Get Lost: Project Safari is the off-road Lotus Elise you definitely were not expecting
Off-roading and the Lotus Elise aren’t natural bedfellows, which makes the Project Safari even more exciting
The crossover fad really is getting ridiculous now, but according to its makers that’s just the point with the new Get Lost: Project Safari. This highly modified Lotus S1 Elise is a rally-raid style reimagination of the iconic British sports car – the first from new brand Get Lost founded by Automotive photographer GF Williams. And the good news is that it’ll be put into limited production starting later this year.
The one-off Project Safari’s transformation has been designed ‘to blend rally-inspired capability, road-trip practicality and design-led innovation’ in one two-seater package. To do so, the fundamental Elise body shell has been largely unchanged, but sits significantly higher off the road on much larger rally-style wheels and off-road tyres.
In order to fit the new wheel and tyre package inside the Elise body, the team at Get Lost has fitted a set of black-coloured wheel arch extensions, which are joined by a set of high-mounted driving lights, bespoke wing mirrors and new LED headlights. The suspension setup is also completely new, providing the obvious raise in ride height as well as wider track widths.
Just like you’ll find on a Lamborghini Huracan Sterrato, the intake has been moved from the bodyside to a roof scoop in a distinctive wishbone-design that sits over the Elise’s compact two-seater cabin. This rests on the rear roll hoop, and sits in conjunction with a sculpted tyre-rest on the rear deck for a spare wheel.
There are no fundamental changes to the engine, according to Get Lost, which means it will run the same iconic K-Series four-cylinder petrol unit as the standard car, as well as a five-speed manual gearbox. This powers the rear wheels, but what is new is the limited-slip differential, plus a rally-style hydraulic handbrake.
Joining the bespoke exterior colour is a fully-retrimmed interior with brown Alcantara, giving the whole cabin a more luxurious and comfortable feeling.
The Project Safari probably won’t replace the family Toyota RAV4, it is undoubtedly one of few off-road capable Lotus Elises in existence – and might well be considered more convincing a 4x4 than the 2.6-tonne Lotus Eletre.
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