DULUTH, Georgia — The first U.S. products to feature the Lotus Sport badge — the track-only supercharged 243-hp Lotus Sport Exige Cup and the street-legal 2006 Lotus Sport Elise — were unveiled at the New York International Auto Show. The British brand also introduced the first in a new line of Lotus Sport competition parts for the U.S. market.

"There are thousands of Elise owners in this market who are serious about increasing the performance of their Lotus in a motorsports environment," said Mark O'Shaughnessy, Lotus Cars USA director of sales and marketing. "The debut of Lotus Sport products will give them access to the most sophisticated and factory-proven performance products and parts."

Sport Ohlins shocks will be the first Lotus Sport part to hit the U.S. market. The company describes the performance shocks as having "extensive rebound and compression adjustments."

Lotus Sport is the British automaker's competition subsidiary which develops, designs and engineers limited-edition production and purpose-built racing cars as well as individual parts and accessories. The Lotus Sport team also builds individual competition cars, such as a Lotus Exige that was specifically built for GT2 competition in the Asian market.

What this means to you: It appears that the cottage industry for performance is alive and well in Hethel.