Photography: Siddhant Gadekar
Lotus cars have always been special for me. Whilst discussing the best driving cars, the Lotus Seven and Elise often come up. Lotus cars have had a singular focus on driving pleasure and few have managed to capture the purity and raw driving essence of lightweight sports cars like Colin Chapman. After his passing in the eighties, Lotus was in a state of turmoil and traded owners until recently when it was bought by Chinese automotive conglomerate Geely. The new revival also kind of signals a shift from the carmaker’s lightweight ethos especially when you consider the Eletre. The company’s first SUV is also purely electric, which many would consider as an antithesis to what Lotus stands for – driving pleasure. However Lotus’s self-proclaimed ‘Hyper SUV’ does promise emotion with headlining acceleration times. As they say, the proof of the pudding is in the eating and there is only one way to find out if the Eletre delivers on driving pleasure – take it for a spin.
Besides pure driving pleasure, Lotus cars are known for their gorgeous lines and the Eletre is no different. It is not just the primary flowing lines that please but the attention the detail. It gets vents and ducts all across – like a sports car, besides the two blades-like spoilers and the deployable rear spoiler on the boot lip. Our test SUV came fitted with the optional 23-inch wheels that are a size up on the standard tyres and get carbon fibre inserts. The Eletre looks like a quintessential Lotus should and unlike any other Super SUV out there.
Another highlight is the cavernous cabin that feels airy thanks to the large, sharply-raked windscreen. It could be even brighter as our test SUV did not get the original glass roof that even comes with an auto-dimming feature. The cabin gets a unique layered dashboard with organic lines that remind us of a waterfall. The cabin has a clean look thanks to the large floating high-res touch screen command centre that does away with physical switches and what’s one of the slimmest instrument clusters around. Despite the minimalistic approach, the cabin feels opulent as every inch of it is swathed in premium Napa leather and Alcantara and that includes the thick centre console as well. The gear lever selector and window switches get a knurled finish for tactility and like the steering wheel switches, get a gold finish as well. While unique cabin layouts in Super SUVs are nothing new, the Lotus feels special thanks to the use of materials and unique touches like the square steering wheel, push pads to open the doors and intricate shapes running across the dashboard and on the door speakers. The seats look futuristic and hold you well, an important requisite for the Eletre’s performance. You can opt for the five-seater layout or this four-seater one with a thick central armrest with storage spaces similar to the ones seen on British luxury SUVs.
The Eletre gets cutting-edge tech. It is the first production vehicle in the world to feature LiDAR technology. Its four deployable LiDAR sensors scan 200 metres around the car in every direction and display its 3D mapping on the screen in real-time even in the worst external conditions. Lotus claims its Dual Orin-X autonomous chipset is capable of making 508 trillion calculations per second, analysing the environment and taking corrective action. The ADAS system works well with no sudden surprises, even with our unpredictable driving conditions. For audiophiles, the Eletre gets a high-end 23-speaker KEF sound system that offers 2160-watt of crisp audio notes. If I were to nitpick, it would be the lack of Apple Carplay and Android Auto but Lotus promises us that it will be a part of the next OTA update.
It is bloody quick, despite weighing close to 2.7 tonnes. While the sub-3 second 0-100kmph time on the spec sheet gives you an inkling of the Eletre’s performance, nothing prepares you for the sudden violence the moment you stab the accelerator pedal. The Eletre accelerates with a ferocity that we could not get used to despite multiple full-bore throttle runs that had to be cut short due to a lack of proper roads. In fact, the closest you can come to unleashing all of the Eletre R’s performance and 260kmph top speed safely in India is at the Buddh International Circuit or a private runway. If you are buying the Eletre, this is one thing you should definitely do – rent out the track or a private airfield!
You won’t run out of charge either, given the claimed 600km WLTP range. It also supports hyper-charging, and if you can find a 350kW DC charger, you can charge it from 10 to 80 percent in 20 minutes.
The Eletre impresses with not just its performance, range and charging capabilities but also its precise driving inputs. The throttle feels precisely metred and the various driving modes (Tour, Range, Sport, Off-Road, Individual and Track) feel more than a gimmick. Track, of course, offers the sharpest response and almost makes you forget that the Eletre is an electric SUV.
The Lotus DNA also shines through in the way the Eletre drives. The steering is well-weighed and communicative. It allows you to revel in the way the Eletre turns into corners – quick and precise. It’s surprising how well Lotus has managed to mask the SUV’s weight on the move and in corners, the hallmark of years of engineering expertise. The 48-volt active rollbar works wonders to keep body roll in check while the active suspension, rear-wheel steering and massive Pirelli tyres allow you to hustle the huge SUV with confidence. The Eletre handles like a thoroughbred SUV and the only time you feel its weight is when you have to come to a sudden stop and that’s despite having fantastic brakes.
It rides well too, once you get past the chassis firmness. We would however recommend you stick to 22-inch wheels with larger profile tyres. While the 23-inch alloys look gorgeous, on roads like ours combined with the SUV’s nearly 2.7-tonne weight, it’s incredibly easy to damage the tyres. With the performance the Eletre offers, you would not enjoy the drive of constantly scanning the road for potholes.
The Lotus Eletre R competes with other Super SUVs like the Aston Martin DB 707 and Lamborghini Urus Performante and at Rs 2.99 crore, undercuts both by a large margin. Compared to the competition, the Eletre R offers a lot more in many aspects and most important, offers exclusivity. There’s a catch, however.
It’s not light, it’s not simple, it’s not unadulterated driving pleasure. It is the antithesis of what we perceive a Lotus should be but it’s the way forward, not just for the British carmaker but for a lot of iconic sportscar makers. But that’s evolution for you. The Eletre R might add many layers between you and raw driving pleasure but those layers are important and what make it a polished and accomplished SUV.
