Lotus Europa

Our verdict

A highly optimistic attempt to refine the Lotus template and then sell it for lots more money as some sort of GT. Won’t lure many away from their Audi TTs…

Comfort

The Europa may be bigger than the Elise, but it’s still pretty cosy on the inside, and more awkward to enter and exit than any two-seat sports car we can think of.  The ride is a decent balance of comfort and handling, a manageable middle groun between body control and usability, but it’s still pretty harsh for a daily commute.

Performance

There’s a two-litre turbocharged petrol engine whining behind your head and putting out 200bhp in a car that still weighs in under a tonne. Which means 0-60mpg in 5.5 seconds and 0-100mph in under 14. Quick, yes, but the Europa’s real speed is point-to-point – it’ll hammer through back roads like little else on the market. For a focused few, that could make this all the car they’ll ever need.

Cool

Massive kudos amongst the bobble-hatted rally-attending crowd, but still marks you out as more of a softy than if you’d bought an Elise.

Quality

There are too many cheap plastics used on the dash, giving the Europa a certainly sense of fragility. There’s also the same Spartan, single-piece instrument binnacle as you get on the Elise – not good enough for a so-called up-market car. That said, the leather trim looks classy, while the engine and mechanics are well tested.

Handling

Far more focus and feedback than a Audi TT or similar, but the trade-off is a similarly focused ride and lack of relaxation at the wheel. Controls provide fantastic communication, but it’s all a bit much for a daily drive.

Practicality

Everything at Lotus is relative. Whereas the only pockets in the Elise are the ones in your trousers, the Europa at least has a five-inch deep pocket under the door sill in which you’ll easily fit, er, your fingers. That said, the boot is 40 litres bigger than in the Elise. Useful.

Running costs

30-odd mpg and 220g/km of CO2 is healthy enough, but the £34 grand list price spells trouble. The Europa doesn’t hold its value as well as its Elise sibling, which could just make it a second-hand bargain.