Lotus will return to the ICE supercar business in 2028 with a new hybrid V8 model expected to be called Esprit that is aimed to rival cars including the Ferrari 849 Testarossa.
The supercar’s hybrid powertrain will be centred around a new V8 engine supplied by Renault-Geely powertrain division Horse. Total power output will exceed 986bhp, confirmed Lotus.
The new supercar will be built alongside the Lotus Emira sports car at Hethel, in a boost for Lotus’s historical base in Norfolk.
This is part of a wider plan to put ICE sports cars back at the heart of Lotus’s future after the company abandoned a plan to go all-electric by 2028.
The new car, which is codenamed Esprit, takes inspiration from 2024's Theory 1 electric supercar concept. A teaser shot of the rear of the production car released by Lotus (below) shows the striking similarity with the concept, with the addition of two massive exhaust pipes.
Lotus has been collaborating with Horse in the development of the turbocharged V8, which is expected to set a new benchmark in power-to-weight ratios.
“Since we will be starting from scratch with this engine, we will make a lot of effort to improve the volume and also the weight of the engine,” Lotus CEO Feng Qingfeng said in a statement.
The engine will also be used by another, as-yet-unknown Geely brand for a V8-powered off-roader, improving the economies of scale, Feng said.
The new supercar will be a hybrid rather than a plug-in hybrid in order to save weight, bucking the recent trend to shift to PHEV drivetrains for supercars in cars such as the Aston Martin Valhalla, Lamborghini Temerario and Ferrari 296 GTB. Removing the need to plug in to charge allows Lotus to reduce the size of the battery and not fit charging-related componentry.
Lotus head of design Ben Payne told Autocar that the new supercar will be influenced by the Theory 1, saying: “You make concepts as an exercise to gauge reaction and give a future direction of travel, and [the Theory 1] was very positively received.”
The Esprit name hasn’t been confirmed but is a strong option, Payne confirmed.
“When the Esprit went out of production [in 2004], it had a V8 engine, and it’s something people have asked to come back ever since," he said. "It’s still in the hearts of minds of many of our customers."
