Lotus Coupé EV 2026 - Prj. Type 135 (Teasers)

[j]

Dopo berline e SUV nel nuovo piano EV di Lotus c'è spazio nel 2026 anche di una sportiva, una coupé che dovrebbe affiancarsi all'Emira e all'Evija, progetto Type 135. Anche questa dovrebbe essere basta sulla nuova piattaforma elettronica Lotus Premium e prodotta nel nuovo stabilimento cinese di Wuhan, ma non mi stupirebbe che almeno questa finisse in UK

 

Modificato 28 Gennaio 2022 da j

[VuOtto]

due Lotus, entrambe elettriche. Bella mer..............

[poliziottesco]

A meno di cambi di rotta, la coupe’ sarà costruita in U.K.  

[j]

 

 

 

LOTUS REVEALS PIONEERING BLUEPRINT FOR NEXT GENERATION ELECTRIC SPORTS CARS

• World premiere for innovative new lightweight EV structure
• Developed through Project LEVA research programme, rear structure is 37% lighter than on Lotus Emira V6
• Will be integrated into Lotus electric sports car architecture
• Versatile architecture supports multiple layouts, wheelbase lengths, battery sizes and configurations 
• Technology on display at Cenex LCV event on 22/23 September

 

(Hethel, UK – 21 September 2021) – Just weeks after Lotus confirmed it will be launching a new family of EV performance cars, it has given a world premiere to the innovative new lightweight chassis technology that will underpin the electric sports car in the range.

The new structure has been developed through Project LEVA (Lightweight Electric Vehicle Architecture), announced last October by Lotus. Project LEVA is a research programme that’s accelerating the development of all-new lightweight structures for next-generation battery electric vehicles.

Today Lotus can reveal it’s this structure developed through Project LEVA which will be integrated into the company’s new architecture for electric sports cars. Thanks to the innovation of Lotus and the Project LEVA partners, the rear structure is 37% lighter than it is on the Lotus Emira V6. It means Lotus now has the ‘blueprint’ for the next generation of electric sports cars, for future Lotus products and for the Lotus Engineering consultancy to commercialise.

The Project LEVA lightweight chassis technology is being shown at the Low Carbon Vehicle event staged by Cenex, the UK’s Low Carbon and Fuel Cells Centre of Excellence, at Millbrook Proving Ground, Bedfordshire, UK, on 22/23 September.

A new animation from Lotus reveals how the technology will form part of the new electric sports car chassis, illustrating the versatile nature of this all-new Lotus-developed vehicle architecture. It is fully adaptable to provide a platform for a range of EVs with variable layouts, wheelbase lengths, battery sizes and configurations.

As the animation shows, all three layouts feature a common lightweight die-cast rear sub-frame with multiple interchangeable components. This is the Project LEVA innovation, and it means a single vehicle architecture can accommodate two different types of battery configurations:

VEHICLE LAYOUT	WHEELBASE	BATTERY SIZE / CONFIGURATION	MAXIMUM BATTERY POWER	EDU LAYOUT / MAX POWER
Two-seater	Minimum of 2,470mm	8-module / chest	66.4kWh	Single / 350kW
Two-seater	More than 2,650mm	12-module / chest	99.6kWh	Twin / 650kW
2+2	More than 2,650mm	8-module / slab	66.4kWh	Single / 350 kW or Twin / 650kW

 

-       ‘Chest’ layout, where the modules are stacked vertically behind the two seats. A chest layout is a ‘mid-mounted power pack’, ideal for sports car / hypercar vehicle types where a low overall ride height and low centre of gravity are required, and as seen on the Lotus Evija pure electric hypercar.

-       ‘Slab’ layout, where the modules are integrated horizontally under the cabin. This is most suitable for vehicles where a higher ride height and a taller overall profile is required. It is often referred to as a ‘skateboard power pack’ layout.

The innovative new subframe features cylindrical battery cells for high energy density, with the option of a single or twin electronic drive unit (EDU) to support. Cold cure, spot bonding and advanced weld processes mean reduced environmental impact during assembly.

This unique degree of flexibility and modularity in wheelbase and propulsion solutions will be the genesis for a wide variety of electric vehicle applications. These could be for the eagerly anticipated Lotus electric sports car – scheduled for launch in 2026 – as well as for third-party clients through Lotus Engineering.

Funding for the project came in part from the Advanced Route to Market Demonstrator programme (ARMD). Awarded by the UK Government’s Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS), the programme is delivered on behalf of the Advanced Propulsion Centre (APC) by Cenex.

Richard Moore, Executive Director, Engineering, Lotus Cars, commented: “Project LEVA and the electric sports car architecture are perfect illustrations of the innovation which continues to be at the heart of everything Lotus does. Today’s EVs are heavy in comparison to their ICE equivalents, so the ARMD funding has helped Lotus to innovate earlier in the product cycle and develop a new vehicle architecture that targets lightweight and performance density from conception. Rather than developing a single vehicle, it means Lotus now has the ‘blueprint’ for the next generation of electric sports cars, for future Lotus products and for the Lotus Engineering consultancy to commercialise.”

Project LEVA has been led by engineer Richard Rackham, Head of Vehicle Concepts, Lotus. Richard is best known for his revolutionary work on development of the extruded aluminium Lotus Elise architecture 25 years ago. Richard commented: “Project LEVA is as revolutionary now as the Elise architecture was in 1996. In true Lotus spirit, significant weight savings have been achieved throughout, with a focus on ultimate performance, efficiency and safety being engineered into the structure from the outset – for example, by utilising the vehicle structure as the battery enclosure, having an integrated EDU, eliminating bolt-on subframes and optimising the multi-link suspension components.”

 On Project LEVA, Lotus has collaborated with supply chain partner Sarginsons Industries and leading academics from Brunel University London to harness the full ‘light-weighting’ potential of the vehicle architecture.

Today’s announcement is the latest in a series detailing Lotus’ transition to an all-electric brand:

-       January 2021: Lotus announced it had signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Alpine, the performance car division of Groupe Renault, to study a number of areas of cooperation, including the joint development of an EV sports car.

-       April 2021: at the Driving Tomorrow global strategy conference, Lotus confirmed the E-Eports vehicle architecture was one of four Lotus-developed chassis that would underpin future models.

-       August 2021: Lotus confirmed it would be launching a new electric sports car in 2026 – Type 135 - which is intended to be manufactured in the UK.

-       Today: Lotus gives a world premiere to the innovative new chassis technology that will underpin that electric sports car.

The next stage of the project is for Lotus to continue development of the all-electric vehicles which will be built on this innovative and market leading new architecture.

Also on the Lotus stand at Cenex is the Lotus Evija, the world’s first pure-electric British hypercar. The car, an engineering prototype, will be ‘naked’ with several body panels removed to allow visitors to see key components and systems.

 

[AleMcGir]

 

Cita

Lotus to collaborate with Britishvolt as sketch of future EV sports car is released

 

• Lotus and Britishvolt sign MoU to collaborate on advanced EV technology
• Partnership to co-develop innovative EV package to power new generation EV sports car
• Design sketch provides first clues to new Lotus EV sports car

 

(Hethel, UK – 28 January 2022) - Lotus and battery cell expert Britishvolt have signed an MoU to collaborate on the research and development of advanced new EV technology.

The partnership will focus on the co-development of an innovative new battery cell package to power the next generation of electric sports cars from Lotus. The package is set to feature in a new sports car, powered by Britishvolt cells and utilising advanced electric propulsion technologies developed by Lotus. An official design sketch provides the first clues to a new Lotus EV sports car.

Britishvolt is the UK’s foremost investor in battery cell technologies and associated R&D to create homegrown intellectual property. Key focuses of the partnership  will be fast-charging, optimising energy density and weight reduction.

Development work on the project will benefit from the close proximity of Lotus and Britishvolt’s R&D centres of excellence in the West Midlands, the UK’s ‘golden triangle’ of battery excellence. The Lotus Advanced Technology Centre (LATC) opened in Wellesbourne in 2020 as the global headquarters of Lotus Engineering, the consultancy division of the business.

The collaboration with Britishvolt is another significant development in the ongoing transformation of Lotus, from a UK sports car company to a global and all-electric performance car business and brand. It follows a £100m investment by Lotus in its UK facilities, which includes manufacturing centres at Hethel for the Evija pure electric hypercar and Emira sports car – future-proofing the world-renowned and innovative UK high-performance auto sector and the thousands of jobs that it supports.

Matt Windle, Managing Director, Lotus Cars, commented: “Lotus is delighted to be collaborating with Britishvolt to develop new battery cell technology to showcase the thrilling performance that a Lotus EV sports car can deliver. These are the first exciting steps on the journey towards  an all-new electric sports car from Lotus, and yet another step towards the transformation towards sustainable, renewable electricity stored in batteries.”

He added: “Last year we committed Lotus to a pure electric future, and in the first month of this year we announce another significant step on that journey. In the coming months we will be unveiling the Type 132, an all-new and all-electric Lotus SUV and we’ve  confirmed three more EVs are on the way.”

All future Lotus cars will be pure electric and inspired by the Evija, deliveries of which commence this year as the world’s first British electric hypercar.

Britishvolt is on target to responsibly manufacture some of the world’s most sustainable, low carbon battery cells on the site of the former Blyth Power Station coal stocking yard located in Cambois, Northumberland.

The development is a major boost for Northumberland, and indeed the country, and will bring around 3,000 direct highly-skilled jobs and another 5,000+ in the associated supply chains.

Advanced works started on the site on September 6, 2021, following a unanimous planning decision approval earlier in the year. The project will be built in phases, to keep up with technology advancements, and will have a total capacity of over 30GWh by the end of the decade onwards.

 

 

https://media.lotuscars.com/en/news-articles/lotus-to-collaborate-with-britishvolt-as-sketch-of-future-ev-sports-car-is-released.html

[MotorPassion]

Questo sketch con le linee della siluette della vettura, mi ha ricordato la Esprit S1.

 

[LucioFire]

On 31/8/2021 at 17:18, VuOtto scrive:

due Lotus, entrambe elettriche. Bella mer..............

...da

[AleMcGir]

14 minuti fa, MotorPassion scrive:

Questo sketch con le linee della siluette della vettura, mi ha ricordato la Esprit S1.

cut

 

 

Questa senza ruote si avvicina di più al sketch

 

[MotorPassion]

1 minuto fa, AleMcGir scrive:

 

 

Questa senza ruote si avvicina di più al sketch

 

 

Ero tentano nel postarla ma ho desistito ed ho messo quella normale. 😄

[AleMcGir]

2 minuti fa, MotorPassion scrive:

 

Ero tentano nel postarla ma ho desistito ed ho messo quella normale. 😄