Lotus, which has recently confirmed that it is going to introduce a new range of electric performance cars, has revealed the new, innovative lightweight chassis technologies which will be the basis for its range of electric sports cars. A new Lotus animation shows how this technology will be incorporated into a new range of electric sports cars chassis. The animation illustrates the versatility of this brand-new electric car (EV) architecture for Lotus.
Introduced as a progressive super-SUV, Eletre is the Lotus entry in this category of customer-friendly vehicles. In addition to being Lotus first-ever SUV, the forthcoming hyper-SUV, “Lotus Eletre,” will bring with it further firsts for the automaker. Lotus is entering a new era, and new sector, in the marketplace with their first-ever SUV, the fully-electric Lotus Eletre.
According to a press release from Lotus Cars following its unveiling event, the forthcoming hyper-SUV, the Lotus Eletre, will have all-wheel-drive capability, built on the companys new 800V Dedicated Electric Architecture, which includes over 100kWh battery. According to Lotus Cars, Eletre takes the heart and soul of their sporty Emira car and combines it with their fully electric Evija hypercar, creating a brand-new hyper-SUV category. The Eletre is also Lotus first model not made up of sports cars, with the Eletre being the first five-door production vehicle, as well as the most technology-connected of the family. Despite the Eletres heavy SUV body, Lotus promised true sports performance in the Eletre.
Lotuss mass-reduction approach has still been central to the design, with their first ever SUV taking core principles and the Lotus DNA of over 70 years of sportscar design and engineering, evolving it into an attractive, new-styled, all-new vehicle for a new breed of Lotus customer. Lotus is also working on moving the Lotus sports cars to an EV age, using yet another new platform called E-Sport Architecture. After the 2023 release of the Lotus Eletre, the brand plans to launch two further high-riding crossover-type vehicles, followed by their first fully-electric sports cars; they all would hit the market within five years. As a result, Lotus current product range will be expanded to include four more all-electric cars by 2026.
The start-up would make Eletre the first Lotus produced outside of the UK, though the traditional Lotus sports cars are expected to continue there. To begin with, the 2024 Eletre is the first Lotus built in China, in the new factory at Wuhan, though future sports cars will still be produced from Lotuss spiritual home in Hethel, UK. While The 2024 Eletre is not the first Lotus with four seats (ignore the Lotus-badged 1960s Ford Cortina, the 1970 Type 75 Elite got there first), it is the first four-door Lotus not to be a modified version of an existing vehicle, such as the 1990s Lotus Carlton. The first electric Lotus is followed by The Eletre super-SUV (pictured above), which was shown off this year, with sales expected to begin at the end of 2022.
The Eletre for 2024, rather than the Cayman-rivalling Emira, Evija hypercar, or a smaller, electric sports-car that is being developed alongside Alpine, is the product that points more precisely where Lotus is going, and is a key piece of Geelys plan to make Lotus Britains answer to Porsche. Lotus has big hopes the Eletre will do for diminutive Lotus what the Porsche Cayenne did for Porsche – and, although being electric may give it the appearance of being Teslas competitor, that is something very different. While the Ice-powered Emira is just entering production, British-Chinese sportscar specialist Lotus insists that it would never again greenlight anything but an electric vehicle for production. Gone is no stopping Lotus, which was bullish in its press release issued this week, saying that the decision means it will be the worlds first established sports-car manufacturer to have an all-electric range.
Lotus, a British automaker, has not specified just how large the batteries will be, other than stating an electric vehicle will have over 100kWh battery capacity,, but it estimates the overall range to be 373 miles, which is the same as Teslas Model X Long Range Plus. Lotus says that Eletre will have a battery that is more than 100 kWh, which would give it a 300-mile range. The 800V puts the electric car in line with Audis e-Tron and the Hyundai Ioniq 5, meaning on a 350kW DC fast charger, drivers can add about 248 miles to their range on a 20-minute charge, according to British carmaker Lotus. In terms of charging capabilities, the forthcoming hyper-SUV from Lotus Eletre will be able to get 400km (248 miles) from a 350 kW charger in 20 minutes, and it will be able to take on 22kW AC charging as standard wherever it is available.
In addition to its electric drivetrain, the new SUV benefits from Lotuss know-how with the chassis. The brands Lotus Eletre has a two-motor set-up giving it 591 hp, with a 100+kWh battery pack, and an estimated 370 miles (600 km) driving range from a single charge.
Known as Eletre codename Type 132 up to this point, Eletre is the first of what Lotus is calling a new family of what is called lifestyle performance EVs, supposedly translating into a portfolio of larger, more practical cars with a worldwide appeal. Electric vehicles are the future of the automotive industry, and Lotus Cars, which is located in Britain/China, has introduced a pioneering vehicle that will push the genre of EVs up a few notches. This is just the start of the Lotus Cars journey, with Lotus Cars set for electricification in 2028, so I am sure we will see more thrilling technologies down the road.