Europe’s largest automaker is considering of putting in a new bid for Malaysia’s Proton in order to tap into the growing southeast Asian market. But perhaps the more interesting story here is that Proton owns iconic British sports car maker Lotus, which could consequently put the Lotus brand under Volkswagen‘s already impressive umbrella of brands...
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Poor Lotus. The company that just wants to make cool cars is still caught in the middle of a corporate acquisition that threatens the company’s existence one day and reassuringly cooes to it the next.
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Lotus‘ Malaysian owner DRB-Hicom is seking a Chinese buyer for the brand as recently as last night, flying in the face of information included in the automaker’s much-publicized “rant” press release from April 12.
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When sports car company Lotus had announced the end of its title sponsorship of the Lotus F1 team, a red flag was raised as concerns over Group Lotus’ financial problems surfaced. Now, new reports reveal that the troubles facing the automaker are more than meets the eye. Earlier warning signs were brought to attention this year...
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Despite terminating its title sponsorship deal with Group Lotus, Lotus is committed to keeping its name in Formula 1 for the imminent feature. Confused? You should be. Group Lotus was recently sold by Proton to Malaysian automotive corporation DRB-Hicom, causing Lotus F1’s team owner Genii Capital to end its formal relationship with Lotus. Just a...
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For the first two races of the 2012 Formula 1 season, Team Lotus has received a mixed bag of results. Formula 1 World Champion Kimi Raikkonen finished both races in the points despite mediocre qualifying. Meanwhile, GP2 champion Romain Grosjean displayed rapid pace during qualifying but suffered a DNF for both races. Such is the mix...
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It’s hard out there for a sports car manufacturer, especially if it is owned by a larger company. Lotus has been owned by the Malaysian car company Proton since 1995, when the company was bought from the then bankrupting Bugatti (which itself got eventually bought out by VW). Over the last 17-years, Lotus has not...
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At present, Lotus requires funding of around £500m ($790 million) in order to fund the development of future street cars, which includes new Elan, Elise and Esprit models.
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In a deal eclipsing $410 million, DRB-Hicom purchased a 43 percent stake in Proton, a Malaysian automaker better known for its ownership of the famous British sports car brand, Lotus. Originally, the stake belonged to Malaysia’s state-owned Khazanah Nasional Bhd. However, as Proton has not made a profit in the last two years, multiple prospective...
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Rumors of the sale of Lotus by its Malaysian parent company Proton have increased steadily since the appointment of CEO Dany Bahar, who has done little to dissuade the rumors. Rather than a sign of instability, Proton has committed to funding the “new Lotus”, and Bahar’s actions have helped keep the small sports car maker...
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The New Year may be just around the corner, but it’s never too early to spread some rumors. Proton Holdings is believed to be seriously considering the sale of their Lotus sports car division, a brand that has never made a profit for the Malaysian-based company. Proton originally purchased the British sports car brand in...
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Lotus and its parent company, Proton, will be releasing their City Car to rival the new Aston Martin Cygnet and will be a production version of the Ethos concept originally seen at the Paris Auto Show. The vehicle will first be offered as a Proton, with the Lotus version coming at a later date with...
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General Motors is reviving negotiations that were scrapped back in 2007 with Lotus parent company Proton Holdings, Malaysia’s biggest auto manufacturer. Both brands are looking to form a manufacturing venture in the Southeast Asian country. A collaboration between the two parties would probably be mutually beneficial, with GM getting access to Proton’s production in Southeast...
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Amidst all the sexy and exciting sports cars Lotus unveiled at the Paris Auto Show last year, tucked away in a back corner was the Emas Concept. A small city car, it was perhaps the most likely of the concepts, combining the automaker’s talents for light weight vehicles with nimble handling, wrapped up in an...
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What season of F1 would be complete without the off-track drama? The complex battle between racing teams Group Lotus and Team Lotus rages on, indicating that the previous ruling for the rights to the Lotus name didn’t end the dispute yet. Turns out, the high court judge had given Group Lotus the go-ahead to use...
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Lotus impresario and well-coiffed CEO Dany Bahar has denied reports that he’s planning to divorce Lotus from its Malaysian parent company Proton—right after he mentioned that, well, he might. During a recent interview, Bahar mentioned that he wanted to bring Lotus up to Porsche-killing standards, and in order to do so, he would have to...
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Lotus CEO Dany Bahar has made numerous changes to the storied British brand since he joined the company in 2009 and he’s not done yet. In a recent interview he made known his desire to see Lotus split off from its current Malaysian owner Proton, in search of a major global automaker – like Toyota....
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Lotus, a company best known for producing great sports cars like the Elise and the iconic Esprit, is about to head into a whole new direction. While it will continue building sports cars, Lotus CEO Dany Bahar has announced that in October, 2013 the company will produce its City Car, which was shown as a...
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Malaysian car company Proton, which normally only makes boring econo cars, is set to make some vehicles that will excite enthusiasts. However, these cars aren’t exactly Proton originals. First up is the Lekir, which is essentially a Lotus Europa dressed up in re-altered clothes. Lotus (which is owned by Proton) had recently discontinued production of...
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Hot on the heels of a press release from Lotus Engineering about a new lightweight vehicle study comes related news that the British sports car manufacturer will debut a new electric small car at the Paris Auto Show. The release from Lotus states that the company has been commissioned by the Air Resources Board of...
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Malaysian automaker and Lotus Cars parent company Proton has announced the results of talks with Volkswagen and, well, there’s nothing to report. Like previous talks from several years back any planned collaboration between the two companies has been axed. According to previous reports, a deal between the two automakers would see Proton get platforms and...
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In the past few months Volkswagen has expanded to become an even larger global player, taking over Porsche and announcing a majority stake in Italdesign Giugiaro. Now Germany’s largest automaker may be looking to add yet another brand to its stable – Proton. The Malaysian automaker might not be all that familiar to audiences in...
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Lotus’s new CEO and Proton, the company in charge of British sports car maker, have announced their ambitions to increase the company’s profile and have it compete with exotic Italian automakers. In a recent interview Proton Holdings managing director Datuk Syed Zainal Abidin Syed Mohamed Tahir said that the launch of the new Evora model...
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