LOTUS · LOTUS ESPRIT · Cars
LOTUS ESPRIT Uncommon
As of 2026 Q1, 2,049 LOTUS ESPRITs remain registered in the UK — an increasingly uncommon sight on today's roads. Numbers are at their highest recorded level since the model first appeared in our data in 2014 Q3. Unusually, the numbers are actually rising — up 27 (1.3%) over the past year, as imports and barn-finds rejoin the register faster than cars leave it. Tellingly, 63% are declared SORN — kept off the road in garages and barns rather than driven, the signature of a car being looked after rather than used up.
Survivors over time
How rare is it?
Uncommon — a few thousand still about (2,049).
Rarer than 28% of the 2,429 UK car models we track.
Fuel breakdown
Trend
About the ESPRIT
The Lotus Esprit is a sports car built by Lotus Cars from 1976 to 2004 at their Hethel, England factory. It has a rear mid-engine, rear-wheel-drive layout. Together with the Lotus Elise / Exige, it is one of Lotus' most long-lived models. The Esprit was among the first of the (near) straight-lined, hard-edge creased, and sometimes wedge-shaped, polygonal "folded paper" designs of the prolific, and highly successful Italian industrial and automotive designer Giorgetto Giugiaro. The Esprit's backbone chassis was later adapted to carry the body of the DeLorean car, another low-bodied, Giugiaro-drawn...
LOTUS ESPRIT — questions & answers
How many LOTUS ESPRIT are left in the UK?
As of 2026 Q1, 2,049 LOTUS ESPRIT were still registered in the UK — 762 licensed and on the road, plus 1,287 declared SORN (off-road). The figures come from official DVLA vehicle licensing data.
Is the LOTUS ESPRIT rare?
The LOTUS ESPRIT is uncommon, with 2,049 still about, making it rarer than 28% of the 2,429 UK car models we track.
Is the LOTUS ESPRIT increasing or decreasing?
Over the last year the number of LOTUS ESPRIT on UK roads rose by 27 (1.3%).
What fuel do most LOTUS ESPRIT use?
Most LOTUS ESPRIT run on petrol — about 100% of those still registered, with the rest split across diesel.
When did the LOTUS ESPRIT peak?
The LOTUS ESPRIT peaked at 2,049 registered in 2026 Q1, and was first recorded in the data in 2014 Q3.