2008 Lotus 2-Eleven GT4 Supersport

The Lotus 2-Eleven GT4 Supersport gives the open lightweight family a specific competition scope. An exact GT4 race photograph supports this archive, while the manufacturer’s approximate subset reference remains separate from the all-model family figure.

History and verified programme identity

Lotus’s heritage table identifies the GT4 in 2008 and gives approximately 15 cars, alongside the wider 2-Eleven family reference of 356 across all models. These are nested scopes rather than additive totals. The manufacturer Type 123 designation corrects the inventory’s broader Type 111-derived family label. The licensed image independently identifies a 2-Eleven GT4 in competition in 2010, providing a real exact-variant illustration. Its later race appearance is not used to shift the programme introduction or prove the full manufacturing count. The individual racing chassis remains distinct from the programme’s published approximate reference.

Engineering and design

The maker lists a 267 bhp programme reference for the GT4 and a six-speed transmission. Those figures describe the original competition branch, not a measured output certificate for the photographed entrant. Its open body, racing number and visible track presentation help explain the variant’s role but cannot inspect its gearbox, restrictors or event-specific preparation. A technical history should connect homologation and original factory documents to dated racing and maintenance records. Lotus Sport supplies the correct manufacturer context. That keeps the programme separate from original Team Lotus Formula One Types and avoids treating road approval as an automatic consequence of a shared 2-Eleven name.

The physical car in the supplied photograph

Adam Pigott’s photograph shows a green Lotus 2-Eleven GT4 carrying number 211 in the first race of the Lotus Cup Europe event in May 2010. The creator identifies Scuderia Giudici. This exact GT4 racing subject is supplied instead of a generic open 2-Eleven show car.

A closer look at the design

The race photograph adds context that a display image cannot supply. The open car is seen within an actual competition appearance, with its entrant and date identified by the creator. That gives the archive a precise illustrated moment while leaving permanent chassis identity to original documents. The GT4 title is especially useful because general 2-Eleven photographs can look similar without proving the specialised branch. The manufacturer’s table then establishes the approximate subset scope and programme specification. Keeping these forms of evidence separate makes the profile useful for historical research without converting an event number into a production sequence, certifying current race eligibility or mistaking a later race for the original model launch.

Collecting and chassis evidence

A GT4 archive should establish original competition identity, chassis and factory configuration before recording later entrants and repairs. The approximately 15 manufacturer reference is a programme subset, not a count of surviving race-ready cars. A competition number can change between events and does not establish a permanent chassis identity on its own. Preserve entry lists, technical documents and dated photographs together so the pictured appearance can be placed accurately. Subsequent body or powertrain changes belong in that chassis history rather than being counted as new original cars. The all-model parent reference remains separate and is not increased by adding the GT4 estimate twice.

Related Lotus designs and meaningful comparisons

The parent 2-Eleven profile explains the wider family, while the 340R offers an earlier minimal-body comparison. Together they show why an open silhouette, a track-focused family and a named competition specification deserve distinct records with explicit boundaries.

Reading the sources

The programme sources and the photograph answer different questions. Manufacturer and custodial records establish the original model, Type, category and published production scope. The creator’s file establishes the pictured subject, setting and image permission. An individual chassis history can then add ownership, competition entries and dated repairs without changing the scope of the original programme. Build references are not survivor counts, and a later specification does not automatically become an additional newly manufactured vehicle. Where primary evidence does not establish a complete fabrication census, that field remains unassigned.

Specifications and rarity evidence

Frequently asked questions

Does number 211 establish the photographed GT4’s permanent chassis identity?

No. It is the visible competition number in the dated race photograph. A chassis-specific history requires original identity and entry evidence beyond the number alone.

How is 2-Eleven GT4 Supersport classified?

This is a Lotus competition archive. It remains separate from Lotus road-car production. Customer cars, works entries and converted chassis need a reconciled scope before any complete fabrication tally is assigned.

Which technical details are established for the programme?

The primary record supports manufacturer programme year: 2008; manufacturer type: 123; published subset reference: Approximately 15. These are programme or explicitly attributed photo references. A particular surviving car’s engine, chassis repairs and competition preparation require its own dated documentation.

Does the photographed appearance establish factory originality?

The caption records a real creator-identified 2-Eleven GT4 Supersport subject and its documented setting. It establishes the illustration’s scope, while original components, restoration work and individual race provenance require chassis-specific evidence. A competition number, current paint or museum display is not used as an originality certificate.

What rarity or archive scope is verified?

Manufacturer GT4 referenceapproximately15 for2008, a competition subset of the2-Eleven family. GT4 is not added to the356all-model parent reference. Exact datedGT4race image does not certify a surviving chassis history or present original components.

Who photographed the supplied image?

Adam Pigott from Coningsby, UK via Wikimedia Commons, under CC BY 2.0. The original file and licence are linked with the image. Retain the creator, source and licence when uploading, exporting or reusing it; local retouching and synthetic enlargement have not been performed.

Related Lotus profiles

• 2007 Lotus 2-Eleven
• 2000 Lotus 340R

Sources and photo credits

• Manufacturer or custodial programme source

Photograph: Adam Pigott from Coningsby, UK via Wikimedia Commons original source, CC BY 2.0. Source-provided thumbnail supplied without local cropping, retouching or synthetic enlargement.