Spy photos show Lotus testing electric sedan
The model is the Lotus Envya, which will take on the Porsche Taycan, according to local media.
Only a month after its first all-electric model was officially launched, a second electric vehicle from Lotus Cars, majority owned by Geely Holding Group, already seems to be in the works.
Chinese automotive media outlet Xchuxing shared two spy photos Wednesday of the model, which it says is the Lotus Envya, codenamed Type 133.
The car is tightly wrapped in camouflage and carries a test LiDAR on its roof.
The Lotus Envya will take on the Porsche Taycan and is a mid-to-large-size sedan that will be built on the same EPA platform as the Lotus Eletre, according to Xchuxing.
The car is expected to have the same powertrain as the Lotus Eletre, and the battery pack capacity will probably also be available in 92 kWh and 120 kWh options, the report said.
The Lotus Envya top model will take less than 3 seconds to accelerate from 0 to 100 km/h, and the car is expected to be unveiled in 2023 and produced at Lotus' plant in Wuhan, Hubei province, according to the report.
Geely acquired Lotus, which has a history of about 70 years, in 2017 and owns 51 percent of the latter, including Lotus Cars and Lotus Engineering.
At the end of August last year, Lotus set up a new company in China, Wuhan Lotus Technology, and received an investment from Nio Capital.
Lotus said at the time that it would launch its independently built architecture EPA and planned to launch four pure electric smart cars within five years.
These include the mid-to-large electric SUV codenamed Type 132, the all-electric four-door coupe Type 133, the new all-electric Type 134, and the all-electric compact sports car Type 135.
On October 25, Lotus officially launched the Eletre, codenamed Type 132. It is available in two versions in China with a starting price of 828,000 yuan ($115,840), with deliveries to begin in March 2023.
The Lotus Eletre is an all-electric SUV with a length, width and height of 5,103 mm, 2,019 mm and 1,630 mm, respectively, and a wheelbase of 3,019 mm.
It is available in China in two versions -- Eletre S+ and Eletre R+, both equipped with dual electric motors with a maximum power of 450 kW and 675 kW and peak torque of 710Nm and 985Nm, respectively.
With this powertrain, the Eletre S+ can accelerate from 0 to 100 km/h in 4.5 seconds and the Eletre R+ in 2.95 seconds.