1993 Vauxhall Lotus Carlton #809

The legendary Lotus Carlton is the kind of car that comes along once in a generation. At a time when really fast four-door saloons were the preserve of BMW and Mercedes, this Vauxhall (the Opel-badged LHD derivative was the Lotus Omega) derived 'super-saloon' arrived on the scene, demolishing the opposition. Oddly, it wasn't its huge performance or masculine good looks that created the most fuss, but the fact that the Daily Mail was so outraged by its stated top speed of 176mph that it declared it too fast for British roads. Of course, the Lotus Carlton - or Type 104 to Lotus aficionados - was nothing of the sort and although it shared its major components with a mainstream executive car, its level of development across every aspect of automotive dynamics had resulted in a truly special performance car.

Production of the Lotus Carlton began in 1990, four years after the original Carlton/Omega went on sale. Vauxhall/Opel had hoped to build 1,100 cars in total, but owing to the recession of the early 1990s, the Lotus Carlton, priced at £48,000, was not selling as well as anticipated, and production at Lotus was halted in December 1992. Only 950 cars were completed: 320 Carltons and 630 Omegas, 150 short of the original target.

It was powered by a twin-turbo version of the venerable straight-six used in the range-topping Senator, which developed a remarkable 377bhp. To achieve that figure, Lotus had put a lot of work into the 3.6-litre power unit, uprating and strengthening the bottom end, porting the 24-valve cylinder head (from the Carlton GSI), and fitting forged 'slipper' pistons made by MAHLE atop new Lotus-designed connecting rods tied to a counterweighted, forged steel crankshaft. The gearbox was the same 6-speed used in the Corvette ZR-1, the only transmission in GM's parts bin, capable of handling the car's monster torque. AP 'Group C' derived brakes - 4-pot calipers with 330mm ventilated discs at the front and 2-pot at the rear - sat behind specially developed Goodyear tyres. Performance was brisk, to say the least. 0-60mph came up in five seconds, 0-100mph was dispatched in 11.1 seconds and in 1992, Autocar magazine recorded a time of 17 seconds for their 0-100-0 challenge, second best behind an F40, however it's the car's maximum speed of 176mph that will always be quoted by its fans.

The car presented here is a 1993 Vauxhall Lotus Carlton #809 (denoted by a unique plaque) of the 950 produced, first registered on 8th March 1993, making it late-production example. According to our vendor, who acquired the car in May 2011 (covering only c4.000 miles since then), some of the car’s early life involved a ten-year stint in storage due to it not being required as a daily-driver. Our vendor, an engineer and Lotus Carlton aficionado, has overseen a significant amount of work to the car, including an engine-out rebuild, a new clutch, timing chain, valve guides, water pump, injectors, whilst the twin turbo unit was overhauled. It also benefits from a new fuel tank and stainless-steel exhaust.

Likewise, the exterior has seen the body-kit professionally removed and painted, whilst the bonnet has also been painted to tidy up the stone chips. The interior, although still all original (Grundig in-car entertainment system as fitted to the later cars, rather than the earlier Blaupunkt system) does, in some minor places, look a little worn; the seats and headlining are in very good order though. The car is accompanied by its original model-specific book pack, original tool roll, two keys and its original OEM spec exhaust system.

Reports do vary, but the usually reliable ones suggest there are only around 70 Lotus Carltons taxed in the UK – a rather exclusive club!

'Sledgehammer' was the word often used to describe the performance of these saloons, but Vauxhall footnoted promotional content with the words 'Very few will be made, very few will understand or appreciate it fully'. More than 30 years later, it's fair to say that we do understand and with climbing values, it's undoubtedly fully appreciated.