Introduction: This automobile brand, which civilized the world with sports cars, began to enter people's field of vision with its electrification and played the real movement of the revival plan.
"It has been five years. I am actually very excited, but also a little nervous."
On the evening of March 28, 2023, Lotus Global CEO Feng Qingfeng met with the media in advance When they met, they made no secret of their expectations for the day ahead, because 24 hours later, at the Shanghai International Circuit, the only F1 track in the country, the Lotus brand's 75th anniversary - "Lotus Day" would be ushered in.
Feng Qingfeng has been waiting for this moment for five years.
On March 29, under night, this sports car brand, which originated from the UK, was born on the track, and is now rooted in China, shined at the Shanghai F1 International Circuit in its iconic "Championship Yellow".
At this first brand celebration and track carnival held in Shanghai, China, three classic models, the Mark I, Eleven, and Type 99T, which were once world-famous, were unveiled in the form of replicas, competing with Lotus Emira, Eletre, and Evija together interpret Lotus’ consistent innovative spirit from the past to the future.
Perhaps the three words "Lotus" may be unfamiliar to many young people, but this 75-year-old car brand is putting aside its past glory through this grand celebration. Say goodbye to the old era and move towards the second half of Vision 80’s ten-year revival plan.
75 Years of Self-Transcendence
Time goes back to 2018.
That was the first time Feng Qingfeng proposed the Lotus Vision80 ten-year brand revival plan, which is to complete the brand's comprehensive transformation to electrification and intelligence on the occasion of the 80th anniversary of the founding of the Lotus brand in 2028.
At that time, on the new energy vehicle track, I could only hear the heart-shaking footsteps of giants struggling to catch up, but when it came to BBA and other car manufacturers, they did not seem to be at ease.
But Feng Qingfeng has realized that the torrent of the times has gone in the direction of electrification and intelligence, but the control and suspension system, and even the aerodynamic shape and so on, are still necessary for a car. An essential and timeless component.
And his words, "Lotus will work with everyone to welcome the arrival of the 'iPhone' moment in the automotive industry and realize the vision of reconstructing the relationship between people and cars. This is not only the mission of Lotus, but also the combination of the times and technology." The bold statement of "the direction of evolution" laid the foundation for today five years later.
However, looking back at the past at the juncture of time, it is undeniable that from 1948 to 2023, Lotus has indeed gone through a period of ups and downs.
In 1948, when Mr. Anthony Colin Bruce Chapman, the founder of Lotus, was studying structural engineering at a university in London, he used an electric drill and basic sheet metal. Using gold technology, he transformed a 1930 Austin Seven into the first Lotus MK1 car and participated in the competition as a racing driver.
The performance of MK1 on the British racing circuit was very outstanding, which not only made Mr. Chapman famous, but also said that "increasing power makes you faster on the straights, while reducing weight can make you faster everywhere." Faster” has also become a famous saying in the racing world.
In 1951, Lotus’ first track racing car was born, which was also the first model named “Lotus”. "Lightweight" has become Lotus' innovative engineering design concept. The acceleration time from 0-50 mph is only 6.6 seconds, and the top speed can reach 90 mph.
Since then, the Lotus brand has officially "entered" the racing world. Over the next 70 years, Lotus continued to overcome obstacles.
According to relevant media statistics, Lotus already has - 7 F1 manufacturer annual championships, 6 F1 driver annual championships, 81 F1 race championships, and 9 Le Mans Grand Prix groupings championship, an Indy 500 championship and a World Rally Championship title.
Lotus has also interpreted "born on the track, accomplished by driving" along the way, and is committed to building lightweight, high-performance, and efficient sports cars. Every model launched by Lotus since then reflects its brand spirit, whether it is the classic Elise, Exige, Evora, or the new Evija, Emira, and Eletre.
So on the evening of March 29, from the classic replica models parked on the grid of the Shanghai F1 International Circuit, it is not difficult to feel why Lotus can be called the "world's best car" together with Ferrari and Porsche. Three major supercar brands”.
But as Mr. Colin Chapman once said: "The courage of a pioneer is not only about innovation, but also about breaking free from the shackles of the past."
Although in the past 75 years, Rutter has Lotus has countless opponents on the field, but in fact Lotus's only opponent is itself. Over the past 75 years, Lotus has only stuck to one thing, producing better cars and surpassing its predecessors. With such persistence, Lotus has accumulated technical experience that far exceeds that of its peers. It is this accumulation of technology that gives Lotus the confidence to transform.
At the same time, this automobile brand that civilized the world with sports cars, just like when it was founded more than 70 years ago, has found and made clear its own development direction-making strides toward electrification. of a new era and played the real movement of the revival plan.
Becoming the “No. 1 Pure Electric Luxury Brand”
After Feng Qingfeng proposed the Lotus Vision80 ten-year brand revival plan, Lotus made a plan at an astonishing speed. The transformation of the series proves the beginning of the transformation journey with three championship-level products.
If the Evija, the first pure electric supercar released by Lotus in 2019, marks Lotus's full shift to the electrification era, then the launch of the Emira, the last internal combustion engine sports car in 2021, will officially Wave goodbye to the fuel era. At the same time, when a pure electric luxury SUV appeared in front of the public with the Lotus brand, the world was already paying attention to it.
As the first pure electric supercar SUV, Lotus ELETRE demonstrates its self-transcendence with its cross-border transformation. Because in the past, it was difficult for people to imagine owning a Lotus SUV.
As the world’s first pure electric supercar SUV, Lotus Eletre follows the essence of the brand’s performance aesthetics and inherits Lotus’ innovative technologies and rich experience in aerodynamics, chassis tuning and lightweighting. , and for the first time brought the ultimate F1 track-level driving control fun to the electric vehicle industry, providing users with the unique pure electric driving control fun at the moment.
So when driving a Lotus Eletre to experience the still light control feeling during extreme acceleration, there is no doubt that Lotus, with its 75 years of heritage, has successfully History becomes the driving force behind accumulation.
It is worth mentioning that although AII IN is fully electrified, the spiritual core of Lotus specially designed for drivers has not changed. In the new era, Lotus still combines "driving" and "driver" "Put it in the most important position.
At the "Lotus Day" site, Feng Qingfeng also released the global brand proposition "For the Drivers".
He said: "In the era of electrification and intelligence, our original intention remains unchanged, and we are eager to provide unique brand spirit, user value and intelligent experience for the 'drivers' of the new era, and provide 'For The Drivers' with a unique brand spirit, user value and intelligent experience." 'Inject new connotation and achieve an epoch-making Lotus."
From its global debut on March 29, 2022, to today in 2023, Lotus Eletre has been delivered to Chinese users. In the next five years, Lotus will quickly achieve global launch and delivery of Eletre. ?
In just five years, Lotus has shown us innovations in technology and products, realizing the transition from traditional fuel to electrification and intelligent racing, and from sports cars to pure electric vehicles. The transformation of smart life vehicles. But as Lotus Vision 80 decade revival plan enters the second half, Lotus will continue to run.
“2023 is a decisive year for the Lotus brand.”
On “Lotus Day”, Lotus China President Mao Jingbo said, “We will achieve this through Brand revitalization, creating champion products and launching Lotus' iconic new user experience have truly established a brand reputation from trust to love to appreciation in the hearts of users."
First of all. Products, from 2023 to 2025, Lotus plans to launch a new pure electric model every year, lay out more products suitable for daily driving scenarios, and quickly form a product matrix advantage of pure electric smart life vehicles.
Feng Qingfeng previously said in an interview, "Lotus will meet the revival goal of 'Vision 80' with a '3+3' product lineup." It is reported that in addition to Evjia and Emira, Lotus will launch an electric sports car in 2025; including Eletre, a coupe-style sedan will be launched at the end of 2023, and a crossover product between an SUV and a sports car will be launched in 2024.
In this event, F1 world champion Jenson Button also came to the scene to introduce the first brand experience IP to Chinese users - The Lotus Drive. Si hopes to provide users with an iconic and ultimate driving experience.
In addition, with the official delivery of Lotus Eletre, Lotus centers and experience stores in 23 core cities across the country are fully prepared to create omni-channel, all-round, all-weather respect for users. experience.
After products and user services, there is the integration of resources to help the globalization of the brand.
Lotus Technology has previously reached a merger and listing agreement with LCAA, a subsidiary of LCatterton, a world-renowned consumer brand investment company. Based on this move, Lotus' capital injection has accelerated, thereby further accelerating Lotus' reshaping of electric models in the global market.
In addition, Lotus has also integrated resources in R&D centers, factories and other aspects. In the future, it will promote a global marketing development model and realize global sales of products by integrating global sales networks.
Yes, many long-established brands are facing the pressure of transformation in the new era and are confused. For example, the former mobile phone giant Nokia has completely fallen behind in the smartphone era, but Lotus has been for Beyond, Lotus never refuses change and even promotes it.
Feng Qingfeng is also full of confidence in the future of Lotus, "My main source of confidence is the charm of the brand, the empowerment of brand value, breakthroughs in smart technology, and the impact of the electrification era on... The interpretation of luxury.”
Indeed, although 75 years have passed, Lotus’s persistence in the brand has not changed. Just like the end of Lotus Brand Day, the live classical music is full of modernity. The fusion of Rap, just like the classic brand value of Lotus that will not change over time, is intertwined with the trendy technology that continues to break through and innovate, injecting new connotation into For the Drivers and continuing to write a new legend.
Text/Yuan Yingjie
This article comes from Businesscars, the author of Yichehao. The copyright belongs to the author. Please contact the author for any form of reprinting.
The content only represents the author's opinion and has nothing to do with Bitauto