Lotus have confirmed they are to enter the crossover SUV market in what the company is saying will be a “real Lotus” and the “world’s first lightweight SUV”. The Lotus SUV will be made in China at a purpose-built factory.
This is quite a leap for Lotus, the company is famed for making lightweight sports cars and even more famous for being constantly in financial quicksand.
Making an SUV when the company is clawing its way back to finacial health is like trying to walk on a broken leg that has yet to heal. The new model is scheduled for a 2019 release and Lotus hope it becomes a best seller.
The plans were revealed to the Autocar magazine, new CEO Jean Mark Gales has overseen a 55 percent increase in sales from over 2000 units last year and a predicted 3,000 units in 2015.
Demand for SUV’s in China is particularly high and where there is demand then there is fortune for the brave. Sales of SUV’s in the worlds biggest car market exceeded 3 million units last year.
When Gales took over the running of Lotus he initiated a three-phase plan. Phase 1 has already been met, to increase yearly sales to beyond 2,000 units. Phase two will be to aim for 4,000 and the third will be the SUV phase.
The Lotus tradition of lightweight and refined handling will be core to the SUV DNA. Gales hopes to increase total sales to over the 10,000 mark.
Worryingly Autocar point out that there may be parts carried over from Proton, in other words Lotus could well use a Proton SUV chassis and re-engineer it to suit their requirements.
Autocar also speculated about what powertrain the Lotus SUV will use. Their speculation lasted about one second because they stuck with the current Toyota sourced V6 engines. Diesels will not be offered in China but could be offered for European markets.
Lotus will also offer its SUV will four wheel-drive capability and a hybrid option is also being looked at.
Jean-Marc Gales insists “Let’s get the design right, then make a prototype. Let’s make it beautiful and very light. Then we’ll have an SUV like nothing else in the world.”
