Lotus Eletre wins 'SUV of the Year' title from lifestyle publication

MANILA: The brand-new Lotus Eletre won the coveted "SUV Of The Year" title in GQ magazine's Vehicle Of The Year competition. The GQ Design, Lifestyle, and Automotive Awards honor automobiles from a variety of categories that are "inspiring, intriguing, have automotive integrity, and get the pulse racing." The awards are chosen annually by GQ's panel of design, lifestyle, and automotive specialists.

Throughout Lotus' 75-year history, the Eletre is both the first SUV and the first production electric vehicle, ushering in a new, electrified era for the company and its name. In a crowded field of competitors, the Eletre managed to hold off fierce opposition from many of the most reputable SUV producers in the world.

The GQ judges' summary of the Eletre's winning qualities was as follows: "The premium electric SUV sector is filling up faster than you can say ‘recession-proof’ with all the automotive big beasts vying for attention, but none have grabbed our attention like Lotus.”

Ben Payne, Chief Creative Officer, Lotus, said: “From the very first discussions about what the Eletre should be, our vision was to deliver a unique and highly desirable car that would demonstrate to the world what the EV future of Lotus would stand for. As an SUV, it will bring a completely new audience to the brand – a lifestyle customer. To be recognised for that by GQ, a globally renowned lifestyle publication, is a great honour.”

Lotus Eletre Specifications

Many customers all across the world have already paid deposits to reserve their Eletre. There are three different variants: the Eletre, Eletre S, and Eletre R. Each variant has a choice of two powertrains. The 450 kW/603hp single-speed variant of the Eletre and Eletre S has a maximum range of 600km. Meanwhile, the Eletre R has a flagship 675kW/905hp dual-speed system and a maximum range of 490km. Torque figures are 710Nm and 985Nm, respectively, producing a 0-100kph performance in 4.5 seconds and 2.95 seconds, respectively. With a fast charger, the 112kWh battery for both variants can be charged from 10% to 80% in just 20 minutes.

According to key Lotus officials, three main pillars – Life, Tech, and Speed – are the foundation for Lotus' ambitious vision. They also discussed how the Eletre, the first Hyper-SUV in the world, compares to the Evija, the first Lotus EV hypercar.

Lotus Eletre Interior

The luxurious interior of the 2023 Lotus Eletre establishes a new bar for interior appeal for Lotus vehicles. The Eletre has many features including wireless phone charging, four-zone automated climate control, Apple CarPlay, and 12-way electrically adjustable front seats. The cutting-edge Lotus Hyper OS for next-generation real-time 3D content is displayed on its sophisticated billion-color OLED touchscreen thanks to server-level computing capacity in its digital cockpit.

An additional immersion booster is a 15-speaker KEF Premium Audio system. Buyers have the option to upgrade to KEF Reference, a 23-speaker, 2,160-watt system with Uni-Q and 3D surround sound. In addition, Uni-Core, a ground-breaking innovation in speaker and subwoofer design, is included in KEF Reference, and the Eletre makes its debut in the automobile industry.

In the UK, the Eletre starts at £89,500 (approximately P6 million). Five drive modes, active air suspension, torque vectoring, matrix LED headlights, an active front grille, and 22-inch 10-spoke forged wheels are all included in the standard specification.

Lotus Eletre Development

Lotus revealed that the Eletre has undergone testing at Nurburgring, which is just two hours’ drive from LTIC. “The Nurburgring circuit is very challenging, and we are proving with our tests there and our simulations that we will achieve the performance targets we have set for the Eletre,” Lotus Technology Vice President and LTIC Managing Director Maximilian Szwaj stated.

Lotus Product Definition and Attributes Director Gavan Kershaw also spent a day on the test track at Dudenhofen. “The Eletre is truly a global car with involvement from the best engineers around the world. The Dudenhofen test track is tight, twisty and undulating – like the perfect English B-road – and the Eletre is so enjoyable to drive, exactly like a Lotus should be. The Eletre is a true Lotus,” he said.

Photos from Lotus

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