Lotus 3-Eleven launches in UK, Australian potential under review

That’s the verdict from the British brand’s local importer, Ateco, who told CarAdvice the car is currently being reviewed for Australian Design Rule (ADR) compliance.

The road-going version will be sold for £82,500 (AU$170,695) in the UK, rising to £116,500 (AU$241,100) for the race version, but a local price won’t be available until (or if) the 3-Eleven gains the ADR tick of approval.

“Once that is done we will know if it is able to be sold in Australia and what the costs involved are,” said Ateco’s Edward Rowe.

“Needless to say, though, should someone wish to buy the non-road legal ‘race’ version, we would facilitate that and pricing would be done case by case.”

Government ADR types will pore over what is a serious bit of kit in the 3-Eleven, which made its public debut last year at the Goodwood Festival of Speed.

Armed with a 3.5 litre supercharged V6 pumping out 308kW in a lightweight 925kg chassis, the road-going model offers supercar performance (try 3.3secs for 0-100km/h) and exclusivity to boot, with just 311 set for production globally.

The race model boasts an 890kg kerb weight and a mean 343kW mated to a competition spec Xtrac six-speed sequential transmission, while the road version settles for a close-ratio six-speed manual.

Deliveries of UK vehicles will begin from March. We’ll keep you posted on whether the 3-Eleven gets the green light to grace public Australian roads.