[Joxster]

I was a bit excited to see the news article headliner, until I read that Lotus is working on an SUV. I have nothing against SUVs, but Lotus was always known for lightweight track cars, which were excellent at handling, and even with the best engineers in the world, an SUV can never come close around a track.
I guess profitability comes first, and they see this as the only way to make the company profitable. But hey, if it means that they will be able to produce new sports cars, then I wish them all the best!

Lotus has revealed plans for two new sports cars that are set to arrive in 2020. They are the first models announced since the UK firm was bought by China’s Zhejiang Geely Holding Group last year. Lotus has also started work on its first SUV, CEO Jean-Marc Gales told Automotive News Europe. He said the SUV would arrive one to two years after the sports cars.

Lotus hasn’t launched a new car since the Evora went into production in 2009. The company has also failed to record a profit in recent years as buyers switched from sports cars to crossovers and SUVs. Gales declined to provide many details about the new models, but said one of the sports cars would replace a current member of Lotus’s range. Lotus builds the entry Elise, the track-focused Exige and the Evora, a rival for the Porsche 911. It also makes the 3-11, a roofless track car with supercar levels of performance.

“We are very confident we can launch those sports cars in two years and beat the competition where we want to beat them,” Gales said. “We will never be No. 1 in luggage space, but we will be in handling.” One of the two cars will use an updated version of an existing bonded-aluminum platform, while the more expensive model will use a new carbon-fiber ‘tub’ around which the car will be built. This car is likely be positioned above the Evora and will be aimed at customers wanting a more extreme driving experience. Gales said it will be closest to the 3-11, but road legal. “It will be something similar but much more civilized, because the 3-11 is pretty raw,” he said.

To help develop the two sports cars and the SUV, Lotus will hire 300 new people this year. They will work at its base in Norfolk, eastern England. The expansion would boost Lotus to 1,100 employees, which is close to the 1,215 the company had when Gales joined in 2014. Gales, the former head of brands at PSA Group, cut 325 people as part of an efficiency drive to stem losses at Lotus, which was then owned by Malaysia’s DRB-Hicom. Gales said the company was cash-flow positive last year with revenues up 24 percent to more than 100 million pounds ($142 million). He predicted the firm would be profitable in 2018.

The new models will help push Lotus toward its long-stated goal of selling 3,000 cars a year, Gales said. Last year Lotus sold 1,600 cars globally, up 13 percent on the year before. The SUV would eventually take the company beyond 10,000 sales, Gales predicted. The new sports cars will be built in England while the SUV would likely be built in China and one other location. “I can imagine two places worldwide and I would love one to be in the UK, but there are many things we need to discuss,” Gales said, referring to Britain’s pending exit from the EU. “Brexit casts a shadow over everything.”

Geely bought 51 percent of Lotus last year and at the same time purchased a 49 percent stake in Proton, owned by DRB-Hicom. Geely also owns the London Electric Vehicle Company (LEVC), which makes taxis, as well as Volvo Cars. Geely will invest "millions" to upgrade Lotus’s production facilities, Gales said, without providing an exact figure. The factory was last upgraded in 2009 for the start of Evora production.

Source

Cheers

[Joxster]

An interview with Lotus CEO Jean-Marc Gales reveals more on the plans.
As I also mentioned earlier, his biggest challenge is making Lotus's first SUV, without damaging its reputation as a sport car maker.

Lotus CEO Jean-Marc Gales is feeling optimistic. China's fast-expanding Zhejiang Geely Holding took a majority stake in Lotus last year and recently committed to its first big investment in the British sports-car maker. This will allow Lotus to add staff, new models and upgrade its production facilities in Norwich, England. During his four years as CEO, Gales has steadied the company's finances. Now his challenge is making Lotus's first SUV a winner without damaging its reputation as a maker of lightweight, agile sports cars. Gales spoke to Automotive News Europe Correspondent Nick Gibbs.

Lotus has been part of Zhejiang Geely Holding for more than six months now. What changes are taking place?

We will hire 300 new staff this year. Last December we were at 806, the lowest for a long, long time, so we will go to 1,100, almost a 40 percent increase.

Are the majority of the new hires going to work in vehicle development?

Most are. Geely has approved two new sports cars. We will tell you what they are in five months, but both will come in 2020. Our last new car [the Evora] was in 2009 so it's time for a new one.

Will these be flagship models or entry-level sports cars?

I can't be more precise, but both will be a benchmark in the segment in terms of handling, aerodynamics and lightweight.

And the SUV?

We have started to work on the new SUV.

When will it arrive?

In about four years. The SUV has to be the right car. We get one shot. We still need to sign off final design. That's the most important part. We can't use the same design language as a sports car, but you should also be able to recognize that it is a Lotus.

Will it use a platform from a Zhejiang Geely brand, maybe from Volvo?

Let's call them modules. Platform suggests something big and heavy and it's not like that. We are going to heavily use a mix of new and proven Geely family modules and combine them to create an aesthetically beautiful performance crossover.

What size is the SUV?

The Porsche Macan and Cayenne are the most interesting segments worldwide, so midsize and large. I wouldn't start Lotus in a compact segment.

What are your annual sales targets?

Above 3,000 a year is still our aim. Maybe in 2021-2022 with the two sports cars we can do that. Last year we sold 1,600, up from 1,416 the year before. We'll be at five digits [more than 10,000 units a year] with the SUV.

Will the SUV transform Lotus?

The company is growing fast. Revenue was up 24 percent to more than 100 million pounds (114 million euros) last year. We can double that, then as soon as you launch an SUV, you're thinking of a turnover close to 1 billion pounds. That's the sort of size we want – and we won't stop there. That’s why the SUV is so fundamental.

Where will you build the SUV? China?

We haven't decided, but given China is the world's biggest market it makes the most sense.

Can you get the OK to build in China?

We'll find a way. It's highly probable. The important thing is that the sports cars stay in the UK. For the SUVs I can imagine two places [for production] worldwide and I would love one to be in the UK, but there are things to discuss.

Like what?

I want to know what happens after Brexit. It casts a shadow over everything because it makes long-term planning difficult.

The entry Elise starts at 30,000 pounds. Does Lotus always need a budget sports car?

Over the last four to five years there haven't been many newcomers in sports cars. There seem to be two areas in the world where manufacturers need to get into bed together, one is vans, and one is sports cars. Sales volumes are notoriously low, investment is notoriously high, so you need to invest wisely. It's not easy.

Source

Cheers

[volkman10]

2022 Lotus Eletre (Type 132)

Coming to life on 29.3.22.

[TSIboy]

Lotus’s all new electric SUV, Eletre revealed.

The Eletre, whose name means ‘coming to life’ in Hungarian, will be offered in three forms, with differences in performance and specification but always four-wheel drive.

Confirmed technical figures are not yet available, but Lotus said the target is a top speed of 162mph and a sub-3.0sec time for the 0-62mph sprint. Eletre will have a battery capacity of more than 100kWh and power upwards of 592bhp. Maximum range is 348 miles and a full recharge will be possible in 18 minutes from a 350kW charger. Air suspension, active aerodynamics and active ride height will be standard, while options will include active dampers, active rear-axle steering and torque vectoring via an electronic limited-slip differential.

[PrasunBannerjee]

Looks heavily inspired from Urus and headlamps from Ferrari. There isn't any Lotus-esque newness or freshness to this compared to their other offerings in the past.

[volkman10]

It will be called Emeya and they present it on September 7.

[volkman10]

This is the new Lotus Emeya electric sedan.

With a 102.0-kilowatt-hour battery pack, the Emeya has 905 horsepower and a 0-62 time of just 2.8 seconds.











Link

[shankar.balan]

Originally Posted by volkman10

This is the new Lotus Emeya electric sedan.

With a 102.0-kilowatt-hour battery pack, the Emeya has 905 horsepower and a 0-62 time of just 2.8 seconds.


[L]

Somehow Im not sure the soul of Sir Colin Chapman will be much stirred by this. For one thing Im just not with these wonderful marques all going along this idiotic SUV/ 4WD route merely in a bid to remain ‘relevant’. As an aside I deeply dislike the Aston Martin DBX. Ugly thing. Same with the Lambo Urus,Porsche Cayenne and so on. Another thing (may sound negative or in a way ‘reverse-snobbish’ but hey, thats what I think), the owner-user profile of most of these cars has undergone a complete sea-change and frankly that profile of users is simply uninspiring and non-aspirational as far as I am concerned. I just cannot bring myself to ‘look up’ to someone just because they have oodles of money and/ or power/ influence. I still set store by ‘class’ and that doesn’t come automatically with just ‘money’ or ‘success’ or ‘position’ - more often the absolute opposite, actually.

[volkman10]

Lotus Emeya R+

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NdLD...nel=EletreR%2B

[volkman10]

Lotus Emeya:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AuBI...=Paul%27sPlace