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One of the most distinct cars in the Lotus lineup is the Carlton/Omega. The name Omega name was given to the left-hand-drive cars while Carlton's had their driver on the right. Internally at Lotus the car was knon as the Type 104

The Motivation behind the car came from Opel and Vauxhaul who wanted to improve the image of thier platform car. Lotus used the Vauxhaul Carlton 3.0 GSi 24v as a base for the car, improving almost every component.

The engine used was a GM inline-6 although the block is the only orginal component. To cope with the 100 bhp per litre load Lotus replaced the pistons, crankshaft, induction system, cooling manifold and induction bodies. The Inline-6 was bored and stroked to a capacity of 3.6 litres. A redesigned cylinder-head and twin Garett tubochargers were also added in the mix. The result was 377 bhp from an engine that originally had 204 bhp.

As expected, Lotus also reworked the suspension, brakes and aerodynamics.

This super-tuned saloon offered the the fastest four-door experince in 1989. It was leaps and bounds ahead of the competition which included the BMW M5.

The Lotus Carlton/Omega was built up to 1992 with around 900 examples being built, all in Imperial Green Metallic.