- Lotus abandons electric-only plans for 2028, shifting focus to range-extended hybrids instead.
- These new range-extended vehicles promise up to 680 miles between fuel stops.
- Details on Lotus’ ‘Super Hybrids’ remain unclear, but more info may come soon.
In 2018, Lotus introduced their Vision80 plan which was designed to transform the company into an “all-electric global mobility provider” in just ten years. Fast forward to today and the firm has reportedly become the latest automaker to abandon plans to go electric-only.
Instead, the company will reportedly embrace so-called Super Hybrids that use a range-extended powertrain. They promise to combine high-performance with a long range, thanks to an engine.
More: Lotus Theory 1 Concept Is A Three-Seat Electric Esprit With 986 HP
The news comes from an apparent interview between Lotus CEO Feng Qingfeng and the Wall Street Journal. While we couldn’t find the piece, Autocar quotes from it and a transcript appeared on the EmiraForum over the weekend.
With those disclaimers out of the way, Qingfeng reportedly said “I believe fuel vehicles still have a long lifecycle” and noted Lotus drivers travel an average of 18,641 miles (30,000 km) annually. This means range is extremely important to customers and it appears some were turned off by the EV-only push.
Range doesn’t appear to be the only issue as Qingfeng reportedly stated, “The penetration of pure electric vehicles in the luxury car segment is slow because luxury car engines are already very powerful, and the driving experience is quite similar, with eight-cylinder and twelve-cylinder engines performing well.” He went on to say the “power improvement is not obvious,” so some consumers aren’t interested in going electric.
To solve these problems, the Super Hybrids will reportedly have a 900V electrical architecture, a turbocharged engine, and a battery pack. This may enable them to have an overall range of up to 680 miles (1,094 km).
Details are hazy at best, but we could learn more during Lotus’ third quarter earnings call. That remains to be seen, but through the first nine months the company delivered 7,543 vehicles for a year-over-year increase of 134%. Despite sounding like good news, Lotus is in the red as the company reported a $438 (£346 / €415) million operating loss for the first half of 2024.
