Lotus CEO Dany Bahar

Since taking the helm of Lotus on October 1st, new Lotus CEO Dany Bahar has stated he intends to restore former Lotus glory and develop the marque into a full-fledged rival to Ferrari, Maserati, and Lamborghini.

Bahar said the Lotus brand has much unrealized potential, based on strong foundations of innovative sports cars and a successful racing history.

Said Bahar,

Lotus was mentioned in the same sentence as Ferrari, Lamborghini and Maserati in the 1970s-1990s. Then, it got closed into a corner. We believe it’s the right time to bring Lotus back to where it was.

Bahar, who left Ferrari to join Lotus, will work on a comprehensive plan to build Lotus into a Ferrari rival within the next three to five years.

Group managing director Datuk Syed Zainal Abidin Syed Mohamed Tahir said the recent launch of the Evora is a turning point for the brand to scale greater heights.

Speaking with members of the Malaysian media, he said:

We believe Lotus’s potential is in the branding. If you go across the globe, the brand recognition is very strong but we have not lived up it

Syed Zainal also hinted that Proton will greater utilize technology and engineering from Lotus in future Proton products.

Today, we have reassessed the interaction between the two companies. No doubt there are gaps and weaknesses that need to be improved upon, but we are quite determined to make the collaboration stronger

[Source: New Straits Times Malaysia]