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Lotus adds lightness to new Exige S Club Racer

If there are two things Lotus is good at, they're trimming weight off already lightweight cars and getting the most out of its existing products. And those are just the talents it's called on to roll out the new Exige S Club Racer. Based on the Exige that's been on the market since 2000 – itself based on the Elise that dates back to 1996 – the new Exige S Club Racer manages to cut an extra 33 pounds off the vehicle's already featherlike curb weight, now down to under 2,600 lbs. The weight reduction comes down largely to the lightweight battery, center console, doors and sports seats. Yet measured at 100 miles per hour, the coupe also produces 93 lbs of extra downforce thanks to the revised aero package that includes a new front splitter, rear wing and flat underbody. Joining the Elise 20th Anniversary Edition (which itself replaces the Elise S Club Racer), the new Lotus Exige S Club Racer packs a 3.5-liter V6 to run to 62 in four seconds flat and on to a top speed of 170 mph. That's some rather impressive performance for a vehicle that only costs GBP56,900 in the UK, which is about what you'd pay for a Porsche Cayman GTS over there that would cost us around $75k. Unfortunately, Lotus doesn't sell the Exige in the US anymore, so this is one further improvement on a model we'll just have to admire from across the ocean. NEW LOTUS EXIGE S CLUB RACER - FASTER AND LIGHTER - Club Racer ethos applied to searingly quick Exige S - Weight reduced by 15 kg - Lotus benchmarks for handling and pure driving experience Applying the Lotus refined Club Racer principles to the already stunning Exige S results in the most inspiring version of an already class-leading sports car. The Exige S is a model that already excels, thanks to its lightweight aluminium chassis-tub and aerodynamically enhanced composite bodywork. Its 3.5-litre supercharged V6 engine delivers exciting performance, benchmark handling and a pure driving experience combined with a 4.0 seconds 0-62mph (0-100km/h) acceleration time and a top speed of 274 km/h (170 mph). Jean-Marc Gales, CEO of Group Lotus plc, expressed his enthusiasm for the new model: "Factoring the Club Racer ethos into the Exige enhances the track-focussed potential of this important model.

Lotus could be sold to Chinese automaker Geely

Two things are constant throughout the history of Lotus Cars: amazing vehicles, and financial struggles. Frequent changes in both ownership and leadership have left the company's future up in the air. And while the new management has improved quality and set a new product plan in place, its seems that Lotus could have a new parent company soon. Despite comments to the contrary, Chinese automaker Geely is rumored to be interested in acquiring Lotus Cars. The British automaker has been owned by Proton since 1996, but after Proton was sold to DRB-Hicom in 2012 investors suggested selling off Lotus. The Star Online reports that PSA in France is rumored to be looking at purchasing Proton cars from DRB-Hicom. In turn, Geely, the parent company of Volvo, is interested in purchasing Lotus from Proton. The report states that Geely has no interest in mass-market vehicles from Proton, while crossover-focus PSA, owner of Peugeot and Citroen, has no interest in a sports car manufacturer like Lotus. China has been encouraging its native automakers to purchase and acquire technology it lacks. Buying Lotus looks like it would benefit both companies. Lotus needs an influx of cash while Geely, looking to compete further on the global stage, would gain a great deal of technical and engineering knowledge from Lotus. Geely's stewardship of Volvo has been mostly hands-off, while giving the Swedish company enough money to invest in new platforms and technologies. If the same were to happen to Lotus, Colin Chapman's company could have its best years ahead of it. Related Video: News Source: The Star Online via Car BuzzImage Credit: Getty Rumormill Lotus Volvo Citroen Peugeot Lightweight Vehicles Performance Supercars Geely

Lotus Type 132 electric crossover leaked in patent images

Lotus is preparing to merge into the mainstream by releasing an electric crossover called Type 132. While we won't see the model in the metal until late in March 2022, a series of images leaked out of a patent office have prematurely revealed its exterior design. Discovered by Motor1, the renderings appeared on the website for the Australian patent and trademark office, IP Australia. They're attributed to Wuhan Lotus Cars Co., which is the new division in charge of developing the company's so-called "premium lifestyle" models. What immediately stands out is that the Type 132 — a code-name that most likely won't appear on the production model — looks nothing like the current or past members of the Lotus range; it's not merely a reshaped Emira or a stretched Elise on silts. Its unusual proportions match what we've seen in earlier spy shots, and distinctive styling cues like the thin light bar that stretches across the hatch also appeared in official preview images released by Lotus. Fully electric, the Type 132 is characterized by a short front end fitted with angular headlights, a relatively long wheelbase, and a roof line that's low and rakish; it certainly tilts more towards sport than towards utility. At first glance, the overall design looks less pure than what we're used to seeing from Lotus, though we'll need to wait until the model makes its official debut to tell for sure. What's certain is that the people-hauler depicted in these images is completely different than the one that leaked out of a patent office in China in October 2017. Either what we saw nearly five years ago was something else entirely, or the British firm sent its design team back to the drawing board. We spot several interesting details in the patent images. Look closely, and you'll notice that the Type 132 is not fitted with conventional door mirrors; it features door-mounted cameras, like certain Audi models. And, check out that pod on the roof. While it's almost shaped like an air vent, this is not a car designed for the World Rally Championship. One possibility is that it's there to house the various sensors required to power a semi-autonomous driving system. Lotus is controlled by Geely, which also owns Volvo and Polestar, so it has access to a tremendous amount of technology. Lotus will introduce the Type 132 online on March 29, 2022, and production will begin shortly after in China.