Lotus Expansion Plan Slashed to One Model

Malaysia's DRB-Hicom Bhd, owner of Group Lotus, has scrapped the sports car brand's "Five-Year, Five-Car" program as unfeasible, according to Automotive News Europe.

The Web-based newspaper cites an unidentified source who says Lotus will build a production version of only one of the five new-car concepts it unveiled at the Paris auto show in 2010.

ANE says the company is likely to make the Esprit two-seater supercar in 2014. The other concept cars were tan updated Elan sports car and Elite coupe/convertible, Eterne sedan and an unnamed city car. Lotus also showed the next-generation Elise roadster in Paris.

The planned expansion was part of former CEO Dany Bahar's program to broaden the brand's appeal and quadruple annual sales to 8,000 units by mid-decade. Lotus currently produces the Elise and the Evora and Exige sports coupes.

DRB gained control of Lotus when it acquired the parent of the British sports car maker, Proton Bhd, from the Malaysian government in January. On Monday Managing Director Mohd Khamil Jamil again refuted news reports that DRB intends to sell the marque.

Jamil tells reporters in London that the company has injected 100 million ($156 million) into Lotus this year and plans to invest the same amount in 2013. He says DRB must try to make the brand successful so it can repay its heavy debt. "We cannot allow Lotus to take us down," Jamil declares.