Art of Gears
Fansided

A Lotus SUV?

By David Castro

PARIS, FRANCE - OCTOBER 02: The logo of car manufacturer Lotus is on display during the first press day of the Paris Motor Show at the Parc des Expositions at the Porte de Versailles on October 2, 2018 in Paris. The Paris Motor Show will present the latest models from the world's leading car manufacturers at the Paris Expo Exhibition Center from October 4 to 14, 2018. (Photo by Chesnot/Getty Images)
PARIS, FRANCE - OCTOBER 02: The logo of car manufacturer Lotus is on display during the first press day of the Paris Motor Show at the Parc des Expositions at the Porte de Versailles on October 2, 2018 in Paris. The Paris Motor Show will present the latest models from the world's leading car manufacturers at the Paris Expo Exhibition Center from October 4 to 14, 2018. (Photo by Chesnot/Getty Images) /
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Lotus announced that their future vision is building vehicles on four platforms: Hypercar, Sports, Premium, and E-Sports. The premium platform is the basis of branching out into lifestyle vehicles to increase their sales and market share. Speculation is abound that the Premium platform will include an SUV, which will give the long-time sports car manufacturer a chance to branch out and bump up sales.

Today’s cryptic news from Lotus coincides with recent rumors of the iconic sports car manufacturer going into the SUV market. Last October, AutoWeek speculated on an electric SUV by Lotus and with the the SUV & crossover market on a high, it makes sense that Lotus would develop one.

Which is pretty much the Porsche template of keeping the sports car division afloat by offering SUVs or sedans. Yes 911s are dope but they don’t sell a ton of units, and you do what you gotta’ do to pay the rent (which is why my own resume has some unique entries).

I’m not a big SUV guy but I readily acknowledge that they are often practical and I do have a soft place in my heart for the Chevy K5. My issue with current SUVs is that they are kind of dull and to a certain degree cookie cutter.

Find yourself lost in the Disneyland parking lot and looking for your silver Ford Explorer? You’re going to be there for a while and setting off your own car alarm for any sign of your vehicle.

As my 11th grade history teacher once told me, “You can be an idealist, but you must also be a realist.”

The reality of the matter is that if a smaller sports car manufacturer like Lotus wants to stay afloat they need to sell more cars and SUVs are a way to do it. I dig Lotus and want them around, so I’m cool with seeing a Lotus SUV cruising around the Valley of the Sun.

My love for Lotus goes back to the 007 flick “The Spy Who Loved Me” and Bond’s Lotus Esprit that was also a submarine. They’re cool, light, quick and handle better than almost anything you can find. Plus they’re kind of posh and always get a second look on the road.

Want to own a cool and exotic car to impress your friends and coworkers? Buy a Lotus Exige and as the above clip from “Red 2” shows it is also a good car chase option.

(Side note: Amongst celebrities that I would like to go out drinking with, Helen Mirren is high on that list. I really don’t know a ton about her, I’m a fan of her work, but she seems hella’ dope and likely has a ton of cool anecdotes. Dennis Rodman is also on my list, he replaced the late Andre The Giant.)

Like I mentioned before, Lotus is not the first sports car manufacturer to join the SUV game:

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