If you could ask Lotus anything...
Discussion
It's difficult to think of something you could ask that they would realistically be able to answer. Of course I'd like to know about the Esprit (particularly the power train), the Elan and the exact line up of new cars. However, I'm guessing that we're not going to find out until they're good and ready. With regards to the Esprit specifically, the obvious question is "can I have a go?", followed shortly by "can I have one?".
Slightly more sensibly, there's the question of how the Esprit is going to differentiate itself from the McLaren and Ferrari, and what's going to happen with the Elise.
The rest is less questions and more things I'd like to tell them (I wish the new Esprit looked a little more dramatic somehow, I'm glad the Evora is evolving, please don't drown the engineering in marketing, and there are some quite serious thoughts about their customer interactions and some possibilities for exciting change there) - none of which I expect they want to hear.
Two final questions:
1. When are you going to put the new nose on the Evora, it looks great?
2. Do you get really depressed reading the punditry on Pistonheads?
Slightly more sensibly, there's the question of how the Esprit is going to differentiate itself from the McLaren and Ferrari, and what's going to happen with the Elise.
The rest is less questions and more things I'd like to tell them (I wish the new Esprit looked a little more dramatic somehow, I'm glad the Evora is evolving, please don't drown the engineering in marketing, and there are some quite serious thoughts about their customer interactions and some possibilities for exciting change there) - none of which I expect they want to hear.
Two final questions:
1. When are you going to put the new nose on the Evora, it looks great?
2. Do you get really depressed reading the punditry on Pistonheads?
bobo said:
why didn't you fire your management the moment they rested on their laurels since the replacement of the s1 ?
You need to read up about what was happening around that time. The deal with GM to produce the VX220 nearly killed the company, the M250 project absorbed a fair amount of resources and was canned and the S2 launch was misjudged, damaging the dealers quite badly. It took them a few years to recover from the fall out. So, not so much resting on their laurels as trying not to go under.
Tuna said:
You need to read up about what was happening around that time. The deal with GM to produce the VX220 nearly killed the company, the M250 project absorbed a fair amount of resources and was canned and the S2 launch was misjudged, damaging the dealers quite badly. It took them a few years to recover from the fall out.
So, not so much resting on their laurels as trying not to go under.
fair points, so all bad management decisions then? So, not so much resting on their laurels as trying not to go under.
bobo said:
fair points, so all bad management decisions then?
Certainly sounds like it, doesn't it?In particular; why can the M250?
My recollection was that it was related to difficulties making the car 'globally compliant', particularly for the US market. But they had punters queuing up with deposits for the M250, so surely selling several thousand M250's in compliant territories only would have been better than spending several years and £several million developing the Evora to be globally compliant, then selling hardly any, anywhere?
My questions:
1) Where did the name 'Lotus' come from (probably the only person who can now answer that one is Hazel Chapman, but she's still a shareholder, I believe, so still part of the company)?
2) Swizz Beatz: What were your marketing department smoking when they thought up that idea, and where can I get some?
anybody else read this:
http://blog.caranddriver.com/lotus-in-even-deeper-...
who's running the book?
I'll put money on less than 12 months....
http://blog.caranddriver.com/lotus-in-even-deeper-...
who's running the book?
I'll put money on less than 12 months....
Why did you do your business plan the wrong way round, developing the product plan and showing the new cars and then seeing where you are today? (This is quoted from a Bahar interview in Autocar this week)
How you can can up with a viable plan without understanding the current situation, and the capabilities and what makes people buy your products I don't know. This is compounded by the strange suggestion that receiving orders for 150 Evora GTE's when only 25 were planned demonstrates that there is a market for 6500 cars per year at the higher prices the future model range will be. Again, to quote Bahar "It was something which we did against everyone's opinion that we wouldn't be able to sell a car at this top-end price".
So the second question would be "You only need another 6350 customers per year, where are they?"
Despite that, I do hope Lotus can survive, but on a more Lotus based product plan than the one Bahar has cooked up. The Car & Driver article is very interesting.
How you can can up with a viable plan without understanding the current situation, and the capabilities and what makes people buy your products I don't know. This is compounded by the strange suggestion that receiving orders for 150 Evora GTE's when only 25 were planned demonstrates that there is a market for 6500 cars per year at the higher prices the future model range will be. Again, to quote Bahar "It was something which we did against everyone's opinion that we wouldn't be able to sell a car at this top-end price".
So the second question would be "You only need another 6350 customers per year, where are they?"
Despite that, I do hope Lotus can survive, but on a more Lotus based product plan than the one Bahar has cooked up. The Car & Driver article is very interesting.
Scuffers said:
anybody else read this:
http://blog.caranddriver.com/lotus-in-even-deeper-...
who's running the book?
I'll put money on less than 12 months....
Hatchet job. I have no idea of what's going on at Hethel, but neither does the author of that piece. He's flung enough sh** that some might stick, but there's a lot there that sounds like nonsense.http://blog.caranddriver.com/lotus-in-even-deeper-...
who's running the book?
I'll put money on less than 12 months....
I love the look of the new Evora. And I see myself as a potential customer. Deep down, it is clear that some talented engineers had a hand in the Evora. I love the ethos of a sports car designed to handle the bumps and potholes that are an excuse for UK roads.
But I can't be the only car- enthusiast who is a bit puzzled by the bizarre goings on at the top of the company.
So my questions are:
1, Why on earth show the world a range of cars that remain years from production, if they ever get made at all?
2. Why are you taking the Elise away from it's core appeal, making it larger and heavier, when it is clear that the market is heading toward lighter cars? The core concept of the Elise is more relevant now than it has ever been so why abandon it?
3. I find the bizarre action of hiring Swiss Beatz simply mind boggling. Any of the most basically educated specialist would tell you that Mr B has zero alignment with the Lotus brand values. What on earth are you thinking?
4. As a potential customer, what can Lotus do to reassure me that the company is not run by idiots and that it is wise to risk my money in a new Lotus?
But I can't be the only car- enthusiast who is a bit puzzled by the bizarre goings on at the top of the company.
So my questions are:
1, Why on earth show the world a range of cars that remain years from production, if they ever get made at all?
2. Why are you taking the Elise away from it's core appeal, making it larger and heavier, when it is clear that the market is heading toward lighter cars? The core concept of the Elise is more relevant now than it has ever been so why abandon it?
3. I find the bizarre action of hiring Swiss Beatz simply mind boggling. Any of the most basically educated specialist would tell you that Mr B has zero alignment with the Lotus brand values. What on earth are you thinking?
4. As a potential customer, what can Lotus do to reassure me that the company is not run by idiots and that it is wise to risk my money in a new Lotus?
toppstuff said:
3. I find the bizarre action of hiring Swiss Beatz simply mind boggling. Any of the most basically educated specialist would tell you that Mr B has zero alignment with the Lotus brand values. What on earth are you thinking?
I'll take a stab at that one. The people who do have alignment with the Lotus brand values are not buying the cars. Mainly they're stroking their beards and complaining that Lotuses aren't what they used to be. Hence, Lotus want to broaden their brand values. Lotus aren't aspirational cars, particularly to most people under 30. Mr Bean is therefore meant to 'reconnect with the next generation' of potential Lotus owners.That's the logic behind it. The execution on the other hand leads a lot to be desired. Beard strokers are having fits.
Well, it would be if there was any indication that non-beard stroking people, who don't align themselves with Lotus brand values, were inclined to buy the cars because of Mr Beatz influence.
Sadly, this doesn't seem to be the case... the non-Lotus enthusiasts aren't buying the cars either.
Your 'logic' is on a par with saying that God must exist because nobody can offer conclusive proof to the contrary; and equally self-delusional.
Sadly, this doesn't seem to be the case... the non-Lotus enthusiasts aren't buying the cars either.
Your 'logic' is on a par with saying that God must exist because nobody can offer conclusive proof to the contrary; and equally self-delusional.
Tuna said:
I'll take a stab at that one. The people who do have alignment with the Lotus brand values are not buying the cars. Mainly they're stroking their beards and complaining that Lotuses aren't what they used to be. Hence, Lotus want to broaden their brand values. Lotus aren't aspirational cars, particularly to most people under 30. Mr Bean is therefore meant to 'reconnect with the next generation' of potential Lotus owners.
That's the logic behind it. The execution on the other hand leads a lot to be desired. Beard strokers are having fits.
People without beards who have never bought a Lotus before are never going to be impressed with a rap artist as creative director either. Rap culture is throwaway, disposable. They could just as easily start with a entirely new brand if that is the market they are after - Lotus means NOTHING to black music culture, so it is a waste of time trying to take the brand there. That's the logic behind it. The execution on the other hand leads a lot to be desired. Beard strokers are having fits.
People who may consider a new Evora are never , ever, going to gain any positive impression by Lotus having an association with Swiss Beatz.
It worries me because it makes me wonder if the management have a clue what they are doing. It makes me hesitate to consider buying my first ever Lotus. I fear that if their decisions are that bad then it could all go horribly wrong and my Evora becomes as desirable as a Rover 75, once the business goes belly up because of lack of sales resulting from a stupid, ill advised marketing strategy..
toppstuff said:
It worries me because it makes me wonder if the management have a clue what they are doing. It makes me hesitate to consider buying my first ever Lotus. I fear that if their decisions are that bad then it could all go horribly wrong and my Evora becomes as desirable as a Rover 75, once the business goes belly up because of lack of sales resulting from a stupid, ill advised marketing strategy..
To be honest, if you're basing your decisions on what people might think of your purchase in two year's time, I'd give in now and get a Porsche and a Mac.Stuff like the Swiss Beatz 'signing' cost so close to nothing as to be insignificant on Lotus' balance. I don't see that it does any real harm to the brand either - most people neither know or care which stars/football teams/politicians have been sponsored by Lotus/Porsche/Ferrari etc. unless they happen to follow that particular person/team, in which case the brand benefits.
That's not to say they've handled it particularly well, but the fact that a broom cupboard in Hethel has a "Mr Beatz' Office" sign on it doesn't really affect the end product in any way whatsoever. It's only the fact that this sort of deal is new territory for modern Lotus that makes it noteworthy to followers of the brand.
Bibs_LEF said:
toppstuff said:
4. As a potential customer, what can Lotus do to reassure me that the company is not run by idiots and that it is wise to risk my money in a new Lotus?
Are you busy a car or shares in the company? toppstuff said:
People without beards who have never bought a Lotus before are never going to be impressed with a rap artist as creative director either. Rap culture is throwaway, disposable. They could just as easily start with a entirely new brand if that is the market they are after - Lotus means NOTHING to black music culture, so it is a waste of time trying to take the brand there.
People who may consider a new Evora are never , ever, going to gain any positive impression by Lotus having an association with Swiss Beatz.
It worries me because it makes me wonder if the management have a clue what they are doing. It makes me hesitate to consider buying my first ever Lotus. I fear that if their decisions are that bad then it could all go horribly wrong and my Evora becomes as desirable as a Rover 75, once the business goes belly up because of lack of sales resulting from a stupid, ill advised marketing strategy..
The point about the new brand is key. Bahar and his plans are trying to take Lotus into a territory they have very little brand association with, and for which they actually have a lack of credibility due to associations with other territories. Starting with a new brand for which potential customers have no preconceived ideas would make much more sense, even if that brand was based at Hethel. People who may consider a new Evora are never , ever, going to gain any positive impression by Lotus having an association with Swiss Beatz.
It worries me because it makes me wonder if the management have a clue what they are doing. It makes me hesitate to consider buying my first ever Lotus. I fear that if their decisions are that bad then it could all go horribly wrong and my Evora becomes as desirable as a Rover 75, once the business goes belly up because of lack of sales resulting from a stupid, ill advised marketing strategy..
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