The 1990s Lotus Elan Was Almost Represented By A Cat On Roller Skates

For those unfamiliar with the Lotus Elan M100, my favorite front-wheel-drive roadster, it was Lotus’ first (and last) foray into what is arguably the most pedestrian drivetrain layout. Built during Lotus’ GM-owned era and prepared for a turbo Isuzu powertrain, it’s a misconception that Kia had anything to do with the development. You can learn about Kia’s later version of the Elan here!

Today, this is a story about the Elan’s badge. Or at least, what could have theoretically been its badge. All M100’s left the factory with a standard Lotus emblem on the hood, but there’s an alternate reality where this compact roadster wears a badge featuring a cat on skates!

Hello Autopians, I’m Jetta Cat! Thank you so much for having me on, and being here to read my ramblings! I’ll be your resident cat, fantastic woman, and Lotus Elan M100 enthusiast.

This topic is far less-told outside of M100 circles, I’ve noticed – as every time I’ve brought this up at a show, gathering, or even in a group chat, I’m the only one who’s heard about this obscure little feline!

Hell, Lotus Elan by Mark Hughes, the greatest wealth of Elan M100 development history (and my source for the non-cat-related Elan making-of details to follow), only has one sentence devoted to the cat on skates, simply explaining that it came into existence “For reasons unknown.”

Seriously, Mark!? Surely someone on the team would have been happy to explain it to you (though I still highly respect your work)! With the book being a dead end on the subject, I had to look elsewhere – which brings me to thank Geoff Smith of Lotus Elan Central, who was the largest source of information on this topic and learned the story I’m about to tell from Clive Roberts, a key engineer on the M100 project.

If you’ve heard the name before, but aren’t much of a Lotus buff, you may recognize Clive as the lead development engineer of the GM EV1 project. After GM acquired Lotus in ‘86, the big heads in Detroit definitely wanted to make use of the new knowledge in Norfolk, putting them on various GM projects.

So where did this quick little black cat come from? It’s hard to definitively say when, besides “during the Elan M100’s development cycle,” which officially started in 1984. I could go on about how the Elan M100 arguably saved Lotus, but this isn’t the M100 story, this is the cat on skates story.

After a cash injection from the Americans, the M100 project got into full swing, with Lotus closely guarding its secrecy. The M100 team was put into a separate building under lock and key, making sure that only project employees were allowed in. This separation caused an unintended alienation effect, with some of the Elan employees (Elanployees?) feeling some tension between them and the main Lotus hierarchy. Roberts suggested they develop a logo for the M100 project, as a bonding exercise to improve morale.

Roberts headed over to Lotus’ Technical Illustration section, where he went straight to the section leader, a fellow known only as Ron, and explained the idea. The team wanted a logo in the form of a character, one that expressed the soul and energy of the ideal Elan M100: speed, agility, and friendliness, something non-intimidating. Specifically mentioned was the desire to avoid big cats – your jaguars, tigers, and pumas, of course. A house cat immediately came up in the discussion, the common fast, agile, friendly creature that everyone is familiar with. But Roberts wasn’t in on the idea yet.

As they talked it over, Ron sketched on his own, eventually turning around a sketch of a cat with the “perfect stance,” with the finishing touch being four slip-on roller skates, one for each paw. Roberts exclaims that it’s exactly what they’re looking for, having a pretty good idea of what the final logo should look like within the hour.

The next morning, the cat on skates was completed, with Roberts immediately ordering custom emblems from Lotus’s prototype badge supplier. When questioned in 2019 about the cat on skates’ development, he jokingly compared it to how much time and money Google must spend to make a minute revision to their logo type.

So why don’t I capitalize “cat on skates”? Well, because this little four-legged fella of non-descript gender, my dear reader, never formally got a name. I’m truly unsure whether it ever got a name internally, though I wouldn’t be surprised if it never did. But about that badge order from earlier: something unexpected happened with them. They began to be traded around the office, almost like a currency, with the supply of cat emblems closely monitored and guarded by Roberts.

One could exchange a badge or two for favors, like having paintwork or repairs done, or even making a part on one’s behalf! Roberts had the whole supply of cat badges in a box in his desk drawer, only handing them out when he felt they were deserved.

Enthusiasm for the cat on skates was high! Employees had stickers printed, although they’d never receive the honor of becoming a niche office currency, and Mark Berry, a Lotus development engineer at the time, had his wife all-in on the 16-wheeled feline. She knitted sweaters for multiple of the team’s kids, including Roberts!

It’s unknown if this emblem could have ever made it to production; I imagine the higher-ups at Lotus would insist it’s not a Lotus without the Lotus emblem, but I can only speculate at this point. It’s history that’s only really mulled over if you’ve got the right wires crossed in your brain, and an obsession with Lotus’ only front-wheel-drive car.

I, for one, would have loved to see an alternate reality where the M100 is characterized by a fellow feline – although Britain isn’t exactly lacking in cars named for felines. Meow!

Top graphic images: Jetta Cat; Lotus