We expected Lotus to celebrate its sixtieth anniversary somehow, but perhaps not like this. Witness the 2009 Lotus Europa Diamond Anniversary, a one-off sports coupe adorned with - of course - diamonds.
Apart from a diamond-set emblem on the Europa's nose, most of the rocks are within the interior. Eleven diamonds adorn a custom shift knob, while the gauge faces are embellished with additional jewels. Lotus claims the Europa wears no less than £110,000 ($197,000) of diamonds, both inside and out.
The diamond theme continues, with inserts for the leather seats and door panels quilted in a diamond pattern. Even the paint - a deep metallic black - hints at gems, with glass flakes embedded into the hue itself (similar to some colors on the 2009 Lincoln MKS) adding an extra bit of sparkle.
Lotus will publically display the car at its headquarters in Hethel, England, albeit with one caveat: the car, when on display, will wear fake diamonds for security reasons. Did anyone call for a Cubic Zirconium edition?