Originally introduced as a concept car at the 1998 Birmingham Motor Show, the 340R is a special edition of the Lotus Elise.

All cars came with a silver and black colour scheme.

Special A038R tyres were developed for the 340R in collaboration with Yokohama.

While road-legal in the UK and Europe,[1] most of the surviving cars are only used for racing, track use, or demonstrations.

[citation needed] The engine is a four-cylinder version of the 1.8L Rover K-Series engine called VHPD (Very High Power Derivative) used in the regular Elise which produces 177 bhp (132 kW; 179 PS) at 7800 rpm and 172 N⋅m (127 lbf⋅ft) at 6750 rpm as standard, or 187 bhp (139 kW; 190 PS) at 7500 rpm and 189 N⋅m (139 lbf⋅ft) at 5600 rpm with optional Lotus accessories.