Lotus Exige Scura (2009) first pictures

Lotus will unleash its most potent and exclusive lightweight car to date at Tokyo tomorrow; the Exige Scura.

Clad in moody black paint accented with slashes of carbon fibre, this is one Lotus you’ll never see coming. Chances are you’ll never catch it either, since the engine sitting behind the driver is Hethel’s most powerful unit shoehorned into the lightweight chassis.

The figures speak for themselves: 257bhp, 925kg. That’s a combination set to put the willies up even the most accomplished track-day enthusiast. The supercharged power plant comes from the Exige Cup racer, and revs to a screaming 8000rpm.

The Scura hits 60mph in 4.1 seconds – courtesy of its launch control system – and keeps on pushing to a shade over 150mph. You’ll need less than 10 seconds to hit the ton.

As ever with a lightweight Lotus, the real performance comes through the corners. Super-sticky Yokohamas, in-car adjustable traction control and two-way adjustable Ohlins dampers which allow you to set up the car for your own driving style, meld the car to the track. And thanks to long hours in the Lotus wind-tunnel the Scura develops 42kg of downforce at 100mph.

Only 35 Scuras will ever be sold, at a sobering £45,000 a pop. Very, very hardcore.

By Gareth Evans