Lotus has confirmed its first all-new model in more than a decade.
But it won’t be just any car, it will be an all-electric hyper car, with “very high” performance.
The Type 130, also known as Project Omega, will reportedly be produced in limited numbers starting in 2020 and priced at more than $1 million.
Like many once great British car companies, Lotus is now owned by Chinese Geely which has a controlling interest in the company.
The Chinese giant owns the Proton, Volvo and Lynk & Co brands.
Lotus currently manufactures the Elise, Exige and Evora, with an enduring emphasis on performance through light weight construction.
Like everyone else, it apparently has an SUV in the pipeline too.
Lotus says the new Type 130, set to be unveiled in London later this year, will be the first all-electric hypercar from a British manufacturer.
Sitting low and wide, it will be a two-seater, accessed through scissor-opening doors, with a camera-based rearview mirror system
The all-wheel drive electric powertrain is being developed with Williams Advanced Engineering.
At this stage no power figures are available.
Type 130 continues the legendary bloodline from Lotus during its 71-year history.
In this time it has introduced a number of game-changers, in both motorsport and sportscar arenas.
Lotus CEO Phil Popham said Type 130 will be the most dynamically accomplished Lotus in our history.
It won’t be a purely track focused model, however, as Lotus tries to strike a balance between practicality and luxury.
The cabin is expected to feature plenty of carbon-fibre, but Lotus says it will be more liveable than the interiors of cars such as the McLaren Senna or Aston Martin Valkyrie.
“It marks a turning point for our brand and is a showcase of what we are capable of and what is to come from Lotus,” he said.
The all-new car will be revealed, together with the full remarkable details and specification of this technical tour de force, in London, the birthplace of Lotus, later this year.
Some notable Lotus ‘Type’ numbers include:
Type 14 – World’s first composite monocoque production road car (Elite, 1957)
Type 25 – World’s first fully-stressed monocoque F1 car, first Lotus to win F1 world championship (1963)
Type 72 – Most successful F1 car of all time and the blueprint for F1 car design for many years (Championship winner in 1970, ‘72 and’ 73)
Type 78 – World’s first ‘ground effects’ F1 car (1977)
Type 88 – World’s first carbon fibre F1 car (1981)
Type 92 – World’s first active suspension F1 car (1983)
Type 111 – World’s first aluminium and bonded extrusion construction production car (Elise, 1995)
Type 130 – World’s first full electric British hypercar (2019)
CHECKOUT: Leggy Lotus one of just 10