Lotus has already confirmed that it will build a road-going version of its Evora GTE race car based on the striking concept version we saw at the recent 2011 Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance, and now, at the 2011 Frankfurt Auto Show, the automaker has unveiled the production version.

Producing a peak 438 horsepower from a race-bred version of the same 3.5-liter V-6 found in the Evora S, this is, quite simply, be the most powerful Lotus road car ever built.

Originally designed as a special limited edition for the Asian market, Lotus has now announced that production will be expanded on the Evora GTE road car to meet demand and reach further markets--including the U.S.

In fact, Lotus planned to build just 25 examples for the Asian market but more than 100 customers put down deposits within days of its initial announcement, prompting the automaker to launch it in other markets.

Plenty of carbon fiber has been integrated extensively throughout the exterior and interior of the car, helping to shed more than 165 pounds from the weight of the base Evora. For example, carbon fiber has been used for all the bodywork modifications including the front and rear bumpers, the rear wing and the doors.

The car also gets a custom automated manual gearbox, forged light alloy wheels shod with Pirelli P-Zero Corsa tires, and Recaro bucket seats made from more carbon fiber.

Enjoy our live photos and then click here for our complete coverage of the 2011 Frankfurt Auto Show.

Note, Lotus also unveiled in Frankfurt its new supercharged V-6 endowed 2012 Exige S, which you can read about by clicking here.