eco wool, sisal and water-based paints in the construction of the car.

To take down the fuel economy Lotus made the Eco Elise 32kg lighter than the already super-lightweight Elise S. Furthermore a gear change display system indicates when it’s the right time to change gears for a lower emissions and better fuel economy. The sportscar even provides solar panels on its roof that are used to power some of the electronic features. Exact performance figures, and maybe even more important, fuel economy figures haven’t been given out yet, but they are expected to rival those of the Lotus Elise S.

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Since we’ve last reported about the Lightning GT EV in june 2007, a lot has changed for the UK-based manufacturer. The car has been completely redesigned and will be presented at the London Motor Show on the 23rd of July. The Lightning GT EV will be the first big competitor of the Tesla Roadster in the electrical sportscar market. The Lightning GT EV is powered by an nano titanate battery and delivers a total of 700hp. The huge number of horses are available at any given moment and developed in each of the wheels individually.

The Ligthning GT EV will be able to do the 0-100 sprint in 4 seconds and top out at a respectable 130 mph. With a charged battery the range of the Lightning GT is about 250 miles.

The Tesla Roadster set the tone for sporty electrical cars, this Lightning GT has a chance to take it to the next level. Hopefully more manufacturers will take a shot at developing electrical sportscars in the near feature.

Pictures have surfaced of the latest Ford hot hatch, the Focus RS. Up until now any pictures that have been released have been branded a ‘concept’, these new photos however are of the production ready car that will be shown later this month at the London Motorshow. The car is then expected for release within the 1st quarter of 2009. The car boasts a 2.5 litre 5 cylinder turbocharged engine with a power output of 300PS and over 410Nm of torque. Early performance indications are a 0-62mph time of under 6 seconds.

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The Bentley Continental Flying Spur is getting a facelift, and this is rather soon because the car is only available since 2005. The four door saloon will get more power and look more aggresive thanks to the restyled front-grill and wider air-intakes in the bumper. The model-range will enlarge aswell. After introducing the Continental GT Speed the guys from Bentley now announced the Continental Flying Spur Speed.

This new baby gets a more powerful 6.0 liter W12 with 610 bhp and 750 Nm of torque, which let the Flying Spur Speed run up to 201 mph (322 kmh) maximumspeed and sprinting to 62 mph (100 kmh) in just 4.8 seconds. Not bad for a car that weighs 5380 pounds (2440 kg). Scroll down for the official spec and press release…

Update: The Bentley Continental Flying Spur Speed will be introduced at the London Motor Show 2008 in July.

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