Lotus confirms Ethos city car will be built, Elan on the back-burner

Lotus has revealed that they intend to build a city car called the Ethos after first showing it as a concept at the 2010 Paris Motor Show. The mini Lotus will be built in collaboration with Proton.

Lotus’ Chief executive Dany Bahar told carmagazine.co.uk that the Ethos will be built in Malaysia, finished in Norfolk and on sale by early 2014. He also added that the car’s platform and powertrain have been set, with approximately 1500-1800 vehicles entering the market per year at a price of around £30,000. Bahar would not confirm whether the vehicle is to be a full-electric or hybrid, only stating that it will ‘deliver the dynamics and style you'd expect of a Lotus.'

The concept vehicle’s hybrid drivetrain that was shown in Paris featured a 1.2 litre 3 cylinder engine putting out 162 kW and 240 Nm. This allowed a claimed 0-100 km/h in 9 seconds and top speed of 170 km/h, with an EV range of 60 km and full range of 500 km. CO2 emissions were 60 g/km. 

In other Lotus news, Bahar also stated that the Elan project has been put on hold until at least 2017 after negative feedback at the 2010 Paris Motor Show launch revealed that many though it was too similar to the Esprit. It is now being looked at as a possible replacement for the Evora.