Yesterday was a big day for Lotus. It seems as though all other car brands were keen to get their concepts out there before Lotus took the limelight because they didn’t have one new car… or two… they showcased FIVE new cars that will be launched over the next four and a half years. Wow.

If you have just bought a Evora, you must be gutted as it will be another ‘Europa’ where production will end shortly after it begun. If you have an Evora on order, I suspect you’ll probably be cancelling your order. Which can’t be good for the Lotus order books next year.

Okay, so where to start?

Lotus Esprit

The first on the roads will be the Lotus Esprit, which will be out in Spring 2013. We’ve been waiting a long time for the ‘Esprit’ name to come back – there have been many concepts before, but this one seems the most likely to happen. The ultimate Lotus supercar, which will be going toe-to-toe with the Ferrari 458 Italia, Lamborghini Gallardo (replacement) and the McLaren MP4-12C. Except this car is likely to be £50,000 cheaper than those.

Powered by a 5.0 litre V8 pressure charged engine delivering up to 620 PS, the Esprit will be no slouch. Weighing less than 1,500 kg and having 720 Nm of torque, the claimed 3.4 second 0-100km/h seems pretty accurate. You will also be able to specify the optional KERS hybrid technology too.

Will we see an amphibious version for the new Bond? I hope so. Do we like it? Absolutely.

Basic Stats:

Price: £110,000

Delivery: Spring 2013

0-100km/h: 3.4 seconds

Lotus Elan

Next to be found on the road will be the Lotus Elan. Lotus is not content with taking on the best from Italy, they are also taking on German marques, Porsche, Audi and BMW. A tough ask.

The car will be available as a 2-seater and a 2 plus 2. Mid engined, rear wheel drive and weighing in at just 1,295 kg. 450 PS and 465 Nm of torque will propel this little gem to 100km/h in just 3.5 seconds.  Scheiße. As Dany Bahar, CEO of Group Lotus says, “The Elan will convert people to Lotus, I would challenge people not to become addicted to driving it. It will also go a long way towards dispelling the old misconceptions about this class, that in order to have high performance you must sacrifice usability – those days are gone.”

Basic Stats:

Price: £75,000

Delivery: Summer 2013

0-100km/h: 3.5 seconds

Lotus Elite

Okay, we’re now moving away from mid-mounted sports cars and on to the ultimate expression in elegant front/mid engined gran tourers. The Elite is absolutely beautiful.

With a 5.0 litre V8 under the hood and KERS technology available, it will perform with some urgency. 0-100km/h in 3.7 seconds and a top speed of 315km/h – Monte Carlo, here I come. Whilst Lotus does not really have too much history producing sector leading GT’s this one will certainly be one that Maserati and Aston Martin will pay attention to.

Dany Bahar, Chief Executive Officer of Group Lotus, said: “There’s no denying that the Elite is breathtakingly beautiful to look at but it’s so much more than that, it’s a car that over delivers in all other aspects as well. One could say it’s a car of perfect contradictions, it’s compact yet spacious, high performing yet low emitting, lightweight yet still reassuringly solid. It’s a car that we are exceptionally proud of at Lotus and we truly believe that there is nothing else like it out there both in terms of styling and performance.

Basic Stats:

Price: £115,000

Delivery: Spring 2014

0-100km/h: 3.7 seconds

Lotus Elise

The Elise is the car that saved Lotus in the 1990’s. The S1 was a revelation when it came out – a chassis that eclipses anything the Italians could produce, so the S3 version we see here has very large Sparco boots to fill. Out of all the cars Lotus has shown in Paris, this is the one I’m least convinced by – it’s proportions seem a little heavy in comparison to the S2 or S1 versions.

That said, the stat sheet does add up – a smidge over 1,000 kg in weight with 320 PS and 330 Nm of torque will ensure a 0-100km/h sprint of 4.3 seconds.

This car is still 5 years away, but Dany Bahar says; “The Elise you can buy now is still a fantastic car, make no mistake, Lotus remain very proud of it, but this is a natural progression for us moving forward. The Elise 2015 will also be class-leading in terms of performance and efficiency but it will do more than that it will take the Elise model to the forefront of its class across the board.”

Basic Stats:

Price: £35,000

Delivery: Spring 2015

0-100km/h: 4.3 seconds

Lotus Eterne

Okay, the GT theme culminates here with the 4-seater, 4-door Lotus Eterne. Not content with taking on every major sportscar manufacturer in every sector, they are now going up against the Rapide, Panamera and Quattroporte. It certainly has similarities to the Rapide based on these renderings, but it will still be one of the most beautiful 4-door cars on the market.

The Eterne will use a variation of the Lotus V8 5.0 litre packing 720 Nm of Torque and will have options to spec KERS and all-wheel drive if you want to tick all of the option boxes. 0-100km/h is reached in 4.0 seconds dead and it will only run out of steam at 315km/h

The design is beautiful – the attention to detail is sublime, particularly around the rear. We’re big fans here – power and grace, performance and elegance, beauty and strength all in one package.

Basic Stats:

Price: £120,000

Delivery: Spring 2015

0-100km/h: 4.0 seconds

Jaguar has revealed a truly stunning range-extended electric supercar concept car. The C-X75 has been designed to celebrate 75 years of the marque and provide a glimpse into the future of Jaguar and its commitment to producing beautiful, fast cars powered by sustainable means.

The C-X75 hints at an exciting evolution of Jaguar’s design language while paying homage to some of its most admired cars of years gone by. Advanced design features such as a ground-breaking propulsion system and active aerodynamics allow for an elegantly simple fuselage section that remains stable at very high speeds.

The C-X75 is finished in Jetstream Silver, its designers staying true to the long-held Jaguar design philosophy of natural, flowing lines and simple, elegant forms. Where inspiration from the past was found is in the innovative engineering and functional design elements of cars like the 1950s C-Type and D-Type racers and unique 1966 XJ13 Le Mans prototype – a car described by Callum as, “arguably the most beautiful Jaguar ever made”.

Shorter and lower than the current crop of supercars, its exterior design is about pure performance with a simple central fuselage surrounded by prominent wheel arches. Thanks to the packaging efficiencies provided by the absence of a conventional piston engine, the car’s designers had maximum freedom in placing the mechanical components and creating the most elegant engineering package available.

“The C-X75 is everything a Jaguar should be. It possesses remarkable poise and grace yet at the same time has the excitement and potency of a true supercar. You could argue this is as close to a pure art form as a concept car can get and we believe it is a worthy homage to 75 years of iconic Jaguar design.” Ian Callum, Design Director, Jaguar Cars.

• Stunning range-extended electric supercar concept
• A celebration of 75 years of beautiful, fast Jaguars, points the way to a new design language
• Capable of reaching 330km/h (205mph), sprinting from 0-100km/h (62mph) in just 3.4 seconds and blistering acceleration from 80-145km/h (50-90mph) in just 2.3 seconds
• Four powerful 145kW (195bhp) electric motors – one for each wheel – produce 780bhp and an astonishing total torque output of 1600Nm (1180lb ft)
• Two micro gas-turbines, spinning at 80,000 rpm, can generate enough electricity to extend the range to a remarkable 560 miles; and produce just 28 grams of CO₂ per kilometre from the car’s plug-in charge capability
• A zero tailpipe emissions range of 110km (68 miles) while running solely on battery power

If you are going to the Paris Motor Show in 2010, you will see that Lamborghini is redefining the future of the super sports car with a unique technology demonstrator.

Boasting an extremely lightweight construction thanks to advanced carbon-fiber technology, the Lamborghini Sesto Elemento has an overall curb weight of just 999 kilograms (2,202 lb) – including V10 power unit and permanent all-wheel drive. Innovative carbon-fibre technologies are being used here for the first time in an automotive application. As a 100 percent subsidiary of AUDI AG, the Italian carmaker also benefits from the undisputed expertise of the German manufacturer when it comes to lightweight construction.

With its amazing output of 570 hp, sensational power-to-weight ratio of only 1.75 kilograms per hp and 0 to 100 km/h (0-62 mph) acceleration of only 2.5 seconds, the Sesto Elemento guarantees unparalleled driving fun. At the same time, fuel consumption also drops because of the extreme lightweight engineering applied throughout.

“The Lamborghini Sesto Elemento shows how the future of the super sports car can look – extreme lightweight engineering, combined with extreme performance results in extreme driving fun. We put all of our technological competence into one stunning form to create the Sesto Elemento,” comments Stephan Winkelmann, President and CEO of Automobili Lamborghini. “It is our abilities in carbon-fiber technology that have facilitated such a forward-thinking concept, and we of course also benefit from the undisputed lightweight expertise of AUDI AG. Systematic lightweight engineering is crucial for future super sports cars: for the most dynamic performance, as well as for low emissions. We will apply this technological advantage right across our model range. Every future Lamborghini will be touched by the spirit of the Sesto Elemento.”

For me it is a little bit bonkers, but that’s what you want from a show car. Especially a Lamborghini show car. If they can’t push the limits, who can?