Lotus Evija review: a new hypercar day in Wales

A glorious day in Wales and a Lotus: what could be more straightforward? Immaculate tarmac, breathtaking views and a stripped-back, lightweight sports car with a retro spirit. Add the familiar clichés about adding lightness, Colin Chapman’s brilliance and a generous dusting of ‘ride handling balance’ magic, and you have the formula car magazines have repeated since the 1960s. Have I mentioned steering feel yet?

Don’t fret: we’ll get there. First, though, discard everything you assume this story will be. This is genuinely a different kind of day. The Lotus here is not a sports car. The Evija is a proper hypercar: ferociously complicated, absurdly potent, mind-bogglingly costly and, unfortunately for Lotus, likely to be about as rare as powdered unicorn horn.

Its £2m-plus-taxes price is clearly a major obstacle, but it is dwarfed by the grim state of the market. When the Evija was unveiled in 2019, the world appeared to be racing towards electric-car dominance, with their extraordinary performance potential opening up thrilling new possibilities.

Photography: Jonny Fleetwood

By 2025, the outlook is much less positive. While the mass market is rapidly returning to hybrids, hypercar buyers have decisively rejected the great electric revolution. Ask Pininfarina or Rimac. Consequently, despite Lotus’s Herculean work to bring the Evija into production, its promise of a “maximum of 130 cars” now feels every bit as inflated as its combined power figure.

Lotus Evija: two hypercars at Anglesey

Even if the Evija’s projected sales volume is effectively DOA, it is still a captivating machine. Finding two sitting next to one another in a pit garage at Anglesey – before the road trip later on – is a properly special sight. They are the most powerful production cars Top Gear has tested, so the clear weather is a blessing. The uninterrupted sunshine will later reveal every contour, vent and aerodynamic element beautifully.

Why have two? A 93kWh battery supplies four electric motors, meaning range is, well, restricted. Lotus quotes 195 miles, but halve that on a circuit, then perhaps halve it again. Having a backup therefore seems prudent. Sensible, even.

On the subject of sensible, the Evija produces 2,011bhp in total. Recall the Lotus Carlton, the super saloon whose supposedly irresponsible output prompted questions in parliament? Every wheel of the Lotus Evija has 125bhp more than the Carlton produced altogether. It reaches 0–186mph in under nine seconds and tops out at 217mph. As for 0–60mph, Lotus says only “less than three seconds”, although a single exploratory launch along Anglesey’s straight delivers an effortless, GPS-confirmed two seconds. This is otherworldly performance, and a massive departure from Lotus tradition.

Yet as it rolls out of the pit lane, there is a palpable sense of two opposing worlds meeting. Its all-carbon-fibre structure is exceptionally rigid, while the cabin is wonderfully minimalist, finished with lovely materials, and its small yoke-style steering wheel feels superb in the hands. Combined with the frenzied whine of the electric motors and instantaneous, ear-flattening pace, these high-end hypercar traits suggest the Evija should contain no trace of Lotus character. But it does.

Steering feel and lightweight Lotus character

Much of that personality arrives through the steering. Lotus has retained hydraulic power assistance to preserve feedback clarity, and it feels like a brilliant choice. The Evija’s performance may be alien, but the initial sensations are comfortingly recognisable. There is no aggressive regenerative braking, either. Heaven knows the battery needs all the range assistance it can get, but I value the fact that lifting off the throttle does not create an artificial hit of negative g. A modest amount of regeneration might actually help, though, because the Evija seems to coast when it is not being driven hard.

Most pleasingly, the Evija feels nimble and light on its feet, as any Lotus ought to. Thanks to its exotic construction and serious emphasis on weight reduction, it weighs 1,884kg. That is substantial beside something such as an Aston Martin Valkyrie, but it is literally several hundred kilograms lighter than comparable EVs. Electronically adjustable Multimatic dampers and a heave damper manage the immense downforce it generates, delivering controlled body movement with another organic quality. As the pace gradually rises, the Evija remains composed while flowing with the road surface, moving just enough on its suspension to communicate what is happening and inspire growing confidence.

Its soundtrack also becomes more intense. There is no artificial enhancement: the motors almost scream at full load. The sound is not spine-tingling, but its frantic, unrestrained character perfectly matches performance that verges on surreal. The sensory onslaught is so complete that the absence of a gearbox to manage never feels like a fatal flaw. The Evija may not satisfy every one of my usual mental reference points, yet the experience is profoundly affecting: high-definition tactility combined with quantum performance.

The Evija is brutal yet oddly balletic at times, wild yet determinedly controlled

Track modes, power and compromises

There are trade-offs, however. The vast performance available has compelled Lotus to adopt a slightly cautious chassis balance. On circuit, we focus on Sport and Track modes – Valet, Range, City and Tour come later – but even at its most extreme, the Evija’s traction and stability systems stay switched on at all times.

That restraint feels sensible when the warning light flickers on the dashboard at 130mph in a straight line and the persistent torque steer can be felt as the Pirellis are pushed to their limits. Still, you might expect the electronics’ watchful presence to let Lotus make fuller use of genuine torque vectoring. With every wheel independently controllable, an entirely new set of possibilities exists... yet the Evija is almost too neutral.

Sport mode introduces a trace of initial understeer and, occasionally, the merest hint of power oversteer on corner exit, but both are barely detectable. Select Track mode and its stability is remarkable, although there is almost no scope for adjustment. Point it, fire it and hope your neck can endure the punishment. Then repeat. It is outrageous, although the excitement is physical rather than the sort of experience that captures both heart and mind.

28 minutes 4 seconds

Curiously, the Evija only feels slightly wayward at full power in a straight line – when its front tyres become highly sensitive to cambers and surface changes – and during heavy braking. It does not have quite the stability you anticipate, and because Lotus avoided a ‘skateboard’ layout, instead stacking the batteries where a mid-engined supercar would carry a V8 or V12, the mass just behind your shoulders shifts and shudders in unsettling ways. And even six-piston carbon-ceramic brakes cannot cope indefinitely with 2,011bhp and 1,884kg before the pedal begins moving nearer to the floor.

You may have noticed I have largely avoided detailing the outright pace until now. Mainly because it is difficult to describe. Relentless? Certainly, though that barely captures it. Nauseating? Strangely, no. Perhaps the driving position and excellent body control explain why, but the Evija is much less vomit-inducing than a Tesla Plaid, for instance. Extreme? Completely. It makes something like a McLaren 750S feel positively ordinary. Unforgettable? That may be the most fitting description – not only of its acceleration, but of the entire car.

The Evija is brutal yet oddly balletic at times, wild yet determinedly controlled – an enormous step for Lotus, while still holding on to its old habits wherever possible. A sunny day in Wales with this Lotus turns out to be anything but simple. But it will not be forgotten quickly.