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World first for an automotive manufacturer as
Lotus unveils entire new product line up and
introduces the world to the new Lotus lifestyle.
We did it! At exactly 16.45 CET on September
30th 2010, via a live global webcast, surrounded
by the world’s press, Lotus made the ultimate
statement of intent. Five new cars, two
evolutions of existing models and a concept car.
A sumptuous new magazine. A flashy new website.
And a range of merchandise featuring not one,
not two, but three separate clothing ranges.
There’s so much to take in that we thought we’d
keep the post event words simple. But for those
who need details, fear not, we have a lovely
media site where you can get all the information
including technical specifications (see notes to
editors). For now though, we’re going to let the
man behind the vision do the talking, here’s
what Lotus CEO Dany Bahar has to say:
The New Lotus Esprit (5.0 litre/V8/620 PS), the
icon is back: “The Esprit is the ultimate
supercar. There’s a fine balance between
acknowledging the greatness of the past whilst
at the same time rapidly leaping forward to the
future and ensuring that this car not only does
the name Esprit justice but also the Lotus
brand. I think we’ve managed to find the balance
and in doing so created a new icon, a car people
will find hard to resist. The design is
aggressive, you have to see it to appreciate how
low and wide the proportions are but it still
retains a level of dignity, of class and most of
all exclusivity. I’m very proud of this car."
The New Lotus Elan (4.0 litre/V6/450 PS), the
end of compromise: “Perfect for both road and
track, the Elan not only ticks all the boxes, it
creates new ones too. It will convert people to
Lotus, it will also go a long way towards
dispelling the old misconceptions about this
class, that in order to have high performance
you must sacrifice usability – those days are
gone. Once you drive an Elan you won’t look
back, it will give you things you didn’t even
realise you were missing – that’s the essence of
Lotus and the Elan perfectly captures that
spirit.”
The New Lotus Elite (5.0 litre/V8/620 PS), a new
British expression of exclusivity: “The Elite is
breathtakingly beautiful but it’s so much more
than that. One could say it’s a car of perfect
contradictions, it’s compact yet spacious, high
performance yet low emissions, lightweight yet
still reassuringly solid. It’s a car that we are
exceptionally proud of at Lotus and we truly
believe that there is nothing else like it out
there both in terms of styling and performance.
There will always be those who believe that
Lotus should stick to small sports cars but we
didn’t take the decision to design something
like the Elite lightly, it’s based on months of
careful research and planning.”
The New Lotus Elise (2.0 litre/inline 4/320 PS),
the grown up: “We worked very hard on getting
the Elise 2015 exactly right, it’s our entry
level car so it needs to give a proper
introduction to the Lotus driving experience.
The Elise you can buy now is still a fantastic
car and Lotus remains very proud of it, but this
is a natural progression for us moving forward.
The Elise 2015 will also be class-leading in
terms of performance and efficiency but it will
do more than that, it will take the Elise model
to the forefront of its class across the board.
It’s the next generation Elise for a new
generation of Lotus drivers.”
The New Lotus Eterne (5.0 litre/V8/620 PS), the
statement of intent: “The Eterne is sensational
to look at and as with the rest of the range it
also over delivers in all other aspects as well.
Similar to the Elite, it’s a car of perfect
contradictions, it’s compact yet spacious, high
performance yet low emissions relatively
lightweight yet still reassuringly solid. The
biggest difference between the Eterne and it’s
class competitors is that it’s not an evolution
of an existing two-door model, it’s a deliberate
and considered stand-alone creation. It’s the
ultimate four door sports car.”
The Concept City Car: “Lotus Design has created
a vehicle that condenses the essence of Lotus
into a low carbon city car, with many inspired
design touches. The progressive technology from
Lotus Engineering gives the car an advanced
drivetrain that can be operated in Zero
Emissions EV mode or run on its flex-fuel
engine. As you would expect from Lotus, the City
Car concept is an exquisitely designed, highly
efficient vehicle with class leading performance
- in this concept car, Lotus Design and Lotus
Engineering have provided the perfect solution
for life in the contemporary city environment.”
The Evora S: “It’s the next level of Evora
experience. It communicates with you better, the
suspension setting has been fine tuned for added
power and control so it responds even more to
direction. It’s an instinctive car, the
experience is pure. We were proud of the Evora
but we’re even prouder of the Evora S, I feel it
does the Lotus experience true justice. The
really great thing is that as we move forward
the standard Evora should also benefit from some
of these developments.”
The Evora IPS: “The Evora IPS is set to broaden
the appeal of the Evora and reach out to a
slightly different market. We hope it will be
popular with established automatic locations
such as Asia, the Middle East and the US. It’s
been a long time since Lotus created an
automatic and we’ve spent a great deal of time
refining this one to make sure that it perfectly
complements the Evora driving experience.”
The Magazine: “In order to do our very special
brand justice, just as with our new cars, we’ve
brought together the great and the good from the
magazine industry to bring you a work of reading
glory, we’re not only a car magazine, we’re a
lifestyle choice and over the coming pages
you’ll find a collection of intriguing articles
highlighting the very best of British culture
accompanied by fashion and sublime photography.
The magazine isn’t a glorified sales pitch, it’s
the gateway to the new Lotus world, it’s a
sneaky insight into our game plan. Lotus rules
apply. Come join us on our journey. Don’t be
left behind.”
The Website: “The website is our shop window to
the world and should provide the first taste of
the new Lotus lifestyle. We have worked
exceptionally hard to make sure we achieve the
perfect look and feel to match our new range of
cars – people will visit www.lotuscars.com and
find so much more than just a website selling
cars!”
The Merchandise: “Welcome to the world of Lotus,
where style is more than a simple trend. As with
our cars we aim to break new ground in
traditional areas offering an interpretation of
Lotus lifestyle that is true to itself. Product
is key. The focus is on product uniqueness.
Lotus is once more synonymous with excellence.
The product range reflects the diversity and
values of the brand in every detail. The Lotus
merchandise collection reflects all facets of
the brand in three different lines: Originals,
Heritage and Performance.” |
