(By Tom Lohnes) – When you think of an SUV, chances are a Jeep Wrangler or Chevrolet Suburban pop into your head. These vehicles are responsible for the huge uprise in SUV sales, and will have a role forever cemented in pop culture as the family cars of the time. When you think of sports cars, chances are a Lotus is somewhere in there. Well, today is kind of a sad day. Meet the Lotus Eletre, an all-electric Lotus SUV.
That’s right folks, we live in a world where financially unstable sports car manufacturers have to make an SUV to survive. It already happened to Lamborghini, Alfa Romeo, and Maserati, and Ferrari is soon to be the next victim. I can live with all of those, but a Lotus SUV? That just doesn’t sound right. The Eletre is probably going to be an excellent vehicle, but the idea of a Lotus without the “Add lightness and simplicity” theory the company is so known for just seems wrong. There wasn’t even a mansion of weight in the press release, so it seems clear Lotus is leaving that formula along with gas-powered cars as a whole. But, with that out of the way, let’s check out the Eletre, the future of the Lotus brand.
Looking like a fusion of Lamborghini Urus and Kia EV6, the Eletre is all-electric and has 600 horsepower. It can do 60 miles per hour in three seconds flat, and can reach a top speed of 162 miles per hour. Lotus did say in their press release that handling was a priority on the Eletre, so at least they didn’t forget about that. Another trait shared with other models is the naming scheme. Lotus’ current lineup counting the SUV is the Emira sports car, Eletre SUV, and Evija hypercar. All begin with the letter “E”. This has been a common Lotus trait for years now, and it lives on even with their porker of an SUV. Inside, the Eletre looks like the Tesla Model Y and Koenigsegg Gemera had a baby. There are plenty of clever design touches, and screens absolutely everywhere. And, unlike literally every other Lotus ever made with a backseat, this one seems tight if you a person and have normal length legs.
Overall, the Eletre is not the Lotus we wanted or needed, but it is sadly the logical step forward for a struggling brand like them. Prices are rumored to start around $150,000. Sales will start two years from now, and Lotus isn’t fully sure that they want to bring their SUV to America.
I had been kind of hoping for some sort of cross between a CJ2 and a sandrail. THAT would be the way to apply “Simplify and add lightness” to an SUV.