1993 Vauxhall Lotus Carlton

The legendary Lotus Carlton is the kind of car that comes along once in a generation. At a time when rapid four-door saloons were the preserve of BMW and Mercedes, this Vauxhall (the Opel-badged left-hand drive derivative was the Lotus Omega) derived 'super-saloon' arrived on the scene, demolishing the opposition. It wasn't its huge performance or masculine good looks that created the most fuss, but the fact that the Daily Mail was so outraged by its stated top speed of 176mph that it declared it too fast for British roads. Of course, the Lotus Carlton - or Type 104 to Lotus aficionados - was nothing of the sort and aside from the fact it shared its major components with a mainstream executive car, its level of development had resulted in a truly special performance car.

Production of the Lotus Carlton began in 1990, four years after the original Carlton/Omega went on sale. Vauxhall/Opel had hoped to build 1,100 cars in total, however owing to the recession of the early 1990s, the Lotus Carlton, priced at £48,000, was not selling as well as anticipated and production at Lotus was halted in December 1992. Only 950 cars were completed - 320 Carltons and 630 Omegas, 150 short of the original target.

It was powered by a twin-turbo version of the venerable straight-six used in the range-topping Senator, which developed a remarkable 377bhp. To achieve that figure, Lotus had put a lot of work into the 3.6-litre power unit, uprating and strengthening the bottom end, porting the 24-valve cylinder head (from the Carlton GSI) and fitting forged 'slipper' pistons made by MAHLE atop new Lotus-designed connecting rods tied to a counterweighted, forged steel crankshaft. The gearbox was the same 6-speed used in the Corvette ZR-1, the only transmission in GM's parts bin, capable of handling the car's monster torque. AP 'Group C' derived brakes featuring 4-pot calipers with 330mm ventilated discs at the front and 2-pot at the rear, sat behind lightweight wheels with specially developed Goodyear tyres. Performance was astonishing, 0-60mph came up in five seconds, 0-100mph was dispatched in 11.1 seconds and in 1992, Autocar magazine recorded a time of 17 seconds for their 0-100-0 challenge, second behind an F40, however it's the car's maximum speed of 176mph that will always be quoted by its enthusiastic cult following.

Offered here is a 1993 Lotus Carlton #0841 that was first registered in June 1993, supplied new by official Vauxhall franchise Frosts to its first owner. Finished in the standard colour scheme with Imperial Green Pearlescent paintwork and grey leather interior, this special super-saloon would remain within two families for over three decades before being carefully sourced by our vendor to become part of a collection of landmark performance cars.

With minimal use and correct dry storage from new, this Lotus Carlton remains in remarkable, original and unrestored condition – it could certainly be considered a reference car. It is described as presenting in 'first paint', with only the alloy wheels correctly refurbished due to some light imperfections, it retains its Frosts Tax Disc holder and matching front and rear supplying dealer plates. The underside has been dry-ice blasted to remove some of the old dusty sealant and retreated with Dinitrol high performance clear wax to preserve and display the original finishes.

Presented to auction along with a substantial history file including the original book pack, service book, owner’s manuals, price guides, press releases, parts information catalogue and the Lotus Carlton limited edition memento of ownership book and Authenticity Certificate. The speedometer shows just under 29,000 miles which is supported by the service record and MOT history.

The Lotus Carlton is a true legend – a low-production performance saloon that has rightly achieved iconic status. These cars seldom come to market, often finding their way into significant collections of landmark performance models. For those seeking only the very best and most original, this represents a rare and possibly unrepeatable opportunity.