The greatest anti-Lotus Lotus in history flourished with wonderful (electric) strength and a lot of technology. I say it’s a grease bolt and I have that the most productive way to walk through the Eletre is to go through the famous song that animated the title. Hit it.
We’ll have roof lifts and four-cylinder quads, oh yes.
Ok, so it doesn’t have pushers or carburetors as the Eletre is, of course, all-electric, a first for Lotus and a radical replacement for its same previous offerings. The styling tested the Eletre S, the “base” specification of the Eletre we have here. in Singapore, it boasts 603 hp and 710 Nm of torque produced by two electric motors and a 112 kWh battery. The top-spec Etre R packs even more power for a frankly ridiculous total output of 905bhp and 985Nm of torque.
The styling of the Eletre is drastically different from anything the Hethel-based automaker has written before, in part because the Eletre is rarely made in Hethel, England. The Eletre is the first Lotus to be built at the Wuhan plant. China, a by-product of its acquisition through Geely.
The elephant in the room is that the Eletre is an SUV, not a smooth, low-slung sports car. It sits at the other end of the length spectrum at 5. 1 meters long and 2. 1 meters wide. Objectively, it’s a big car, however, a lot of thought has been put into the panel. As with all functional vehicles, especially electric ones, a lot of attention has been paid to the aerodynamics of the Eletre.
Efficient airflow over the vehicle helps reduce drag and increase downforce and range. A series of holes, spoilers and active aerodynamic frames combine to channel air around and through the vehicle to a drag coefficient of just 0. 26.
Moving on to the interior (ignore the muffler), the Eletre is bathed in sumptuous fabrics and is a cry from the spartan interiors of the Lotus of yesteryear. This next-generation Lotus now includes forced seats, soft-close doors, a 360° camera, and a premium KEF audio formula with Dolby Atmos.
The sports seats are finished in a combination of leather and suede and are not only pleasant to the touch but also very comfortable to sit on. And because it’s an SUV, you don’t need to be a Cirque du Soleil actor. and out of the car like you do when you drive a Lotus.
The Eletre also features a number of complex new technologies, such as LiDar cameras and 34 sensors that work in combination to work with the driver protection and assistance systems. Lotus claims that the Eletre is capable of level four autonomous driving and has used LiDar in general. cameras or radars to future-proof the Eletre.
In practice, I feel like adaptive cruising may just need a bit of rework, it seemed very smooth to get away from motorcycles and road curves.
Although the Eletre S weighs 2. 5 tonnes, very little like a Lotus, 600 horsepower and electric torque are still enough to propel it from 0 to 100 km/h in 4. 5 seconds and reach a top speed of 258. km. That’s fast enough to complete the quarter-mile in just 11. 3 seconds.
With six hundred hp and 700 Nm available, it’s no surprise that the Eletre is mega-fast. It goes from 0 to 100 km/h in just 4. 5 seconds and reaches 258 km/h. But we all know that those super-electric vehicles of those days can perform monstrous performances from 0 to a hundred times, although what amazes me is the way the force is delivered.
In peak EVs, instant torque gets you back in the seat and can be a violent affair. On the Eletre, this delivered force is much more linear and less aggressive, making it feel less like a rocket and more like a high-speed train. And just like a bullet train, as soon as you notice when you’re traveling at top speed, it’s very easy to get away and navigate at speeds until you reach the lost territory.
And even when the going gets tough, the Self is still able to endure. Of course, this isn’t the mosquito habit of classic Lotus, but you wouldn’t expect a Porsche Cayenne to behave like a 911, would you?The complete Eletre is dynamically well-ordered, with clever balance and a frame that hides its weight well.
The guidance is light, accurate and very fast. It only has 2. 5 turns from lock to lock, which means that if the turning radius is woeful (rear guidance is popular on the Eletre R), it means the Eletre has a positive front. Easy-to-install finish. When exiting corners, as the Eletre has only one motor per axle, the car can feel as if it has the differential open, pushing out into corners when under stress.
I had a slight hiccup in my testing when the car showed an error and caution message after pushing it a bit. It temporarily disappeared and never returned, however, I heard reports from other hounds about other miscellaneous disorders they encountered on their travels.
The most unfortunate aspect of the Being is the logo that adorns its hood. Because it is equipped with this Lotus badge, the Eletre has come under endless scorn and scrutiny from enthusiasts and purists who believe that the Eletre is a ball at Colin Chapman’s house. tomb.
I perceive that the Eletre is far from a classic Lotus, I need to see more fun light mobiles coming out of the Lotus factory as much as the next one. But I also perceive that the Lotus went completely bankrupt (I’ll have the money, I’ll kill for the money). Geely gave the logo a chance through the acquisition agreement and with their portfolio they have brought Lotus back and are looking to make the logo as applicable as ever.
The Ser alone is an engineering marvel and also a brilliant car. With the recent trend of automakers backtracking on their EV commitments, there is arguably still hope for the Lotus brand, with the Eletre now serving as a cash cow that can laugh like the Porsches and Cayennes.
5,103mm x 2,135mm x 1,630mm
3,019 mm
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This article was first published on Motorist.