After its sale to the Chinese group Geely, which also owns brands such as Volvo or Polestar, the British manufacturer Lotus has taken a new direction from being a niche manufacturer to a higher volume premium segment. This is the Lotus Lambda, which will be presented in 2022 and has been classified as “the most important car in the history of the brand.”
This will be based on Volvo’s modular SPA platform and manufactured in Wuhan (China) from where it will be exported around the world, including Europe. A high-performance SUV will finally not have a hybrid version, as planned in the first announcements in 2016, when the project began, and will reach the market only with a 100% electric configuration.
Lotus indicates that due to the rapid evolution of the sector, which has seen how in recent months, the demand for electric cars has skyrocketed, which led the Asian manufacturer to leap directly to electricity.
One of the keys will be the economy of scale, which will allow Lotus to benefit from increased production of key components such as motors and batteries. Something that will add to the capacity of its new plant in Wuhan which will carry out up to 150,000 units a year. A considerable figure for a manufacturer that aims to reach 20,000 units a year in the short term.
This model will also have Volvo’s SPA modular platform, which will allow Lotus to manufacture the Lambda in other plants of the group if necessary. The flexibility will enable the firm to adapt production to each market’s demand and even to each region’s socioeconomic variations.
As for the vehicle, one of Lotus’s priorities is to maintain its low-weight philosophy. They have indicated that it will not achieve the figures of an Evora, but if they work, the figure on the scale is placed below 2,000 kilos. A figure that we can compare with the almost 2,500 kg of a Tesla Model X.
According to rumors, the Lambda will arrive in two versions. One of access that will have a power of about 600 CV and all-wheel drive, and a sportier one that will reach an estimated power of about 750 CV, and that will become the flagship of the brand.
In autonomy, this SUV will benefit from work on low weight and aerodynamics to achieve a range of about 372 miles with each load. Something that will force you to mount a battery above 100 kWh.
The bad news, in the absence of knowing the prices, is that we will have to wait a long time to see this impressive SUV on our roads. According to Lotus, the presentation will take place in 2022, at which time they will open the sale process. But it won’t be until 2023 when deliveries begin. Something that supposes more than two years ahead to finish developing the vehicle and extending the commercial network that will allow the resurgence of a mythical brand that is still in the imagination of car fans.