A&Q about Lotus
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Proton will collapse unless it finds an international partner such as Volkswagen, said Mahathir Mohamad, who founded the Malaysia-based company twenty years ago. "At the rate it is going, it's not going to last long," Mahathir told Bloomberg. While Proton cars are not sold here in North America, they are sold in the United Kingdom, South Africa and Australia.
Perhaps more important to car enthusiasts, however, is the future of Lotus, which Proton acquired in 1996. Just three weeks ago, Proton said it would not consider selling Lotus, even if the financial situation worsens.
One possible partner for Proton/Lotus is Volkswagen, which Mahathir says is still willing to talk. VW has reportedly said it does not want control of the company. Interestingly, Volkswagen was said to be collaborating with Lotus on the now-cancelled GX3 three-wheeler.
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Time to get those owners-acquisition teams/sites going again!
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group buy?
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we already tried that. Maybe Tesla will buy Lotus
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They got the right people involved but then they would actually have to engineer something on their own.
I would put my money on Ford
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The sky is falling the sky is falling!!!
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Originally Posted by sqpiece
They got the right people involved but then they would actually have to engineer something on their own.
I would put my money on Ford
Ford is selling, not buying. I think they've had their fill of acquiring British car companies.
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What is Ford selling?
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Here is the bloomburg article:
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VW cancelled the 3 wheel vehicle? Bummer.
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Sounds like a good ploy to get another exemption.
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Originally Posted by Yeti
Sounds like a good ploy to get another exemption.
I like a good, devious mind.
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I find it quite unsettling for potential buyers like myself, who will have to spend in the areas of $71,000 CDN for an Elise. I think of it as do you want to buy a car from a company which is in financial trouble ? will the dealerships be around ? servicing ? Overall looking at the greater picture, as consumers, how much do we invest in companies that are in such dire ? I know I tend not to. I already got burned by Toyota having owned a '93 MR2, as there was virtually non existent service by Toyota in Toronto and the fact that mr2's were just about buried in Canada after '93. Unfortunately, I'm thinking of passing on an Elise altogether now as I honestly don't know what to do in light of this recent disheartening news :-( I'm glad though for forums as such, so we can discuss..
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could be a good thing, ever hear of a car called a mini??
lotus is an important name and has some worth. purchasing the rights to it would be worth something to a lot of manufacturers, and sometimes, the additional money pumped into a company can result in better products, then again, bmw also had a failed attempt with rover...
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Originally Posted by sqpiece
What is Ford selling?
Jaguar, Aston Martin, Volvo.
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Originally Posted by sjlotus
I find it quite unsettling for potential buyers like myself, who will have to spend in the areas of $71,000 CDN for an Elise. I think of it as do you want to buy a car from a company which is in financial trouble ? will the dealerships be around ? servicing ? Overall looking at the greater picture, as consumers, how much do we invest in companies that are in such dire ? s..
Lotus has been on the verge of going under since the 70s, they still have managed to produce cars ever since. WEre I truly worried, I'd have never bought another lotus after my 74 europa
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If Rover could be resurrected, then you have nothing to worry about. Lotus is so much more marketable than Rover ever was.
As for potential buyers, don't count out the Japanese.
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Originally Posted by scottyb
If Rover could be resurrected, then you have nothing to worry about. Lotus is so much more marketable than Rover ever was.
As for potential buyers, don't count out the Japanese.
Yep the Japanese have always been huge fans of Lotus cars/racing, etc.
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If they bought Lotus they could rebadge the Elise
as the new MR....
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A bit of trivia:
Many years ago when production of the M100 elan ceased, they sold the entire assembly line to Kia, who built the elan under different badging with a different engine etc. Don't think this car was imported to the US.