Of all the auto manufacturers riding on a wave of positive hype of late, Proton-owned Lotus is definitely one of them. The Hethel-based firm, under the guidance of CEO Jean-Marc Gales, has seen a return to form with recent introductions of models such as the Lotus Evora 400 and Elise S Cup.
Upon inspecting the aforementioned models, purists will be delighted to know that Lotus has stubbornly held its ground by shunning the inclusion of creature comforts and whatnot that would help broaden the appeal of its models. Instead, Gales has decided to hark back to the basics by removing unnecessary equipment.
"We had an electronically opening glove box, which in a sports car is worse than useless," commented Gales. "I don't know who put that in, but I took it out." With that said, Lotus has caved in to one majorly profitable aspect of changing customer demands - the want (need?) for a SUV/crossover model.
A report late last year hinted at the firm's intentions to introduce either a crossover or a four-door sedan to sit alongside its range of two-door sports cars. Following on from that, subsequent reports began surfacing, claiming that an Evora-based crossover was already under development.
Now, it appears that Gales himself has dropped the biggest hint by claiming that Lotus will "reinvent the category" should it finally confirm a crossover model. "We'd do an SUV that is very light, very fast on the track and has outstanding handling," he added. "I'm a bit torn between an SUV and a four-door sports car - but in the end I can see that the SUV has the bigger market."
GALLERY: Lotus Evora 400 unveiled in Geneva by Tun Mahathir
GALLERY: Lotus Elise S Cup
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