Walking around the Savile Row Concours, one is easily drawn to a classic Porsche 356, a Ferrari 250 GT Spyder, or an electric-powered classic Bentley. For an event with only 20 or so curated vehicles, it was surprisingly easy to be distracted by the bespoke cars and posh fashions yet a Lotus, a Lotus SUV of all things – is what left a mark.
Under new ownership from Geely, the new Lotus Eletre shares a platform with the upcoming Polestar 3 and Polestar 5. Designed in Coventry, England the Eletre employs a similar strategy to fellow Geely-owned brand Volvo with a European design studio and a China-based production site.
Produced from 1976 to 2004, the Giorgetto Giugiaro-designed Esprit became synonymous with the brand given its sheer longevity and cult following. With more recent Lotus models such as the Elise, Exige, and Evora, Lotus continued prioritizing weight savings in their design strategy for their high-performance sports cars.
With its most recent turn – Lotus isn’t only producing small 2-seat sports cars like the Emira, but their largest model ever, the Eletre. At 201 inches long, the Eletre is longer than a Honda Pilot and is the brand’s first 4-door since the limited-run Vauxhall/Opel-based Carlton of the early 1990s.
And even amongst a crowd of cars including George Harrison’s Mercedes 600, the Lotus Eletre commanded quite a presence at London’s Savile Row Concours. The sculpted aerodynamic lines, the floating fascia over the front air dam, as well as the black roof and pillars, enhance the exotic appeal of the Eletre while stylishly hiding a capacious cabin.
While the exterior made a strong first impression, the interior is what sold me. After spending an extended amount of time in the driver and passenger seat with the Lotus UK rep, I can confidently say that Lotus knocked it out of the park.
The interior exudes attention to detail but without appearing dated or “overdecorated”. Lotus strikes the right balance of clean, modern luxury without the cold and austere cabins that plague other EVs. The materials, surfaces, and stitchwork are all top-notch and feel more than worthy of the price tag. I really didn’t want to get out of the car, it was so comfortable and the tech was entertaining and fun to play around with.
Exploring a clean sheet new design is exciting because the designers were not simply making evolutionary changes from a previous design – it truly feels new. While a Range Rover or a BMW X5 is going to keep to its overall design language from generation to generation - which is something to appreciate, these legacy competitors can be at a design disadvantage when parked next to something this new.
One of the most striking parts of the exterior is what’s missing – mirrors. This particular Eletre was specified with cameras in lieu of side mirrors which adds 2 more screens to the cockpit. This technology will take some getting used to but it was neat to check out.
While many are dealing with screen fatigue, automakers seem to be in competition for who has the largest screen. Fortunately, the dash is carefully designed in a way that the screens are nicely integrated and don’t distract from the aesthetic.
More importantly, the screens are NOT the aesthetic here, which is the issue plaguing some competitors. This is not to say there is an absence of screens, the Lotus is filled with them – they’re simply tastefully incorporated and less gimmicky.
One of the complaints about Volvo and other brands is that the touchscreen is too slow. I have never seen a touchscreen move as fast as the one in the Eletre. It moves like lightning. In addition to the expected large center touchscreen, there’s a smaller ribbon-like screen on both the driver and passenger side.
For the driver, most of the typical gauge cluster information is projected onto the windshield in a Head-Up Display that includes turn-by-turn directions with the intent that the driver will more safely keep their eyes on the road.
The screens aren’t just upfront, there’s a large screen behind the console for the rear passengers to control climate, seats, and audio. The rear passengers are treated to supremely comfortable seats with plenty of legroom. A neat feature is that the left and right rear passengers have the ability to lower both left and right windows on each door. The rear windows provide complete privacy to rear passengers – giving an almost limo-like vibe.
Other luxuries include double thick windows that cocoon occupants with a remarkable ability to nearly silence outside noise. Of all the impressive features noted thus far, the item the Lotus rep was most excited to demonstrate was the sound system. Admittedly I don’t have the most trained ear, so it was a little lost on me. However, the combination of the thick glass and the clarity of the music will certainly be appreciated by audiophiles.
Roomy and Lotus are finally being used in the same sentence. Despite a thick D-pillar and small rear window, the greenhouse of the Eletre feels more comfortable than other “couplelike” SUVs and has decent outward visibility. The side windows are decently sized and the A, B, and C-pillars are quite narrow enabling the cabin to feel airy – even without the optional glass roof.
Lotus maintains that despite the Eletre reaching a new audience by providing versatility never before seen with a Lotus badge, it still prioritizes lightweight materials, superior handling capabilities, and striking design that have cemented the brand’s sports car reputation.
When the Eletre goes on sale, there will be 2 powertrains. The less powerful option features 603 HP, a 0-62 MPH time of 4.4 seconds, and a range of 373 miles. The second is the top-of-the-range R model boasts 905 HP, a 0-62 MPH time of 2.9 seconds, and a range of 304 miles. Both powertrains support DC charging at 420KW and are said to add 248 miles of range in 20 minutes of charging. The R takes performance beyond an increased power and includes a Track mode that lowers the ride height.
There’s a lot of pressure these days for cars to be Swiss army knives. There are off-roaders trying to be sporty and sporty cars trying to be off-roaders. Unfortunately, it leads to some models trying to do everything without being great at anything. The new Lotus Eletre achieves a challenging balance of sporty and luxury in its comfortable new SUV.
With an estimated starting price of around $100k, it won’t be cheap. But when you look at the upper end of the Mercedes GLE and BMW X5 lineups easily costing $90k-120k for non-EVs, it’s not as hard of a pill to swallow – especially considering how modern and unique the Eletre is.
At this price point – the Rivian RS1, the top end of the BMW iX, Mercedes EQE and EQS SUVs, as well as Range Rover are competitors. Rivian and Range Rover are obviously intended to be much more utilitarian. Considering I was in London and speaking with a UK Rep from Lotus, Range Rover came up the most in the conversation. You can kind of tell their hope is to appeal to those who value a luxurious rear seat as well as performance. Essentially with the Eletre, Lotus aspires to compete with Range Rover in cache and comfort, but with Porsche in driving dynamics.
The Savile Row Concours and seeing Tina the Musical were the highlights of my London visit. Tina Turner experienced one of the greatest comebacks in music history in the 1980s. With the Eletre, Lotus is on track for its own rebirth and rebrand.
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