Team Lotus Buys Caterham Cars - Might Ariel be Next?

**Kim** · April 27, 2011, 01:32 PM

Formula One competitor Team Lotus today announced that it had purchased British sportscar maker Caterham Cars, a rival manufacturer to Ariel.

According to the press release, "the acquisition of Caterham Cars by Team Lotus Enterprise will not only signal the continued development of the legendary Seven, but will provide Caterham with the platform to apply its philosophy of 'adding lightness' to exciting new models for the 21st Century".

Most of you probably know that Group Lotus, manufacturer's of the Lotus Elise, Evora, Exige, and 2-Eleven, has a history with the Ariel Atom. The Atom suspension setup was tuned by the engineers at Lotus. Edmunds "Inside Line" noted that "anyone who has driven a selection of Lotus-tuned cars, such as the Elise, the Aston Martin Vanquish and the Opel Speedster, will notice a common feel or signature, and it's replicated in the Atom."

Team Lotus and Group Lotus are engaged in litigation over the trademark and usage of the 'Lotus' name.

Now that Team Lotus - which is not a car manufacturer as such - has purchased from Caterham the ability to build the Super Seven car, it would be interesting to speculate whether Group Lotus might not want to add to its line-up its own ultralight road car - lighter even than the 2-Eleven (which is for track-use only in the US). The Ariel Atom is, in the opinion of many, the unconstrained evolution of Colin Chapman's vision for the Seven.

I wonder how the Ariel Atom might look like with a Lotus badge on its hood ...

http://www.teamlotus.co.uk/news/2011...m-announcement

**MadMaxAtom** · April 27, 2011, 02:09 PM

Very interesting...I never knew the Atoms suspension was set up/tuned by Lotus. I did drive a friends Elise on track last year and was amazed by how much it felt like my Atom..only heavier..