Lotus revealed the first images and details of the new facelifted Elise, and finally they are changing its design substantially! Well, at least on the front-end, where it gets a bit like the Evora, but it maintain its unique Elise character as well. The new body features many carefully designed vents in it and also comes with daytime LED lights.

The whole car is actually more refined and comes with more convenience features, you even get a sophisticated system for adjusting pedals! There’s also two new wheel designs for you to choose. You even get cruise control on some models for crying out loud!

As usual, the Elise is available with a range of Toyota engines. You get the 1.6 liter Valvematic unit which has become more efficient and delivers 134 hp and 160 nm of torque. It averages 6.14 liters / 100km (46 mpg) and complies with Euro5 standards. There’s also a R version with 192 hp and a SC model with 220 hp.

But Lotus is an expert of chassis and handling, and it shows with the new car. The new chassis of the Elise weighs only 68 kg but has a stiffness of 9,800 Nm per degree. The whole car actually weighs no more than 876 kg, put that beside the improved aerodynamic efficiency and they result in amazing performance and a joyful driving experience.

Pricing and more details will be announced in march as the car goes on stage at the Geneva Motor Show.