http://carsguide.news.com.au/story/0,20384,18498868-21822,00.html

Good to see Lotus expanding their horizons.

Not bad actually. not bad..........

Why is this good? I think it's quite disturbing. Nevertheless, at least it shows new Lotus technology - such as a new platform and new engine.

i hope this isn't the beginning of a trend for Lotus growing apart from its roots.

Kind of cool that it's made from alluminium. I heard that it's going to be a base for future all-alluminium vehicles from Lotus.

No, i hope Lotus won't start producing that. Wrong politics if they start.

It would be a good source of income for lotus to produce an affordable compact car.

It could also easily ruin them.

I am fully for car companies trying to gain income to develop new technologies. This seems like a reasonable way to do so.

I see alot of Holden in the design of it, and it looks pretty cool. However, no way should Lotus be building it. Lotus is known for its sportscars and its GT's, they shouldn't grow too far away from that. I'm totally against it.

it would be cool but they would need to change the name to.. epx or something.. it would keep with their roots just that little bit more.. other than that i dont see anything wrong with it. they have plans to have it as a:
FF,
FAWD,
MAWD,
MR, and
FR setup planned so it seems that it could be a very veritile source of income

Please no, it will reduce my opinion of lotus, they should stick to what they are already doing

I really hope this does not reach production, I completely goes against Lotus' ethos

It would be a good source of income for lotus to produce an affordable compact car.

It could also easily ruin them.

I am fully for car companies trying to gain income to develop new technologies. This seems like a reasonable way to do so.

I couldn't have said it better.

The APX could be for a different auto manufacturer or for Lotus's parent company Proton.

The APX could be for a different auto manufacturer or for Lotus's parent company Proton.I think it is definitely for other make. i just can't realise why they call it Lotus. Somebody knows?

i hope this isn't the beginning of a trend for Lotus growing apart from its roots.
I agree. It's not bad to make a car or 2 that doesn't follow the tradition of a car company, I just hope they don't change all of their cars over time. That would suck it see the Elise as a 3000 lbs, 4 door, front wheel drive saloon one day.:o

That doesn't even look like a Lotus. I mean, Porsche made tractors and such, so Porsche making an SUV isn't really that bad. But Lotus never made anything but small sports cars (except maybe the latest generation Esprit, which I think was a tad porky).

I doubt this would sell. Lotus isn't really that popular, so doing something this bold would only end in failure.

I think it is hidious. It looks terrible. I also think that if Lotus does produce a 4 door suv type vehicle, it will ruin the company in my eyes. Rather than it being a sport car company it will be like any other. The only company besides Lotus (so far) that has not made an SUV is Ferrari. Lotus should stay in that classification and serve history well.

Group Lotus is talking to several manufacturers about making niche vehicles at its plant in Hethel, England.

CEO Kim Ogaard-Nielsen said the British group also is looking to expand its engineering business.

Both moves are aimed at helping the group turn a profit. Lotus lost £7.4 million (E10.7 million) in the 2004-2005 fiscal year, ended March 31. The company reported revenues of about £162.6 million.

The Indonesian carmaker Proton owns Lotus.

Lotus' engineering business now accounts for about a quarter of revenues, but Ogaard-Nielsen plans to grow that to about a third by 2010.

"We are especially on the move in the field of driving dynamics and lightweight construction," he said in an interview.

Lotus says that its engineering customers include several leading carmakers, but it won't say which ones.

Ogaard-Nielsen also wants to make more cars at the Hethel factory, including models for other automakers.
8,000 cars a year
"We have a couple of opportunities where we are going to manufacture for another company," he said. "We could go up to 8,000 cars a year."

Hethel made about 4,500 cars in 2005, including the Lotus Elise and Exige extreme sports cars. Lotus stopped making the Speedster two-seat roadster for General Motors subsidiaries Opel and Vauxhall last summer.

Ogaard-Nielsen declined to name possible partners.

At the Geneva auto show, Lotus showed the APX concept, a seven-seat, coupe-styled, station wagon crossover designed to show off the company's capabilities, including its Versatile Vehicle Architecture, said spokesman Alastair Florance.

Lotus claims its architecture offers manufacturers a way to bring a variety of niche vehicles to market quickly "without the compromise that stems from conventional platform sharing."

Lotus does not plan to make a vehicle based on the APX, which is short for Aluminum Performance Crossover, but the carmaker will launch two new models soon.

The Europa S, Lotus' version of a two-seat grand tourer, goes into production in July.

Lotus plans to make about 500 annually. They will go to Europe and Asia, but not the US and Canada.

A replacement for the famed Esprit supercar is due in 2008. Lotus also may add a 2+2 model to its lineup, possibly in 2010.



source:http://www.autoweek.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060322/FREE/60320010/1041

This might answer some questions.

After reading that and seeing the threa about the VW 3 wheeler I think the 3 wheeler will be made there.