Knowing that the 444-hp Lotus Evora GTE will be making its way to America makes us giddy. So naturally, when we saw more photos of the most powerful Lotus ever made, we had to share them with the rest of the world.

Up until now, we’ve basically been treated to seeing the Evora GTE under the typical auto show floor lighting. Now we get to see the retina-burning, bright yellow in its natural environment with its 3.5L V6 powerplant ready to rock. These photos really show off what the Evora GTE’s all about, the overall wider vehicle sporting plenty of carbon fiber throughout.

The GTE weighs in slightly over 230-lbs lighter than the standard Evora model and features Lotus’s Automated Manual Transmission (AMT) racing gearbox. Forged center-lock wheels adorn each corner of the street-legal racer, while the inside packs lightweight carbon fiber Recaro seats.

Now we’ll just anxiously await to hear its price tag.

GALLERY: Lotus Evora GTE

Honoring the Lotus Renault Formula One Grand Prix team, the British sports car company is giving three passionate UK enthusiasts the opportunity to own a very custom car. The GP Edition Evora S is fully loaded with the Premium Pack with SuedeTex, Lotus’ Tech Pack and a set of 19-inch forged diamond cut wheels. The special edition Evora S is clearly race-inspired, with a gold-and-black paint scheme that resembles the Lotus Renault Formula One Grand Prix race graphics.

The limited edition of just three vehicles will surely be snatched up quickly in the United Kingdom, sporting a price tag of £69,950 – or a tad over $110,000 based on today’s conversion rates.

GALLERY: Lotus Evora S GP Edition

[Source: Autoblog]

Don’t let the Swizz Beatz involvement fool you: Lotus still wants you to know that they build sports cars. Case in point: at the swanky Pebble Beach Concours D’Elegance this year, Lotus will unveil a GTE-class race car based on their Evora.

The Evora GTE Road Car Concept is designed to race in the GTE class, including a stint at the 24 Hours of Le Mans. And as such, it packs 420 horsepower in its 3.5-liter V6 engine, channeled through a sequential AMT racing gearbox. It gets this power to the ground via center-lock forged-alloy wheels, wrapped with Pirelli P-Zero Corsa tires. Lotus reassures us that it “isn’t merely a paint scheme or homage to a race car—this is a serious race car that makes for a very serious road car.”

And if you’re heading down to Monterrey next week, you can catch the Evora GTE at Lotus’s dedicated exhibit by the Lodge, starting on August 18th—if you can get past Swizz Beatz’s entourage, that is.

Lotus has officially announced that Lotus is opening dealerships in China. Lotus China Symphony will be appointed as the official distributor for the British sports cars in China. The dealership will be based out of Beijing and will offer a full range of Lotus sports cars including the Evora, the Elise and the Exige.

China has initially ordered 100 cars, the majority of which will be the Evora model, and the remaining inventory will be made up of the Elise and Exige. This limited amount of cars being shipped ensures that the exclusivity of these sports cars is maintained.

Dany Bahar, Chief Executive of Group Lotus explained, “Lotus China has joined the Lotus family at a very exciting time – with a new range of sports and super cars on the way, which will complement the current globally selling range, and a new all encompassing motorsports program, both of which ensure that Lotus is at the forefront of everyone mind as one of the world’s most desirable car brands. The team behind Lotus China has a wealth of experience in premier niche vehicles in the Chinese market and therefore we are delighted that we have teamed up with such a credible and enthusiastic team.”

Li Chen Zhang, Chief Executive of Lotus China described the merger, “We are delighted to be the official distributor of this world class sports and supercar brand and we are very much looking forward to introducing the brand to the discerning customer in China. We are investing in new dealerships throughout China to not only introduce the Evora, Elise and Exige but also in preparation for the arrival of the new Lotus super cars starting with the Esprit in 2013. I would like to thank Lotus for this opportunity and I know that we will do the brand proud in this important market!”

The first dealership will open in October followed by another dealership in Shanghai, Chongqing, and Guangzhou later in the year. By 2012, eight more dealerships will open throughout China.

Lotus has plans to improve both the Elise and Evora with a list of 150 items. Improvements are centered around the Evora, and are designed to boost dwindling sales and bridge the styling gap between the current car and the next wave of Lotus’ due 2013.

Changes include improved gearchange quality, throttle response and exhaust note. Furthermore, improving the general build quality of the car is of concern.  Lotus is aiming to be on par with Porsche quality standards, says boss Dany Bahar.

A styling overhaul is also planned for the 2012 Evora model. Lotus’s ex-Ferrari design boss, Donato Coco has complained the present Evora’s front end is “too weak” for a modern sports car. “Even many economy cars look more aggressive,” he says.

Coco went on to explain the importance of motorsport being the brand’s central appeal, which is why the company is competing across so many categories.

[Source: Autocar]

The Lotus Elan has been put on hold indefinitely, reportedly due to the rather obvious fact that the concept was too close to the brand’s current Evora model. Previously, rumors had indicated Lotus was taking a close look at both the Esprit and Elite models, which share many of the same components and have similar style, in order to further separate two two vehicles.

But before the Esprit or Elite are put into production, Lotus will be updating the Evora with some aesthetic changes and new trim levels to align it with the rest of the “Lotus New Era” range. Updates will also be done on the Elise and Exige to make them more user friendly. The production Exige will reportedly be revealed at the 2012 Geneva Motor Show.

GALLERY: Lotus Elan Concept

[Source: Top Speed]

[Source: Autocar]

Read AutoGuide’s Lotus Evora Review

Having a little fun in their own backyard, Lotus has lent out a brand new Evora to the UK Police Force, more specifically the Central Motorway Police Group. Lotus’ hot new sports car features the traditional British Police flair on the exterior, including neon yellow accents contrasted by a dark, rich blue.

The themed Evora was introduced at this week’s Autosport International Show, and upon the show’s closing the keys will be handed over to West Midland’s police force who will put the Evora to the test for two weeks.

Gino Rosato, Director of Corporate Operations at Lotus comments: “Lotus is proud to take part in this and similar initiatives to help create a safer road culture for our customers and other road users. We believe that you do not have to compromise fun for speed and to that effect we build sportscars that are fun to drive within legal limits! We will be working with Officers from CMPG to teach them how to get the best from the Lotus Evora at our test track to ensure that any high-speed activity is as safe and effective as possible.”

PC Steven Rounds from, CMPG said: “The Lotus is a visually stunning machine which offers us the opportunity to engage with the public, reinforce and promote the life-saving messages of road safety.”

GALLERY: Lotus Evora UK Police Car

[Source: Carscoop]

After winning the Dewar Trophy for Technical Excellence earlier this year, Lotus is really hauling in the hardware overseas for its new four-seater Evora sports car. In August the U.K.’s AutoCar named the Evora the “Driver’s Car of the Year,” while CAR magazine announced it as their “Performance Car of the Year.” Now Lotus can handily claim what is arguably the U.K.’s top trophy, “Car of the Year” by none other than EVO magazine.

Pitted against vehicles from the likes of Lamborghini, Ferrari, Porsche and Aston Martin, the Evora won EVO‘s COTY award after a 13 car, 1,000 mile comparo was whittled down to just five vehicles.

Meanwhile, EVO also awarded the 2-Eleven “Track Car of the Year 2009.”

“It is a great endorsement for Lotus cars that the most refined car in the product line up is picking up awards at the same time as the most extreme car in the range, illustrating the great wealth of engineering and manufacturing expertise at Lotus,” said Luke Bennett, Operations Director of Lotus Cars Limited.

The 2010 Lotus Evora will launch in North America in the first quarter of 2010.

Lotus has just announced that a of October 1st, former Ferrari executive Dany Bahar will take over at the helm of Group Lotus plc. Bahar moves into the position after former Lotus CEO Mike Kimberly retired in July due to health reasons.

At Ferrari Bahar worked as Senior VP of Commercial and Brand, where he oversaw not only the important job of road car sales, but also the lucrative merchandising aspect of the Italian automaker. Previous to to the position at Ferrari, he worked for Red Bull and helped organize the partnership between Red Bull Racing and Scuderia Toro Rosso with Ferrari, as well as the energy drink company’s NASCAR efforts.

“Lotus has a worldwide reputation for innovative engineering and superb sports cars that lead the world in efficiency, design and dynamics,” Bahar said in a  statement. “With the recent launch of the award-winning Evora, there is proof that Lotus is better placed than many to capitalize on the rapidly changing automotive market. I can’t wait to get my plans underway in October.”

One has to wonder if Bahar’s appoitment will usher in an era where Lotus returns its full efforts to the field of motorsports.