Lotus Evora GTE Racer, 2011
Lotus Evora
Lotus Evora•
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Chassis No.: GTE P001
Auction: Monterey 2017
Auction date: August 19, 2017
Lot No.: F13
$60,000 | High bid
- Exterior: Black
- Body: Racer
- North American Team car driven by Townsend Bell in the American Le Mans series
- Carbon fiber and composite body panels
- High-tech extruded and bonded aluminum chassis
- Lightweight forged aluminum double wishbone suspension
- 3.5/438 HP Toyota 2GR-FE V-6 engine
- Xtrac P426 6-speed sequential transmission
- Rear wheel drive
- Alcon brake system
- Sold on bill of sale
When the 2011 Lotus Evora GT prototype first appeared on the public stage during a Le Mans test day, people took notice; the car being offered here is the actual North American team car formerly piloted by IndyCar ace Townsend Bell in the American Le Mans Series. Background on this program is impressive, as the race-winning Lotus brand—formed in part by the late Colin Chapman in 1952—was focused on creating a fresh model that would fit into the global GT2/GTE category.
This competition-oriented release was based around the development advances of the firm’s existent T124 GT4 Endurance model, with a mid-engine layout design featuring the latest high-tech extruded- and bonded-aluminum chassis pieces with very strong lightweight forged-aluminum dual-wishbone suspension. For power, the company turned to the well-executed Toyota 2GR-FE V-6 engine with tuning by Cosworth, backing it up with the rear-wheel-drive Xtrac P426 6-speed sequential transmission. Rated at 438 HP, this 3.5L engine was the most powerful offering ever in a Lotus factory release to that time.
Featuring a body built with composite and carbon-fiber components, this introductory model was held in excellent acclaim by the media as a serious endurance race car for serious drivers, and following a near-immediate sellout of a road model to the intended Asian market, the street-oriented Evora was later offered to a more global audience. However, this first-year edition is far more serious, being the actual competition version that ran in the American Le Mans Series competition at places like Long Beach with Bell and co-driver Bill Sweedler at the wheel as part of Alex Job Racing, who had a partial-year factory backing for 2012.
Still equipped with Alcon brakes, as-parked racing and sponsorship graphics, and full competition appointments, this is an opportunity to own a piece of race-inspired automotive history that combined the Lotus and Toyota brands into a singular competition vehicle.
https://www.mecum.com/lots/306059/2011-lotus-evora-gte-racer/
