It is a natural development in the automotive business, says Chris Hrabalek, and arguably in any business, that the appointment of a new CEO usually leads to a gigantic domino wave, where all the top-management pieces crumble, one after another, only to be replaced by new ones.

The launch of Lotus’s new models at the recent Paris Motor Show should, therefore, not have come as completely unexpected news, given the change in strategic and design direction. What did come as a surprise, though, was the sheer number of models that were launched – and how similar and historically non-coherent they all appear. It’s a bit like pulling a series of Russian dolls out of a magic hat, when everyone only really expected (and wanted) a bunny.

Quite why Lotus then had to stick with such historic names as ‘Elan’, ‘Elite’ and ‘Esprit’, and re-use the contemporary ‘Elise’, is beyond me.

I’m sure I’m not alone when I say that it took more than a second to realise that the Lotus line-up was not a presentation of a ‘New Celica’ with different colour and trim options, but a whole new product range. I dare anyone, bar the guy that had to paint them, to instantly spot the difference. It’s a bit like having triplets and giving them all the same name. And as for the contemporary Elise owner, when confronted with the successor to his current model – it must be like going to bed with a supermodel wife and waking up next to the neighbour’s couch potato. Although I must admit that I find the volume and proportions of the yellow one nice, and appreciate the graphic details of the white one.

Nevertheless, I can’t stop thinking that they feel like a significant mutation of Lotus DNA. One could argue that the constant re-heating of the Elise formula or the daily launch of yet another special edition couldn’t have been a long-lasting solution either (and that previous incarnations, such as the current ‘Europa’, were inexcusable), but one must respect the previous management’s ability to make the most out of a no doubt very limited budget.

Which leads me to my next point. The enormous cost of launching five new models – six, if you count the new track-only 125 – and, even more importantly, the investment needed to actually develop them and take them to production, must be proportionally similar to the VW Group going to next year’s Geneva Salon with 101 new concept cars, all intended for the road.

Text: Chris Hrabalek
Photos: Newspress