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Lotus won't rule out SUV, but first we'll get a new Elise

Not even Lotus can ignore the sales potential of SUVs. Speaking to media yesterday, Lotus CEO Jean-Marc Gales said "The SUV is an interesting market. We're working on a concept but haven't made a decision yet." Lotus has reorganized lately, and is cash flow neutral on a path to future profitability. Put away your pitchforks. Yes, Lotus is the last automaker we'd expect to make an SUV, but nearly every other carmaker has already given up resistance. And we surmise that even a Lotus SUV would follow the Lotus founder Colin Chapman's famous ethos of "Simplify, and add lightness." At least relatively. Or, as Gales put it, "We stick to our roots, because they are enviable roots." That means the new Elise, coming in 2020 and destined for America, will be a lot like the current model sold in other markets. As we reported last week, Gales confirmed that the next Elise will be slightly wider to accommodate side airbags, but otherwise will have similar dimensions and power-to-weight ratio. The Evora 400 Roadster is also still planned, but won't come stateside for at least two years. "Lotus will not fit electrical steering [systems]. They take away the steering feel." And while the SUV ship may sail, there are still a few heretical ideas left in Hethel. In confirming that the Elise will add assisted steering in the next generation, Gales assured us it would be hydraulic. "Lotus will not fit electrical steering [systems]. They take away the steering feel." Also off the table for Lotus is any kind of hybrid. Speaking to Autoblog, Gales explained that hybrid systems adds weight, complexity, and take up space. The first two items go against the core values at Lotus, and the third creates packaging issues. "Besides, when you have low mass it's easy to be efficient," the CEO said. He added that a pure EV might be something Lotus would consider, but not anytime in the near future. Lotus returns to the US this year with the Evora 400. Stay tuned for our first drive review in a couple of days (spoiler alert: the car is awesome). And beyond the Evora convertible and next Elise, Gales says "You will enjoy many more cars from our company." We can't wait.Related Video: Lotus Convertible Coupe SUV Performance lotus evora 400 jean-marc gales lotus evora 400 roadster

Lotus proves it's alive and well by releasing its most powerful road-going car

The future hasn't always looked bright for Lotus, but the British company is skating on much thicker ice under Geely ownership now than it was in the middle of the 2010s. It continues to claw back from the brink by releasing a GT-badged evolution of the Evora that delivers a meaner punch than its predecessors, and comes with a list of options that nearly rivals Porsche's. The GT replaces the Sport 410 and the 400 variants of the Evora. Presented as the most powerful road-going Lotus ever sold in the United States, it's powered by a 3.5-liter V6 engine supercharged to 416 horsepower at 7,000 rpm and 317 pound-feet of torque at 3,500 rpm. Those figures allow it to hit 60 mph from a stop in a brisk 3.8 seconds, and reach a 188-mph top speed. It's still a little bit slower than the Evora GT430 released in 2017, but Lotus kept that model away from American roads. The Evora GT comes standard with a six-speed manual transmission. Enthusiasts not interested in using a clutch can select an automatic gearbox that they can leave in drive or shift manually with aluminum paddles mounted on the steering wheel. Torque goes up to 332 pound-feet when the six shifts through the optional automatic, but the Evora GT posts the same performance figures regardless of how many pedals are in its footwell. Lotus makes the Evora GT using carbon fiber to keep weight in check. Buyers can honor company founder Colin Chapman by adding lightness if they're willing to add dollars, too. Priced at $10,000, the Carbon Pack includes a roof panel, a tailgate, a front access panel, and a diffuser all made with carbon fiber. Ticking that box shaves 50 pounds; put another way, Lotus charges $200 per pound.  Selecting the $8,000 titanium exhaust removes another 22 pounds. The Evora GT tips the scale at 3,104 pounds in its lightest configuration, but getting there requires paying for a Volkswagen Golf's worth of options. At least downforce comes standard, and the GT has more of it than its predecessors. The new GT designation doesn't bring significant exterior styling changes. It's the same story inside, where Lotus continues to offer the model as a strict two-seater, or with a pair of rear seats big enough for very, very small occupants. Every GT comes standard with a 7-inch touchscreen compatible with both Android Auto and Apple CarPlay. On sale now, the 2020 Lotus Evora GT starts at $96,950. Deliveries will begin by the end of 2019.

Lotus' new position: Much improved, if Volvo's experience is a guide

Out today is the news that Geely Holding will acquire controlling interest in British sports car maker Lotus Cars. While some 20 years ago the Chinese acquisition of a British automaker might have inspired grumbling from aggrieved Brits (and the handful of Lotus enthusiasts), the world has moved on. And so – thankfully – can Lotus. To suggest Lotus' business history has been checkered is to broaden the definition of "checkered." With its beginnings in the early '50s as a maker of component cars for competition, Lotus founder Colin Chapman – in a manner not unlike his postwar contemporary, Enzo Ferrari – was always hustling, living a hand-to-mouth existence in the production of road cars to support a racing program. Regrettably, Chapman never found a Fiat, as Ferrari did toward the end of the 1960s. Lotus had Ford in its corner for racing and as a resource for powertrains, and later benefited from the corporate support of both GM and Toyota for relatively short periods. Lotus Cars, however, never enjoyed the corporate buy-in that would have allowed Chapman to race and let someone else build the cars. Regardless of what Consumer Reports or Kelley Blue Book might have thought (if they had ...) about those early Lotus cars, a great many are now regarded as classics. My first knowledge of a production Lotus was when Tom McCahill, the 'dean' of automotive journalists in the US, tested an early Elan for Mechanix Illustrated. While we're still not sure, some 50 years later, how McCahill's XXL frame fit into the tiny roadster, he had nothing but praise for the Elan's athletic chassis and now-timeless design. In today's Lotus portfolio, the Elise and Exige continue that light, athletic tradition, while the larger Evora seems to strike wide – literally and figuratively – of the "less is more" ideal. With the Toyota-powered Evora, more is more. But in an eco-sensitive era demanding more of the original Chapman mantra – add lightness – there's little reason that Lotus can't regain relevance if given the financial resources. Geely's acquisition of Volvo, the fruits of which appear regularly not only in the news but on the streets, suggests the Chinese investment will provide strategic vision (along with money) while allowing Lotus talent to do what it does best: Create an exciting product. And while at various periods in its history the product has been worthy, Lotus in the US has been ill-served by a flailing dealer network.