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Originally Posted by Porschekid
That Lotus Elan was also made as a Kia in its later years... ouch.
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Hi,
Ouch? That's ignorant. The Kia Elan was produced by Kia from 1996 to 1997. It was a
licensed copy of Lotus Type M100 Elan, which was built from 1989 to 1995.
After the final production run of the Lotus Elan in 1995, Kia began manufacturing their own version
under license. The Kia version is identical to the original. The biggest difference is the 1.8 liter, 151 hp NA engine Kia used in place of Lotus 1.6 liter, DOC Turbocharged 162 hp Isuzu engine.
The Elan made by Kia was never imported here, but Lotus North America had one in Atlanta, which I drove. It is identical to the Lotus M100, except for the power delivery which due to the NA lower power engine, really gelded it. But, the manufacture, Fit & Finish and quality of components were all top knotch.
Lots of companies make cars under license from the original creator. Lotus spun the M100 off because they, and their current parent - Maylaysia's National Automobile Enterprise - Proton, wanted their production facility back to produce the Elise and fulfill a contract with GM to manufacture the Vauxhall VX220, VXR220, and Opel Speedster. This is not at all unusual.
BMW in fact, started in the Car business by producing a licensed version of the Austin 7. Kia is an excellent manufacturer with a very high customer satisfaction rating. The fact that they choose to build mid-end economy cars shouldn't be construed as a sign of inferiority...
Happy Motoring!... Jim'99