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New Lotus SUV could be based on Volvo architecture

Last year, Chinese carmaker Geely upped its stake in Lotus to a majority, recently investing more money into the British brand. Now, talking with Automotive News, CEO Jean-Marc Gales says Geely has approved three new models: two sports cars and the third an SUV. The sports cars will be announced later this year, and they will reach production in 2020. The last time a properly new Lotus debuted was in 2009 with the Evora, so a decade later new products are certainly due. But what about that SUV? Autocar says that since Geely also owns Volvo, that makes it possible for Lotus to base the SUV onto the Volvo SPA platform, which is also used in the XC60 and XC90. The choice of platform would mean the SUV would have to be a four-cylinder model, but that's nothing new to Lotus. It could even use Volvo's "Twin Engine" hybrid setup, which would mean a power output of over 400 horsepower as stock, and that with Lotus' eagerness for lightness could be a potent combination. Autocar quotes Gales as saying, "It will go round bends like nothing else in its segment." The target weight for the approximately Porsche Macan-sized SUV is under 2,000 kilos (4,400 pounds), and the Macan weighs 4244 pounds in 400-hp Turbo guise. The Lotus SUV is projected to hit the market in "about four years," and it's very likely to be built in China instead of Britain, as the Chinese market is very enticing — especially for this class of vehicle. The vehicles will still be designed at Lotus' Hethel HQ. Related Video:

Man convicted of spying on truck maker Scania for the Russians

STOCKHOLM — A Swedish court on Wednesday sentenced a 47-year-old man to three years in prison for spying for Russia, which involved selling secret information from truck maker Scania. The court said it had found the man guilty of acquiring and selling the secret information from the truck maker to a Russian embassy official. The court acquitted the man of similar espionage charges at Geely-owned carmaker Volvo Cars. "To be convicted of espionage, it is required that Sweden's security can be damaged if the information benefits foreign powers," the court said in a statement. "The district court has ruled that this is the case with regard to the information that the man obtained from Scania, while it has not been proven that this is the case with regard to the information from Volvo." The court statement said the man regularly received cash at his meetings with the Russian embassy official, which it considered was compensation for the information provided. The man, who has denied wrongdoing, was apprehended whilst meeting the diplomat in a restaurant, having just received 27,800 Swedish krona ($3,242). He worked as a consultant for Volvo Cars in 2016 and 2017 and for Scania in 2018 and 2019, until he was arrested. The man's lawyer said he would appeal. Scania is owned by truck maker Traton. Government/Legal Volvo Scania

Volvo P1800-based gasser is UK's entry in the Hot Wheels Legends Tour

Hot Wheels has spent the past few months touring the United States in search of the next custom car it will add to its catalog of 1/64-scale diecast models. It's not stopping there: It also headed to the United Kingdom to add a bit of international flair to the competition, and it selected a Volvo P1800 that has been heavily modified into a gasser as the winner that will move on to the semifinal round. Owner Lee Johnstone explained he built his P1800 — which he nicknamed "Ain't no Saint" — starting with a bare shell that had been stripped and that was too far gone to properly restore. Volvo's 1960s four-cylinder engines are famously tunable, but Johnstone looked across the pond for an engine suitable to make his dream car a reality. He chose a 454-cubic-inch V8 sourced from the Chevrolet parts bin and supercharged to develop about 600 horsepower. Ain't no Saint reportedly runs a 10.01-second quarter mile at 133 mph. Johnstone regularly races the P1800 with his three daughters. He consequently named his team Johnstone & Daughters (JD) Racing. "This is a beautiful example of a gasser — a drag racer with street car form. Often with dragsters, the chassis is so important that the body gets overlooked, but this example is fabulous with great attention to detail," explained former Jaguar design director Ian Callum, who was one of the judges that selected the P1800 as the United Kingdom's finalist. "It completely hits the Hot Wheels brief." Hot Wheels has already released several gassers, including one based on a 1955 Chevrolet Bel Air. Time will tell if Johnstone's P1800 will become the next addition to the series. Its next stop is the global semifinal round scheduled for November 4, 2021, where it will compete against some of the previous winners. There are two semifinal rounds taking place before the grand finale planned for November 13.