1995 Lotus Esprit S4s Coupe 2-door 2.2l on 2040-cars

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This might be a Lotus SUV test mule

These photos could be our first look at the Lotus SUV in test mule form. The body on the chassis is clearly that of a Lynk and Co. 01 SUV, but the underpinnings are something different entirely. Perhaps the most telling bit of all is the location in which our spy shooter caught the vehicle. We're told that this was shot dangerously close to Lotus' headquarters in Hethel, England. Using a Lynk and Co. body to test the Lotus SUV makes sense when you take into account who owns both companies. Geely happens to own Lotus, Lynk and Co. and Volvo, so they're all under the same roof at this point. These spy photos appear to be hiding a chassis that doesn't exactly fit correctly under the body, though. The front fenders are far wider than they are on the 01, and the rear fenders also look like they've been messed with to fit the much larger rubber. It has a wider, more aggressive stance than the Lynk and Co. SUV, lending more evidence to this being a Lotus SUV test mule. We'd expect a Lotus SUV to handle as well as anything in the class, so all these things do make sense if that's what it is. As for what could be powering the British SUV, that's another story. This tester has yellow caution tape covering where the gas cap is on the 01 SUV, no visible exhaust and a big, yellow high voltage sticker on the windshield. All of that tells us it's most likely electrified in some form. We didn't have intel that the Lotus SUV would be electric previously, but there's every chance they could go down that road. The Lotus 130 hypercar is going to be all-electric. And Volvo sells plug-in hybrids now, so the tech could be borrowed from there, too. Of course, Volvo doesn't have the same priorities as Lotus does with weight reduction and handling, so don't consider anything a done deal quite yet. We can't actually confirm that the vehicle in question is a Lotus underneath, but hopefully more photos and information make their way to us soon. There's still a long way to go in the development process if Lotus is only testing on mules now, so look for plenty more to come on this vehicle.

Volkswagen looking to acquire Proton, Lotus?

Let's say you're an automaker bent on world domination looking to grow your sales. That's going to have you looking at Asian markets, because that's where some of the biggest growth has been, and that's exactly what Volkswagen is doing as it considers making another run at Malaysia's Proton.
Reuters reports that Volkswagen is interested in at least a partial stake, if not a controlling interest in Lotus-parent Proton as a way to continue a production presence in the region without having to build its own factory.
Volkswagen already builds the Passat in a DRB-HICOM facility in Pekan, Malaysia, and plans are in place to build the Jetta and Polo there, as well. With both southeast Asia and its relationship with Proton figuring so importantly in Volkswagen's plans for expansion, buying into Proton can help ensure stability. Volkswagen is being tight-lipped about the whole idea, but CEO Martin Winterkorn did recently say, "it's our clear goal to continue the successful (expansion) course of past years with great dynamics and stability," which sounds an awful lot like deals are on the table to smooth the path to further growth.

Lotus builds the final Elise, Exige and Evora

Lotus has closed one of the most important chapters of its history: It has ended production of the Elise after a 25-year run. It also built the final example of the Exige, which was closely related to the Elise, and of the Evora, which was bigger and more comfort-oriented. We knew that this day was right around the corner, Lotus announced Final Edition variants of the Elise and the Exige in February 2021, and the British company confirmed that it's keeping the very last examples of the three models for itself. Shown above, the last Elise is a Sport 240 Final Edition model in yellow. The last Exige is a Cup 430 Final Edition finished in British Racing Green, while the last Evora is a GT430 Sport model that wears Dark Metallic Gray paint. All three cars will join the carmaker's growing collection of heritage models. Lotus built 51,738 examples of the Elise, the Exige, and the Evora combined over the past quarter of a century. While that doesn't sound like much, not when Ford sold over 787,000 units of the F-Series in pandemic-ridden 2020, that figure represents nearly half of the cars Lotus has built since its inception. It's worth noting that this number doesn't include the Elise derivatives made for third-party companies; the original Tesla Roadster was built on an Elise-sourced chassis, and the Opel Speedster was developed and manufactured by Lotus. It sounds like the three nameplates have been consigned to the pantheon of automotive history — at least for now. Lotus isn't standing still, however. Funded by Volvo parent company Geely, it unveiled the Emira, a coupe powered by a mid-mounted engine, earlier in 2021, and it's planning to launch its first crossover in spring 2022. The soft-roader will be the first in a series of mass-produced electric models from the company. Looking much further ahead, Lotus will also release a sedan and an electric sports car developed jointly with Alpine.