The Lotus Eletre is a battery electricfull-size luxurycrossover SUV produced by the British sports car manufacturer Lotus Cars. It was revealed on 29 March 2022 as the company's first production SUV and its first vehicle produced in China.
Overview
Conceived by Jean-Marc Gales, Lotus's CEO at the time, the Lotus SUV project originally surfaced in 2016. Prior to this project, Lotus had revealed the 2006 Lotus APX concept crossover SUV, the first SUV that the company had built. In 2020, it was revealed that the internal codename for the new SUV project was 'Lambda' and that the model will be revealed in 2022.[6] Later in 2021, teasers for the SUV were released and the 'Type 132' codename name for the model was revealed.[7] In February 2022, Lotus showed more teasers and revealed that the SUV would debut on 29 March 2022.[8][9]
Ahead of its official debut, 3D patents published by the intellectual property office on 8 March revealed the Lotus Type 132, showing the SUV's coupe-like design.[10] Later that month, the final production name of Type 132 was revealed to be 'Eletre', consistent with the other mass-production Lotus model nameplates which all begin with the letter 'E'.[11] The name of the car is derived from the Hungarian word "életre" which means "(coming) to life".[12]
The Lotus Eletre was designed at the Lotus Tech Creative Centre in West Midlands, England and is produced in Wuhan, China.[9]
Rear view
Interior
Specifications
Battery and platform
The Eletre is based on the Lotus Premium Architecture for the company's future C-segment and E-segment electric models. After the Type 132, two more SUVs and a sports car are planned to be released.[13]
For model year 2024, The Lotus Eletre is available in three trim levels: base, S, and R. All models are equipped with a 112.0-kilowatt-hour lithium-ion battery that supports charging speeds up to 350 kilowatts.[14] The base and S trims feature a dual-motor powertrain producing 603 horsepower and 524 pound-feet of torque, while the range-topping R trim boasts a more powerful setup (with an uprated rear motor), generating 905 horsepower and 726 pound-feet of torque. The R version, furthermore, is equipped with a 2-speed gearbox for the rear motor. The Eletre R can reach 60 mph in 2.9 seconds.[3]