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Ever since Lotus announced plans to introduce an SUV, we all know that the car will be much heavier than the Norfolk sports car. That became even clearer when the Geely-owned brand revealed the high-riding model would be purely electric. An educated guess tells us it will be heavier than the Evija hypercar, which in itself is quite a hog by Lotus standards as it weighs in at 3,700 pounds (1,680 kilograms).
When the Eletre was finally revealed earlier this week, Lotus refrained from talking about its weight. We know the black body part is made of carbon fiber while the rest is made of lightweight aluminum. Additional weight-saving measures include the use of a wool blend fabric for the seat upholstery to cut off 50 percent of fat compared to regular leather.
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According to a new report from piston head, engineers at Lotus targeted a curb weight of 4,409 lbs (2,000 kg). That may sound unimpressive, especially for the Lotus, but it will make it a lot lighter than its segment competitors. For example, the Tesla Model X Plaid weighs a hefty 5,412 lbs (2,455 kg), while the Audi E-Tron S is even heavier, at 5,853 lbs (2,655 kg).
The substantial weight difference explains why the “only” 600 hp Eletre can do 0 to 62 mph (100 km/h) in under three seconds. Speaking of horsepower, a separate report from upper teeth magazine Claims of a more powerful derivative with as much as 900 hp are planned. It is said to have adopted a tri-motor setup by installing a second rear motor with 300 hp.
The highest-reaching Lotus SUV is believed to complete the sprint in “well under 2.5 seconds,” which would make the 5.1 seconds Audi E-Tron S seem slow. At the same time, it will be slightly faster than the Tesla Model X Plaid (2.6 seconds) too. It is believed Eletre with a trio of e-motors is slated to arrive in the next few years.
Meanwhile, the zero-emission Lotus on stilts will be in the hands of early adopters from China, Europe and the UK from 2023. It will be built in China at a new factory set up by parent company Geely in Wuhan. Details on US availability will follow in due course.
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