Interesting Article - Dissecting the Lotus Matamorphosis
Discussion
Interesting article in case you haven't read it...
http://www.autoblog.com/2010/11/23/dissecting-the-...
http://www.autoblog.com/2010/11/23/dissecting-the-...
What I find worrying is that Lotus has no heritage in the 'luxury' sector, quite the contrary, all its past attempts to succeed have failed, so there is no badge association with the essential elements that create the desire to own a luxury sports Lotus. Furthermore Lotus are entering a segment that is being hit hard by truly catastrophic depreciation of all models, this must soon start to shrink the market so competition is going to be intense. There is no Lotus DNA in this market, frankly I worry that they might as well have called the cars something else, like all the wanna be super GT's that appear on a weekly basis on Pistonheads news
When I think of my own mental map of just why my own Lotus means so much to me there are alot of fragments of associations of what could have been. Usually an organisational foul up, a product that should have opened up the market to a wider audience, but when it seemed easier to succeed, Lotus knew how to fail. As you can tell from this description I own a Lotus Elan M100(!) In the early nineties I worked for the biggest selling Elan dealer in London, frankly the marketing dept (who had all the power) commited armed robbery against the engineering team. Now of course this wont happen again (I hope) but when I look at the Lotus badge on my car I think of what might have been, a previous list of failed attempts to go upmarket and a previous job with the Eclat et al, jeez Chapman really screwed those up. It occurs to me that the Lotus badge is a hindrance, the facts are that it really isnt aspirational at all..............when it comes to heritage its all a matter of history.
I say I love the Lotus brand for its imperfections,for its sporting heritage and for giving me a sense of journey and striving (it felt at times like suffering, they never listened to their dealers or their customers, and usually blamed them for all of their woes.) I find it sad that they cannot find a way of surviving making cars for people who want something out of the ordinary, thats affordable, individualistic and carries a sense of values that bestows a real stand out from the crowd, in a world where cars including new Lotus cars seem somehow to come from the SAME WAY OF THINKING.
Every time I take the cover off my Lotus I know that the time I spend with it is going to be pretty special.
When I think of my own mental map of just why my own Lotus means so much to me there are alot of fragments of associations of what could have been. Usually an organisational foul up, a product that should have opened up the market to a wider audience, but when it seemed easier to succeed, Lotus knew how to fail. As you can tell from this description I own a Lotus Elan M100(!) In the early nineties I worked for the biggest selling Elan dealer in London, frankly the marketing dept (who had all the power) commited armed robbery against the engineering team. Now of course this wont happen again (I hope) but when I look at the Lotus badge on my car I think of what might have been, a previous list of failed attempts to go upmarket and a previous job with the Eclat et al, jeez Chapman really screwed those up. It occurs to me that the Lotus badge is a hindrance, the facts are that it really isnt aspirational at all..............when it comes to heritage its all a matter of history.
I say I love the Lotus brand for its imperfections,for its sporting heritage and for giving me a sense of journey and striving (it felt at times like suffering, they never listened to their dealers or their customers, and usually blamed them for all of their woes.) I find it sad that they cannot find a way of surviving making cars for people who want something out of the ordinary, thats affordable, individualistic and carries a sense of values that bestows a real stand out from the crowd, in a world where cars including new Lotus cars seem somehow to come from the SAME WAY OF THINKING.
Every time I take the cover off my Lotus I know that the time I spend with it is going to be pretty special.
I believe you need to understand how Proton thinks and works their Marketing to see what Lotus is doing, (and to an extent understand how Malaysian’s see a market).
Proton currently make.
An old Saga 4 door, (only available as taxi now)
A new Saga ,
A Savy Hatch
A 1600 cc Waja (and you can still get NOS of the Old Wira this replaced 6 years ago)
Some sort of 7 seater that is so hideous I’ve never even looked at the name.
The ‘new’ Inspire 1.9 and 2liter.
All have various engine and trim options, total production ia around 350,000 units a year.
They don’t make one model in enough quantity to be economic, and none are good enough to compete on a world market.
In other words Proton in Malaysia are ‘all things to all men’ and they can do this in their home market because of the lack of competition subsidies etc. there is no concept of trying to grow the market, say by improving quality and exporting more, they just try to take marlket share in their existing market, by widdening the product base, Unfortunately I believe this thinking is being carried over/forced on to Lotus, hence 5 new models, and a move into luxury cars etc.
If you go into a shop in Malaysia the same thing is true almost without exception there is no concept of specializing, they want to supply everything.
I think this is a great pity as Proton appears to genuinely want to build the brand, they just don't know how to do it.
Proton currently make.
An old Saga 4 door, (only available as taxi now)
A new Saga ,
A Savy Hatch
A 1600 cc Waja (and you can still get NOS of the Old Wira this replaced 6 years ago)
Some sort of 7 seater that is so hideous I’ve never even looked at the name.
The ‘new’ Inspire 1.9 and 2liter.
All have various engine and trim options, total production ia around 350,000 units a year.
They don’t make one model in enough quantity to be economic, and none are good enough to compete on a world market.
In other words Proton in Malaysia are ‘all things to all men’ and they can do this in their home market because of the lack of competition subsidies etc. there is no concept of trying to grow the market, say by improving quality and exporting more, they just try to take marlket share in their existing market, by widdening the product base, Unfortunately I believe this thinking is being carried over/forced on to Lotus, hence 5 new models, and a move into luxury cars etc.
If you go into a shop in Malaysia the same thing is true almost without exception there is no concept of specializing, they want to supply everything.
I think this is a great pity as Proton appears to genuinely want to build the brand, they just don't know how to do it.
The proposed move upmarket creates a lot of potential problems for Lotus. Most fundamental is the brand perception, which will be very difficult to change. Trying to persuade customers that their £50k is better spent on a new Lotus rather than a Porsche (or all manner of secondhand exotica) is clearly very difficult. Unfortunately the Evora doesn't look, or feel, like a £50k car - particularly inside - and the heavy depreciation they are suffering is the market's view on it.
For a new Lotus to succeed, it has to deliver on its core values, and improve the areas where it has traditionally been lacking. To be dynamically brilliant is sadly not enough - it must look and feel like a high quality product that reflects well on their owner. The cars need to be bought by customers who do not just value the driving experience.
Otherwise, they are doomed in a market area where there is simply too much choice.
For a new Lotus to succeed, it has to deliver on its core values, and improve the areas where it has traditionally been lacking. To be dynamically brilliant is sadly not enough - it must look and feel like a high quality product that reflects well on their owner. The cars need to be bought by customers who do not just value the driving experience.
Otherwise, they are doomed in a market area where there is simply too much choice.
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