Lotus, fueled by the success of Evora 400 in U.S.A, is pleased to report its first operating profit for nearly four decades.
This very attractive Elise Concept was presented at the Paris Motor Show in 2010 to show off what was to be the next-generation 2015 Elise. Although the current-gen Elise is no longer being sold, Lotus continues to sell it, even though there are many versions with more power and less weight, like the Elise 250 special edition.
You can choose to wait for a completely overhauled Elise. However, Lotus has made it clear that the new generation will be arriving in 2020. The new Elise will weigh in at less than 1,000 kg (2,200 lbs) when it arrives. The new Elise will have a new extruded and bonded aluminum chassis that helps to reduce the weight. Other changes will be made to enable Lotus to sell the car in the United States.
The Evora400, pictured above, is a huge hit in the U.S. as it has already been sold out since its August launch. This is the reason Lotus has made its first operational profit since 1970s. It also helped reduce the number of employees from 1,200 to 800 in May 2014. Gales says that the cars are now of higher quality than they were two-years ago. The company’s production output has grown from less than 1,200 units per year to over 2,000 cars since then, despite a decrease in employee numbers.
Lotus expects to be able sell approximately 4,000 cars by 2020, after the Exige and Elise launch. The next-gen Evora will be available in 2022. An SUV is still being thought about. The high-riding Lotus will double, or even triple, the company’s 2020 sales volume if it is approved for production.
The existing models will still be optimized for performance and weight reductions in the years ahead. Lotus also wants to improve build quality, and will have an Evora open-top ready by the end next year.