By Otsile Kadiege

Lotus is a British marque known for building light weight sports cars like the timeless Esprit and the compact Evora. However, consumers of today want an all-rounder – a vehicle that will fairy the kids to school and do long distance travelling yet still remain sporty. Enter the Eletre – it’s Lotus’ first-ever SUV and it’s purely electric too. The Hyper-SUV that’s said to be ‘Born British, Raised Globally’ boasts a bold exterior design, ground-breaking new technologies, impressive performance and electric driving range.

Exterior

The new Eletre’s daring and dramatic exterior design is accentuated by the brand’s signature ‘porosity’ design element used on cars like the Emira and Evija. Porosity is the aerodynamic principle of air flowing through the car as well as under, over and around it. Other exterior highlights include slim headlights, Electric Reverse Mirror Display (ERMD),  23-inch machine-cut split-finish five-spoke alloys with carbon fibre inserts to aid air flow, ceramic composite 10-piston caliper brakes, deployable LIDAR sensors, a carbon fibre ‘floating’ split roof spoiler and a full-width ribbon light strip with scrolling directional indicators.

Interior

Inside, the new Eletre is said to offer a ‘world-class digital experience’ thanks to numerous new advanced technologies like a head-up display with augmented reality, a 30 mm slim strip driver’s display communicating key vehicle and journey information, which is repeated on the passenger side where the passenger will be able to control various entertainment functions. There’s also a 15.1-inch landscape OLED touch-screen interface, which provides access to the car’s advanced infotainment system. As standard, the Eletre will be equipped with a 1,380-watt 15-speaker KEF Premium sound system. Customers will be able to opt for the 2,160-watt 23-speaker system with Uni-Q and 3D surround sound technology.

The cabin of the Lotus Eletre is made of sustainable materials like highly durable man-made microfibres on the primary touchpoints, and an advanced wool-blend fabric on the seats. According to Lotus, it’s 50% lighter than traditional leather, allowing for further weight savings. The hard materials inside the cabin of the Eletre are said to be carbon fibre, though rather than use the traditional ‘weave’, Lotus has recycled the fibres trimmed from the edge of the weave. Being an SUV, the new Eletre needs to be roomy and practical. Despite not sharing the exact dimensions and litres, Lotus is promising a roomy cabin with a wealth of practical storage spaces.

Performance

The Lotus Eletre is 4WD, has a battery capacity that’s over 100 kWh and with power from 600 hp (441 kW). A 350 kW charger will deliver a 400 km range in just 20 minutes. It also comes with the ability as standard to accept 22 kW AC charging which, where available, reduces the time plugged in. The car’s target maximum WLTP driving range is 600 km. The Eletre is built on Lotus’ all-new and highly versatile Electric Premium Architecture (EPA).

Safety

The new Eletre will come equipped with a comprehensive suite of intelligent Advanced Driver Assistance Systems (ADAS). These include Intelligent Adaptive Cruise Control (ACC); Collision Mitigation Support Front (CMSF); Traffic Sign Information (TSI); Door Open Warning (DOW); Rear Cross Traffic Alert (RCTA); Front Cross Traffic Alert (FCTA); Lane Change Assist (LCA); Children Presence Detection (CPD); Lane Keep Aid with Lane Departure Warning / Prevention (LKA+); Parking Emergency Brake (PEB); Collision Mitigation Support Rear (CMSR); and Emergency Rescue Call (E-Call). There are i-Size child seat anchor points on the outboard rear seats.

The Lotus Eletre is on sale across global markets, with first customer deliveries in 2023 starting in China, the UK and Europe.