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Lotus Evija's wild aero setup is detailed by chief aerodynamicist

The Lotus Evija is a car of firsts for Lotus. To that end, the company has spent a lot of time talking over the details. Today, we get to learn about the wild shape’s aerodynamics and what Lotus engineers were trying to accomplish. Richard Hill, chief aerodynamicist for Lotus takes a dive into all the details, and the video at the top of this post offers a great visual. “Most cars have to punch a hole in the air, to get through using brute force, but the Evija is unique because of its porosity,” Hill says. “The car literally ‘breathesÂ’ the air. The front acts like a mouth; it ingests the air, sucks every kilogram of value from it – in this case, the downforce – then exhales it through that dramatic rear end.” We can see what Hill means as we look at the Evija in photos. Instead of a regular front bumper, this one has pass-throughs that direct the air back into the side of the car. Lotus hasnÂ’t released the all-important coefficient of drag figure yet, but we have to imagine itÂ’s very low. The front splitter (below, left) is responsible for a few different things. The opening in the center takes in air to cool the battery pack that is mounted behind the seats. Then, the outer section of the splitter channels the air to the “e-axle” for cooling of the electrical components. And finally, it also produces downforce.  There are a couple more tunnels for air to pass through in the rear. These “holes” are likely the most distinctive design feature, especially when accentuated with the LED taillights. Hill says that these are also fully functional and help to reduce drag. “They feed the wake rearward to help cut drag,” Hill says. “Think of it this way; without them the Evija would be like a parachute but with them itÂ’s a butterfly net, and they make the car unique in the hypercar world.” On top of all these porous body structures, there are pieces that move. The rear wing can elevate upward from its flush body position and deploy into clean air above, creating more downforce. And then thereÂ’s an F1-style drag reduction system. This uses a horizontal plane that deploys from the car to make it slipperier through air. The final big piece of this puzzle is the underbody sculpting that directs air into the massive rear diffuser. This causes an upwash of air, in turn creating a massive amount of downforce. Hill sums it up quite nicely.

Lotus Type 132 crossover EV teased five ways in video

Lotus has combined its series of video teasers of the Type 132 crossover into one reel. The result provides peeks at five of the features we can expect on the electric CUV when it launches next year. Under the "Breathe" section, there's the active lower grille, divvied-up hexagonal openings that twirl open or closed to provide the right combination of powertrain cooling and vehicle aerodynamics. Titled with "See," there's what looks like a sensor detection unit rising from the roof; it looks like a LIDAR unit pointed toward the rear, but it's impossible to know from the clip. In the "Stretch" section, we see an active rear spoiler moving into a higher drag configuration, connected to a fender with lines that evoke the Evija and Emira. Finally, in "Awaken," there's what looks like a giant screen canted toward the driver and towering over the instrument panel. The Type 132 will commence Lotus' EV-only series production future, the first of four models due in the next few years, and the largest. After it will come a sedan marketed as a four-door coupe known as Type 133, expected on sale in 2023, a smaller crossover called the Type 134 that will debut in 2025, and a sports car currently dubbed Type 135 that's planned for 2026 and could get an Alpine-branded sibling. The four-door models are expected to ride on Lotus' Evolution architecture for "premium" vehicles, with available dual-motor powertrains that might get up to 750 horsepower powered by batteries up to 120-kWh. The sports car will get the E-Sports platform Lotus will share with Alpine and sell to other manufacturers, the junior relative of the Extreme platform that supports the 1,973-hp Evija.  Related video: This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings.

Lotus Type 135 electric sports car mixes the Emira with some Esprit

Over the next four years, English sports car maker will make its oft-attempted transformations real by unveiling three "lifestyle vehicles" on its new Premium Architecture. The first is the Type 132 electric crossover, expected to debut in the next few months. After that will come the Type 133 four-door coupe, then the Type 134 crossover that's smaller than the Type 132. In that fourth year, we'll get the Type 135, an electric sports car that will recall the Lotus of old. This electric coupe, sitting on the firm's E-Sports architecture, is being called "a spiritual successor of the Elise," which would be a good thing. The teaser sketch Lotus released to hype up the car also makes us think Esprit, which, as far as we're concerned, is an even better thing. True, there's Elise and Exige and Emira in those exaggerated fenders, but the pointy ends are vintage early Esprit. But the looks aren't the point right now. The reason for the hubbub is Lotus signing a Memorandum of Understanding with British battery firm Britishvolt "to collaborate on research and development of advanced EV technology." The cooperation would put Lotus in charge of "electric propulsion technologies" like motors and control systems, while Britishvolt oversees a "new battery cell package." Goals for the pack are energy density, fast charging and weight reduction. Novel placement is on the menu, too, the E-Sports architecture laid out so that it can also accept batteries in the traditional style under the floor, or behind the cockpit a la a mid-engined sports car. The MOU could give the battery company two clients in one, as the Type 135 will be shared with Alpine across the Channel as well. By the time the Type 135 shows, Britishvolt's $5.1 billion battery factory in Northumberland should have been up and running for two years, ready to supply cells to the Type 135 that will be built at Lotus' historic Hethel, England headquarters (the other Types will be built in Wuhan, China at a manufacturing facility being developed by Lotus parent company Geely). The sports car will come in single- and dual-motor versions powering RWD and AWD trims, those motors expected produce anywhere between 469 and 872 horsepower providing a range of up to 450 miles on the WLTP cycle. The electronics will run on 800-volt architectures, the batteries ranging from 66.4-kWh to 99.6-kWh capacities.  Related Video: This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences.