Lotus Esprit canned

ICONIC British sports car makers Lotus have confirmed that development of its Esprit concept has ceased, with the project officially cancelled.

Previewed as a concept in 2010 (pictured), the Esprit nameplate revival was initially spearheaded by the brand’s former CEO Danny Bahar as part of an extensive long-term multi-model plan prior to his sacking. Since Bahar’s exit, the project has been in limbo until recently when newly appointed CEO Jean-Marc Gales dismissed any possibility of seeing a production version completed.

In an interview with an international motoring monthly, Gales said “I don’t want to focus on the past, but there are some technologies and supplier relationships that we can take forward from the (Bahar) projects.” Instead, he confirmed that the brand would continue to outsource engines from Toyota citing its proven reliability as the deal-sealer.

-thesundaily