[4] The Elite's most distinctive feature was its highly innovative fibreglass monocoque construction, in which a stressed-skin Glass reinforced plastic unibody replaced the previously separate chassis and body components.

Unlike the contemporary Chevrolet Corvette, which used fibreglass for only exterior bodywork, the Elite used glass-reinforced plastic for the entire load-bearing structure of the car.

[6] The body construction caused numerous early problems, until manufacture was handed over to Bristol Aeroplane Company.

Still, a full understanding of the engineering qualities of fibreglass-reinforced plastic was several years off and the suspension attachment points were regularly observed to pull out of the fibreglass structure.

The weight savings allowed the Elite to achieve sports car like performance from a 75 hp (56 kW), 1,216 cc (1.2 L) Coventry Climax FWE all-aluminium straight-four engine while returning a fuel consumption of 35 mpg‑imp (8.1 L/100 km; 29 mpg‑US).

Advanced aerodynamics also contributed to the car's low drag coefficient of Cd=0.29[1] considering the engineers did not enjoy the benefits of computer-aided design or wind tunnel testing.

Frank Costin (brother of Mike, one of the co founders of Cosworth), at that time Chief Aerodynamic Engineer for the de Havilland Aircraft Company, contributed to the final design.

The SE was introduced in 1960 as a higher-performance variant, featuring twin SU carburettors and fabricated exhaust manifold resulting in engine power output increasing to 85 hp (63 kW), ZF gearboxes in place of the standard "cheap and nasty" MG ones,[4] Lucas PL700 headlamps,[8] and a silver coloured roof.

Among the Elite's few faults was a resonant vibration at 4,000 rpm (where few drivers remained, on either street or track)[9] and poor quality control, handicapped by an overly low price (resulting in Lotus losing money on every car produced) and, "perhaps the greatest mistake of all", offering it as a kit (with a substantial reduction in price and Purchase Tax), exactly the opposite of the ideal for a quality manufacturer.

The Elite won in its class six times at the 24 hour of Le Mans race as well as two Index of Thermal Efficiency wins.

The Elite was the first Lotus automobile to use the aluminium-block 4-valve, DOHC, four-cylinder Type 907 engine that displaced 1,973 cc (120.4 cu in) and was rated at 155 hp (116 kW).

Although larger and more luxurious than previous Lotus road cars, the Elite and Éclat are relatively light, with kerb weights not much over 2,300 lb (1,043 kg).

[21] The vacuum-operated headlights of the earlier model were replaced with electrically operated units and the Elite was now fitted with a front spoiler, a new rear bumper and brake lights from the Rover SD1.

An optional hybrid kinetic-energy recovery system would augment the V8 by feeding electricity generated by braking to motors in the transmission.

The Elite project was cancelled in July 2012 after a take over of Lotus' then parent company Proton by DRB-Hicom which initiated a new cost effective business plan.