When Sir Colin Chapman made the first ‘Lotus’ in 1948 from an Austin 7, little would he have thought about the way Lotus Engineering would have progressed or the fact that his beloved company would one day be making electric sports cars/SUVs. Lotus as a company has won 7 Formula 1 constructor’s championships and with that glorious legacy, is now entering India with the Eletre, a fully electric dual-motor SUV, that has a top speed of 265 kmph and does the 0-100 kmph whack in 2.95 seconds! Lotus will also subsequently bring in the Emira, that has two engine choices – a 2.0-litre inline four sourced from AMG-Mercedes with 360 hp and a DCT gearbox and a 3.5-litre V6 sourced from Toyota in both 6-speed manual or auto versions with 400 hp on tap.
Let us come back to the Eletre. Three different versions of the car are available – Eletre, Eletre S and
Eletre R – with the choice of two powertrains. Eletre and Eletre S feature the 603 hp single-speed
version, with a maximum range of 600 kilometres. The Eletre R comes with the flagship 905 hp dual-
speed system and a maximum range of 490 kilometres. Torque figures are 710 and 985 Nm
respectively, delivering a 00-100 kmph performance of either 4.5 or 2.95 seconds. The 112 kWh
battery for both versions has a charging time (10%-80%) of just 20 minutes using a rapid charger.
Such performance need not mean a compromise on creature comforts, so you do get as standard
wireless smartphone charging, 12-way electrically adjustable front seats, four-zone automatic climate
control and many other features. The ‘intelligent cockpit’ infotainment system, which includes Apple
CarPlay / Android Auto and a 1,380-watt, 15-speaker KEF Premium Audio with Dolby Atmos, is
operated via a centrally mounted 15.1-inch full High-Definition OLED centre screen. All versions of
the Eletre feature five seats as standard, with a four-seat version available as part of the Executive
Seat Pack. You also get five drive modes, active air suspension, torque vectoring, matrix LED
headlights, active front grille and 22-inch 10-spoke forged wheels.
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Satya Bagla, Managing Director, Exclusive Motors India said: "We are excited to bring Lotus cars to
India, where we envision a future dedicated to serving our customers with the best-in-class brands. Our cars are a fusion of cutting-edge technology and automotive artistry, offering a driving experience like no other."
The Lotus Eletre is priced at INR 2.55 crores, the S is at INR 2.75 crores and the R is at INR 2.99
crores, all ex-showroom India. These prices are for the base models – a myriad of performance and
personalisation options exist, that will add to this price.