An interesting theory. Badoom-tsh. The new Lotus concept car’s name, Theory 1, makes itself ripe for plays on words, but there are a few common themes that follow show cars and concepts. Some closely preview an upcoming model, existing to get the public – and employees – used to what could be a radical idea before a new production version arrives. I’m thinking of the Bentley EXP 9 F, which previewed the Bentayga and made onlookers, er, draw a few breaths.
Granted, 1600kg is still not a number with which traditional Lotus cars were familiar, but it’s a step change in the right direction. Ah, yes, the Evija. “We’re doing this to explore the brand, but there’s also going to be a real market need at some point,” said Lotus designer Ben Hall about the Theory 1. But when will that point come? What the new car does manage to achieve is offer a reduced capability over the Evija, to be a supercar rather than a hypercar.