The future for Lotus now looks secure again after its new Malaysian owners released their three year investment program.
Former CEO Dany Bahar had proposed ambitious plans to introduce five all-new models over five years, including reborn Elan and Elite sports coupes, a four-door grand tourer called the Eterne, a tiny City Car and an all-new Elise. However, with the retrenchment of Bahar and a take-over by DRB-Hicom, some serious accounting has taken place and the five projected models are all on the back burner.
Early last year, the Malaysian government sold its 42.7 percent stake in Lotus’ parent company Proton, which in turn was taken over by DBR-Hicom (a conglomerate with interests in manufacturing, finance and construction).
Lotus Exige
DRB-Hicom will reportedly inject more money into the struggling brand after already pouring 100 million into Lotus’ bank account over the past 18 months to keep the business afloat.
DRB-Hicom managing director Tan Sri Mohd Khamil Jamil told Malaysian media that Lotus was on the way up again with a plan focussed on expanding the existing model line-up.
“We have cleaned up and we are moving ahead,” he said, suggesting the company has fixed a number of residual financial, marketing and product planning issues left over from Proton’s management of Lotus.
Jamil confirmed Lotus would concentrate on introducing new variants of its existing models including the Exige, Evora and Elise, starting with the Exige S Roadster.
A recent rise in Lotus sales reportedly instilled DRB-Hicom with enough confidence to go ahead with the cash injection, confirming an increase in production to 40 vehicles a month, with around 85 percent of those for the export markets.
