2023 Lotus Eletre SUV officially launched - Up to 905hp, 985Nm of torque from RM578k

Lotus Cars Malaysia has launched the all-new Lotus Eletre SUV, an electric vehicle which marks a new chapter for the sports car manufacturer. Malaysia is the first market out of China to receive the highly anticipated EV SUV, probably due to Lotus' association with our country.

200 Units will be brought in this year, with more than half of them already belonging to their respective owners. There are three variants available for Hethle's first EV, with prices starting from RM528,000. Deliveries of the EV is expected to place in Q4 this year.

2023 Lotus Eletre - 3 variants

There are three variants for the all-new all-electric Lotus, the Eletre, Eletre S and Eletre R.

• Lotus Eletre – from RM578,000
• Lotus Eletre S – from RM648,000
• Lotus Eletre R – from RM798,000

All prices are on-the-road, without insurance and road tax, for Peninsular Malaysia.

EV Powertrain

All variants of the Lotus Eletre comes with two electric motors, one driving the front wheels and another driving the rear wheels to deliver all-wheel-drive (AWD) capabilities.

The Eletre and Eletre S are powered by a single-speed system to deliver 603 hp and 710 Nm of torque with 0-100 km/h performance of 4.5 seconds and 80-120 km/h in less than 2.2 seconds. Both variants are capable of achieving top speeds of 258 km/h and a maximum WLTP driving range of 600 km.

The flagship Eletre R comes with a dual-speed system that offers an impressive output of 905 hp and 985 Nm of torque, capable of delivering a century sprint time of just 2.95 seconds and an acceleration of 80-120 km/h in less than 1.9 seconds with a top speed of 265 km/h. 

Accoding to Lotus, this makes the Eletre R the world’s fastest dual-motor pure electric SUV. Maximum WLTP driving for the Eletre R is 490 km.

All three variants feature a 112 kWh battery and a 350 kW charger that enables a rapid charging time of 10-80 per cent in just 20 minutes. It also comes with the ability as standard to accept 22kW AC charging.

Exterior design and features

A signature element of the Eletre’s exterior design is its ‘porosity’ theme, which means the car has a lot of functioning holes. 

The aerodynamics flows through the car as well as under, over and around it. Most obvious are two exit vents on the bonnet that channel air from under the car’s leading edge. 

Other examples can be found ahead of and behind the front wheel arches, behind the rear wheels, and even at the top of the D-pillar. Together, they enable less resistance in cutting through the air while delivering more efficiency in terms of improved vehicle range, speed and performance.

Interior Features

Seeing that the Eletre is an SUV, all three variants come with a five-seat configuration, and a rear boot capacity of 688 litres and 1.532 litres with the rear seats folded. 

A four-seat configuration is available as part of the optional Executive Seat Pack.

There is a wealth of practical storage space in the Eletre, including a storage tray with wireless charging for mobile phones, cup holders that sit flush to the surface until they’re needed and door bins that will take a litre bottle, as well as under the boot floor.

All variants also come standard with an auto-dimming frameless rear-view mirror, four-way electrically adjustable steering column and heated multi-function steering wheel, front and rear USB-C ports, four-zone automatic climate control system, 12-way electrically adjustable front seats with memory,electrically adjustable front and rear air vents, and i-Size child seat anchor points on the outboard rear seats.

Lotus Eletre’s infotainment system is accessed through a centrally-mounted ‘floating’ 15.1-inch full HD OLED display, which automatically folds flat when not required. 

The ultra-slim one-billion-colour OLED display unit from ECARX offers fully customisable displays via an advanced Driver Information Module (DIM), which can be continuously improved during the lifetime of the car via OTA updates.

Safety

The Lotus Eletre is equipped with a comprehensive suite Advanced Driver Assistance Systems (ADAS) which will get OTA updates through out its lifetime

All variants are available with: 

• Intelligent Adaptive Cruise Control (ACC), 
• Rear Collision Warning, Rear Cross Traffic Alert (RCTA), Front Cross Traffic Alert (FCTA)
• Lane Keep Assist with Lane Departure Warning / Prevention (LKA+), Blind Spot Detection, Traffic Sign Information (TSI)
• Front and Rear Park Assist, Visual Park Assist and Lotus Intelligent Dynamic Chassis Control.

The Eletre is also equipped with the world’s first deployable LIDAR system to support end-to-end autonomous driving technology and is future-proofed for further development, achievable because of the hardware that’s already integrated. 

Further capability can be added via OTA software updates, as and when it is allowed by local market regulation.