RE: Lotus Exige Automatic spec confirmed

RE: Lotus Exige Automatic spec confirmed

Author
Discussion

otolith

56,144 posts

204 months

Wednesday 4th February 2015
quotequote all
DonkeyApple said:
The global stats are that more people live in cities than the countryside and that city dwellers are wealthier. Ergo, Lotus need a car to sell to wealthy city dwellers.
While that's true, I suspect that rich people outside cities are more likely than rich people inside cities to have additional "toy" cars. That argument works better for the practical daily driver kind of sports car.

All the same, offering an automatic version makes perfect sense, and I think most of the people who would be put off by it being a slushbox rather than a dual clutch type would have bought the manual version anyway.

kambites

67,575 posts

221 months

Wednesday 4th February 2015
quotequote all
Interesting to hear that they sell more IPS Evoras than manuals. I guess it's an indication of where they sell them.

otolith

56,144 posts

204 months

Wednesday 4th February 2015
quotequote all
Impasse said:
Bahar knew this and tried to steer the company down that more lucrative route. Unfortunately, lots of internet forum users started frothing at the mouth and began boring on about core values, lightness and lap times.
Bahar floated some style-over-substance styling exercise vapourware that he knew full well there was no realistic chance of delivering. He was a marketing man hot from selling Ferrari branded tat, trying unsuccessfully to pump up the Lotus image with promises of jam tomorrow, Swizz Beatz and Brian May, while sabotaging sales of their current vehicles. The current CEO appears to have the advantage of not viewing the world via his lower colon.

leglessAlex

5,458 posts

141 months

Wednesday 4th February 2015
quotequote all
kambites said:
Interesting to hear that they sell more IPS Evoras than manuals. I guess it's an indication of where they sell them.
I would have thought that's expected in the car industry these days. It seems automatics are where it's at and not just in the Asian markets. The Evora isn't a cheap car and I'm guessing the majority are sold to people that want a car that looks good for driving into their job in the City of London. Accordingly, they want an automatic so they don't have to faff around with a clutch pedal in traffic.

I have no data to say the above is what's happening, but to my mind it seems pretty likely.

kambites

67,575 posts

221 months

Wednesday 4th February 2015
quotequote all
There will certainly be a significant number of people with that sort of usage profile. Lotus' biggest market isn't the UK though, it's apparently Japan.

Europa1

10,923 posts

188 months

Wednesday 4th February 2015
quotequote all
otolith said:
Impasse said:
Bahar knew this and tried to steer the company down that more lucrative route. Unfortunately, lots of internet forum users started frothing at the mouth and began boring on about core values, lightness and lap times.
Bahar floated some style-over-substance styling exercise vapourware that he knew full well there was no realistic chance of delivering. He was a marketing man hot from selling Ferrari branded tat, trying unsuccessfully to pump up the Lotus image with promises of jam tomorrow, Swizz Beatz and Brian May, while sabotaging sales of their current vehicles. The current CEO appears to have the advantage of not viewing the world via his lower colon.
It will be interesting to see how history judges Bahar's plans vs. DBR-Hicom's actions post-takeover. I can't make my mind up, I have to confess. There are times when I think Bahar actually had some sound ideas, but the execution was misguided.

leglessAlex

5,458 posts

141 months

Wednesday 4th February 2015
quotequote all
kambites said:
There will certainly be a significant number of people with that sort of usage profile. Lotus' biggest market isn't the UK though, it's apparently Japan.
Interesting. I expected the biggest market to be somewhere in Asia (was just using the City as an example) but wouldn't have expected it to be Japan.

DonkeyApple

55,308 posts

169 months

Wednesday 4th February 2015
quotequote all
Europa1 said:
otolith said:
Impasse said:
Bahar knew this and tried to steer the company down that more lucrative route. Unfortunately, lots of internet forum users started frothing at the mouth and began boring on about core values, lightness and lap times.
Bahar floated some style-over-substance styling exercise vapourware that he knew full well there was no realistic chance of delivering. He was a marketing man hot from selling Ferrari branded tat, trying unsuccessfully to pump up the Lotus image with promises of jam tomorrow, Swizz Beatz and Brian May, while sabotaging sales of their current vehicles. The current CEO appears to have the advantage of not viewing the world via his lower colon.
It will be interesting to see how history judges Bahar's plans vs. DBR-Hicom's actions post-takeover. I can't make my mind up, I have to confess. There are times when I think Bahar actually had some sound ideas, but the execution was misguided.
Personally, I think Bahar was absolutely spot on. He knew exactly what was wrong and what was needed. He then executed it in the most farcical parody of a Eurovision entrant. Zero class, premium Eurotrash muppetry.

otolith

56,144 posts

204 months

Wednesday 4th February 2015
quotequote all
DonkeyApple said:
Personally, I think Bahar was absolutely spot on. He knew exactly what was wrong and what was needed. He then executed it in the most farcical parody of a Eurovision entrant. Zero class, premium Eurotrash muppetry.
I think he might have passed muster in charge of marketing, with the rest of the board telling him when he'd overstepped the mark. As CEO, no.