Lotus factory tours recommence after completion of £100m refurbishment
News comes along with the new special operations division setup within Lotus to deliver halo projects, special editions and bespoke options
Lotus has announced that it will restart factory tours at its iconic Hethel manufacturing fascility now that its £100m refurbishment has been completed. To be run under the umbrella of Lotus's new Lotus Advanced Performance division, which will also include an expansion of the Lotus Driving Academy to will be held at race tracks across the world, as well as its own iconic test track at the Hethel HQ
The new department will be lead by Simon Lane, former head of the ‘Q by Aston Martin’ Division and mainly specialise in various areas of the high-end and bespoke customer journey, taking the lead in future Lotus halo projects such as high-end limited run super and hypercars, as well as limited editions based on series production models like the Emira and forthcoming Type 132 SUV, plus a bespoke colour and trim service not unlike Porsche’s Exclusiv and Paint-to-sample services.
Simon Lane, Director, Lotus Advanced Performance, commented: “Tours of the Hethel site were part of the Lotus story for many years and hugely popular. We get emails and calls every week with people asking about them but, with all the development work on site, it was not appropriate to have the public here. With the Emira now in production, I’m delighted to announce that the time is right to relaunch the factory tours.”
It will also oversee customer racing support – starting with the Emira’s GT4 program – managing the relationship between factory and customer through various support packages.
Alongside this announcement, Lotus Advanced Performance has revealed an image of a forthcoming project, which could be a bespoke commission that looks to be inspired by Lotus competition cars from the ‘70s, however more specific details are still to come.
Speaking of his new appointment, Simon Lane commented: “I have always been a Lotus fan, and this has to be one of the most exciting roles in the automotive industry right now – a blank sheet of paper and the opportunity to launch a completely new division at the world’s most ambitious car brand. The LAP team and I have some fantastic and truly innovative ideas with very broad appeal, for Lotus fans young and old to those in search of unique experiences and collectible opportunities.”
He added: “Working in tandem with the hugely experienced Lotus Design team, and colleagues in our engineering teams around the world, we are going to build the most exciting and exclusive Lotus cars, embracing our exciting electrified future while also honouring our illustrious past.”
