Today’s best hot hatches originate from the Far East, but 30 years ago Europe was the epicentre. So how does one of the icons from that era perform with some 21st century upgrades?
285 we featured the extraordinary Tolman Motorsport Sunbeam Lotus, a track-focused restomod that turned everyone’s favourite rear-wheel-drive hatchback into a beast of machine with serious lap-time potential. It was a riot, but also clearly a product finished to the sort of very high standard you’d associate with a professional motorsport team – which Tolman also is.
Less ‘Sochaux’ is the in-line four, which has been treated not only to a complete rebuild, but also a good deal of tuning and modernisation too. The blueprinted engine features a polished and balanced crankshaft, a skimmed head with a little work to the ports, and a lightweight flywheel.
The headlamps, too, retain the same appearance but have been upgraded from the hopeless originals to LED items, albeit below the lumens rating where a wash and self-levelling function is required. These early miles provide a reminder of how beautifully the 205 steers. The GTI’s power rack is up there with the very best of them, including such luminaries as the Lotus Esprit. It’s so much more direct than the unassisted GTI rack, obviously far easier at low-speed manoeuvring, but retaining the most incredible sense of connection between driver and the front wheels.
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