Will a Lotus still be a Lotus if its Hethel factory closes?

Is Lotus really going to shut its Hethel factory? Personally, and despite the company saying it has “no plans” to do so, I would not bet against it. We had such high hopes for the revival of the brand after it was bought by Geely, for had the company not already worked wonders for Volvo and successfully launched Polestar as a standalone company? It had. It seemed to understand what these names meant and trusted those who worked there to create cars that were modern of course, but also true to the values of the name on their bonnets.

Instead with Lotus it was decided to make cars as far removed from Colin Chapman’s vision as imaginable – vast, complex, heavy five-door cars that owed nothing to Lotus heritage save an inadvisedly restyled ACBC logo. And it’s fair to say it has not worked well: sales forecasts have been decimated, vast numbers of staff laid off and the prognosis today as gloomy as once not that long ago it was radiantly optimistic.

I understand the original story suggesting that Lotus was considering shutting Hethel came from not one but at least two impeccable sources. It was reported in the Financial Times which is not a paper known for flying kites for no reason. Then the retraction.

The wording however is interesting: saying you have “no plans” to shut any factory is not the same as saying you’re not going to shut any factories. And why no direct reference to Hethel? If the company had simply said, “Hethel is going to stay open and remain as Lotus headquarters indefinitely,” then all the speculation would have been put to bed. But instead it said “no plans” which is not the same as not thinking long and hard about it, and plans can be formulated very quickly if need be.

Why would Lotus shut Hethel? Because the US market is far more important to Geely and building its sports cars there would immunise it against the vagaries and unpredictability of the Trump trade war. But if that happens in what way is a Lotus still a Lotus? I fear such a move would lead to one of our best-loved brands becoming an exercise in badge engineering and nothing else. Some might say we’re not far off that now.

“We had such high hopes for the revival of Lotus after it was bought by Geely”

I don’t often go so far off-piste as to devote column space to a vehicle without wheels, but in the hope that not one, but two vast V8 engines proves adequate compensation I just wanted to mention that I recently spent part of a weekend aboard and, indeed, at the helm of a Riva Tritone – a speedboat.

If you are now gazing blankly at this page, frankly I don’t blame you. The only Riva I’d heard of was the famous Aquarama. But the Tritone was its father, born in 1950 as opposed to 1962 and the first of all twin-engined Rivas. These craft became the darlings of Hollywood superstars, this one being commissioned by Stewart Granger and today living in a boathouse on Lake Como next to Sophia Loren’s near identical example.

I know nothing about watercraft, but I know beauty when I see it and I’m not sure I’ve seen a more exquisitely crafted man-made machine. Its engines are GM small block-based and between them imbue the Tritone with 600bhp. I am told there is one, and one only, toting a brace of Lamborghini V12s. Skimming across Como at a speed I’ve been asked not to repeat because apparently there’s a 27-knot speed limit on the lake made me wonder if I’d missed my vocation. In my life there have been but a handful of machines by which I’ve been more captivated. The water was somewhat choppy and to witness the serenity with which she – I am also told that is the correct pronoun – addressed the waves was to witness grace every bit the match of her appearance. I loved too having to balance the V8s by ear because the Italian rev-counters are so hopelessly inaccurate.

Carlo Riva built just 258 Tritones, about a third of Aquarama production and fewer, for example, than Ferrari made 288 GTOs. So I wondered how many millions she might be worth. Not even half of one it turns out. Despite its rarity, beauty, speed and quality, you can buy an immaculate Tritone for about the same money as Ferrari will sell you a Purosangue, an SUV made by the thousand. The owner regards this as entirely good news, because it means he’s not squeamish about using it, and using it hard. Which, with something like this is, of course, the only attitude to take.

The Rimac Nevera R has set a new record for the fastest 0-400kph-0mph time and nearly two dozen other speed-related records. Its time was 25.79sec. On the way it passed 200mph in 10.86sec, contrasting with the 28sec I managed in a McLaren F1 31 years ago.

On the one hand these figures are astonishing and, I expect, put the car on a par or even beyond modern F1 machinery. On the other I’m not sure I could care less. Electric cars can go really fast in a straight line? Who knew, apart from everyone? I feel sorry for the poor sod behind the wheel because if 0-100mph in 3.1sec doesn’t make you want to throw up I’m not sure what will. I’d love to name them, but they weren’t even accorded a mention in the press release. The inference that this shows just how little electric cars are about the driver is hard to ignore…

Kia that’s close to joy 

Updated EV6 GT has poise on the road 
I’d stop short of calling the Kia EV6 GT fun, but this updated model (£60k) comes with a commendable ability to disguise its weight. But it suffers with a terrible range issue. It’ll charge faster than anything this side of a Taycan but thanks to the nature of our charging infrastructure, it’s an issue.

Verdict: Genuinely rewarding to drive.

That’s entertainment

CS-badged M2 should hit the sweet spot 
This is as excited as I’ve been by a BMW M car in quite a while. The M2 CS adds 50bhp and comes with extensive use of carbon fibre to drop its kerb weight to a still hefty 1700kg. Sadly there’s no manual option, but I can see this becoming a very popular car indeed. And deservedly so.

Has the spark gone? 

Demand for electric supercars “non-existent”
Maserati has cancelled its electric MC20, above, while the launch of the first EV Lamborghini has been delayed until ’29. As Reuters puts it, “Real, sustainable demand is non-existent for an electric sports car.” I can’t imagine how you might replace a V12 with an electric motor and hope to conjure an emotional response.