So I asked this to a bunch of F-car enthusiats, but they had no answer. Why are all of Lotus's cars named beginning with an "E?" Elan, Esprit, Elise, Exige...etc. Hey, wait a minute...how about the Lotus Etc?
The Lotus Eleven dominated racing in the late 1950's, it won 1st, 2nd, and 4th place at the 1957 Le Mans. This was the first Lotus where they dropped the "Mark" and spelled out the number (as opposed to Mk 9, Mk 8). Also around that time, one of the first Lotus production cars came out, the Elite GT, which sold very well. Probably because of the coincidence with the names, and because it sounds so good, they kept up the tradition with the Elan and Espirit, and "Elise" worked out perfectly because it was the name of the granddaughter of Romano Artioli, who took over around 1993. Exige, Etc. you get the idea
Oddly enough, Ford uses E a lot too in their current SUV line up. Excursion Explorer Expedition Escape And who can forget the classic Escort.
the cosworth escort isn't something to bat an eye at though. but i think they dropped the stupid escort name (cause it makes it sound like a hooker)