The Electric Lotus Elise And Exige Successors Will Peaceable Be Mid-Engined (Kind Of)

Hethel’s newly printed Lightweight Electric Car Structure can accommodate extra than one battery capacities and mounting places

The announcement of Lotus‘ all-contemporary electrical sports automotive platform might well, you’d mediate, have an oh-so predictable ‘skateboard‘ style. Nonetheless you’d most efficient be half dazzling – Hethel’s Lightweight Electric Car Structure can adopt bigger than one battery mounting point.

Possibility A with the ‘Lightweight Electric Car Structure’ (LEVA) entails a ‘chest’ structure that encompasses a double stack of battery cells mounted across the automotive within the serve of the cabin. First seen on the Evija, there are extra than one advantages to this approach – first off, it ability the seats might be mounted plenty lower, which then retains the roof line down for added ragged sports automotive proportions.

Secondly, the ensuing weight distribution would abet future Lotus EVs mimic the using characteristics of the mid-engined autos these scoot-in beasts are gain 22 situation to interchange.

The chest structure will approach in two assorted codecs – a shorter wheelbase (minimum 2,470mm) version with an eight-module, 66.4kWh battery, and a protracted wheelbase (over 2,650mm) automotive with a 12-module, 99.6kWh pack. The ragged, seemingly to be adopted for the Elise’s successor, will use a single motor for a total output of 469bhp. The latter sounds plenty love the Exige’s successor within the intervening time, and it’s plenty extra highly efficient, with a twin-motor powertrain providing a whopping 872bhp.

Possibility B is the ‘slab’ form – yes, in general identified as the ‘skateboard’. It retail outlets the battery beneath the bottom, elevating the using web page nevertheless opening up the likelihood of a 2+2 seating affiliation. It’ll be exiguous to an eight-module, 66.4kWh battery pack, even supposing there might be a desire of both single (469bhp) or twin (872bhp) motor setups. This can seemingly be the setup of desire for the next-generation Evora.

Apt love the now 25-year-mature Elise, the autos it spawned and the contemporary Emira), the achitecture is fabricated from bonded aluminium. It’s extra advanced than the Emira’s platform, even supposing, with a 37 per cent rear structure.

“This day’s EVs are heavy when put next to their ICE equivalents, so the ARMD funding has helped Lotus to innovate earlier within the product cycle and bear a up to date automotive structure that targets lightweight and efficiency density from thought. Relatively than creating a single automotive, it ability Lotus now has the ‘blueprint’ for the next generation of electrical sports autos, for future Lotus products and for the Lotus Engineering consultancy to commercialise.”