It's changed since Chapmans day

[cliveyboy]

Lotus appoint Rapper as head of "creative design and marketing"

http://www.thelotusforums.com/about-us/ ... ewsletter/

[ardee_selby]

I feel a "Victor Meldrew" moment coming on!!

Whatever next?

Cheers - Richard

P.S. You could've warned us about the bl**dy video!

[jono]

OMFG

.....I could not imagine anything more contrary to the Lotus ethos.

Hummer, perhaps, but Lotus??

If David Beckham gets a Lotus that's me finished

[GrUmPyBoDgEr]

Just further confirmation that they've totally lost the plot

John

[billwill]

Will all new Lotuses have the boot full of Boom Boom speakers then?

[nebogipfel]

IMO Lotus died with Colin Chapman

[cliveyboy]

When you have a young CEO talking about "cool crazy ideas". Things have really changed.
I start to think of the old saying about the family business
First generation builds it, Second nurtures it and third ruins it.

In Lotus' case. Its Colin Chapman, Those that worked with him and carried it on and now its the ones that just never knew him.

If I was marketing a "lightweight" sports car, targeting customers who carry 20kg of gold chain around their necks would not be an obvious first choice.
Perhaps we should be encouraging our new fellow Lotus owners such as Dizzy Rascal, 50 cent, Tiny Tempur and Snoop Doggy Dog.
I suggest we all change our names to make them welcome. Perhaps Dizzy Timing, 40K (for a restored one)
Tiny Leak and Snoop Bodger Bodge

MC Clivey B (Ex club DJ a very long time ago)

[europatek]

FWIW - I think Colin may be turning in his grave. He was a forward thinker as we know but a rap artist!! The Lotus Cars website it pretty telling. Gone are the links to the past and the heritage.
I've worked in the auto industry for years and have watched cars become bigger, heavier and more complicated right at a time in history when the opposite is needed. This is why I was always drawn to Lotus - because of the exact opposite. I fear the new Lotus may be creating all the things Colin strived to avoid. They may be producing a set of new cars that may become irrelevant quickly. Too big, too heavy and generic in design. The S1 Elise may be the last true Lotus as we know them.
I think the company is missing out on a real opportunity to reinvent cars like our Elan's. Imagine the Elan as we know it designed and built like the S1 Elise. Fit it with a Duratec 2.0 and 5 speed. Yes, just like an MX5 which has been hugely successful. And where did that come from? The Elan as we all know. I'm starting to ramble but I hope you catch my drift.

[ardee_selby]

[quote="europatek"]The Lotus Cars website it pretty telling. Gone are the links to the past and the heritage. [quote]

Actually, there is this...

http://www.lotuscars.com/en/lotus-heritage

...but you have to look in the "Experience" link!

Not that it helps with the current scenario...

Cheers - Richard

(If they REALLY, REALLY needed someone...why not Chris Rea, or Jay Kay??)

[trw99]

Even then they get it wrong:

"1970 The Elan Sprint

In January the famous Elan Sprint was introduced with the new 126bhp "Big Valve" engine of the Lotus twin-cam engine, delivering 0-60mph in 6.7 seconds. Available as a fixed head coup? or as a drop-head, the car was widely acclaimed. There was also a racing version which produced 200bhp."

1970?
January?
Racing version?

Tim

[gjz30075]

I can understand change; I can understand marketing to a certain segment, but getting facts wrong about our heritage is absurd and I think it's their attempt to appease the past, like they give a $ht.

Greg Z

[elansprint71]

Creative Design? My arse.

Wasn't the Racing 200 BHP Sprint the Tnirps Repus Nale? The one with the rotary Zetec engine.

I think that it is time that we formally cast ourselves adrift from the sick man that is Proton Cars and also from the two F1 teams.

[Coupe]

Creative Design? My arse.

Wasn't the Racing 200 BHP Sprint the Tnirps Repus Nale? The one with the rotary Zetec engine.

I think that it is time that we formally cast ourselves adrift from the sick man that is Proton Cars and also from the two F1 teams.

Only one Lotus F1 team next year - latest news today:

We hear that the two Lotus parties have now reached an agreement and next season Team Lotus will become Team Caterham AirAsia and will remove the ACBC logos from the cars in the next few days. This will open the way for Renault F1 to change its name to Lotus of some kind and is the first step towards allowing the team to change the chassis name from Renault to Lotus.

[ardee_selby]

"Team Lotus will become Team Caterham AirAsia and will remove the ACBC logos"

Heritage is no more...nuff said!

Cheers - Richard

(P.S. "Heritage is not just about sticks and stones. It's about people's memories and it's about things making sense to people, part of the accumulated culture of their communities". Mr John Yates English Heritage)

[Mazzini]

IMO Lotus died with Colin Chapman

I don't know. I just bought a new Elise, it reminds me terribly of an Elan (and a bit of a Europa - can't see out the back). It leaks in the rain, it smells of hot oil, the wiper blade fell to bits after less than 100 miles, but it drives just like a Lotus should and for that I forgive it.