All the style with more range, for less money.

British sports car brand Lotus has been enjoying huge global success since the introduction of its Eletre SUV, dubbed the brands’ ‘Hyper SUV’ according to official marketing. While the Eletre S and Eletre R have enthralled local fans for about a year now, the Eletre lineup has today expanded to include a more approachable model.

The base Eletre lands in Malaysia with a starting price of RM598,800 (inclusive of taxes & duties), effectively lowering the price for entry by some RM100k. The Eletre slots below the Eletre S and Eletre R, which command pricetags of RM698,000 and RM838,000 respectively. 

Despite that massive reduction in price, the base Eletre is no slouch – offering 603hp and 710Nm and equipped with broadly the same powertrain hardware as the Eletre S, the base-model still rockets from 0-100km/h in just 4.5-seconds. Thanks to its 112kWh battery this also means a maximum driving range of 600km (WLTP), representing a considerable 110km range advantage over the Eletre R (905hp/985Nm, 0-100km/h in 2.95s). 

Charging on the Eletre is equally as impressive, with an 800V architecture allowing the Eletre to accept charges at up to 350kW. This means a 10%-80% charge takes just about 20-minutes at a sufficiently-rapid charger. For home-charging, the 22kW AC feed means juicing up from dead to full should take less than 6-hours. 

Being a Lotus (despite its size and heft), the base-model Eletre promises the same dynamics as you’d expect from anything developed in Hethel. Lotus says there is a “distinct character” that “offers a difference” in the base model compared to the Eletre S and Eletre R, which we interpret as a broader capability on-road and on-track rather than the scalpel-sharp nature we’ve experienced before from the dearer variants. 

Rolling stock on the base-model Eletre are a set of 20-inch 5-spoke alloys, behind which sit 4-piston brake callipers. If that’s not enough for you however, there is the option of 22-inch diamond-cut alloys and six-piston callipers, which come as a set for an additional RM30,000. The base-Eletre also comes as standard with side-mirrors – but if you’d like to make life difficult for yourself, you can always option-on the side-mirror cameras. 

Despite the base-model moniker, the Eletre doesn’t skimp on active safety. A full suite of active driver assistance systems (ADAS) come as standard in the Eletre, bundling things like adaptive cruise control with traffic jam assist, rear collision warning, rear cross-traffic alert with emergency braking, lane-keep assist with lane-departure warning, blind-spot monitoring, traffic-sign recognition, a 360º camera and all-round sensors. You also get Dynamic Chassis Control to fine-tune the ride & handling characteristics just how you like it, which should pair well with the 5 available driving modes (Range, Tour, Sport, Off-Road, and Individual). 

And of course when you’re not enjoying the dynamic prowess of your Lotus Eletre, there’s the 1,380-watt 15-speaker KEF Premium audio system with surround-sound technology that promises to waft you away into another world altogether. 

Featured here is the Eletre in Cinnabar Red. Other colours include Akoya White, Kaimu Grey, Solar Yellow, Natron Red, Galloway Green, Blossom Grey, and Stellar Black. All Eletre models come as standard with a 5-year/150,000km warranty for the car, while the high-voltage battery is covered by an 8-year/800,000km warranty.

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GALLERY: LOTUS ELETRE INTRODUCED IN MALAYSIA