Lotus is one of the absolute biggest names when it comes to sports cars and fast cars. What started out from humble beginnings in Norfolk, England in 1948 by Colin Chapman soon became a staple name in both Formula 1 racing and the road car world. Today, Lotus is renowned for producing some of the most refined handling sports cars in the world, and one of the few manufacturers in the world still producing small sports cars. But times are changing for the British brand and nowhere is this more obvious than with the 1972 hp Lotus Evija hypercar.

Electrification is the name of the game now. Lotus has made its final internal combustion engine car in the form of the Emira and is now firmly heading into its electric future. That can be seen with the new Eletre hyper SUV. However, a couple of years ago Lotus gave us a look at its insane electric hypercar, the Evija. In a segment it is arguable that Rimac has dominated, Lotus look set to bring a bit of a gamechanger to the electric hypercars world. And they might be about to take the world by storm.

Getting To Know The Evija

Lotus Evija Goodwood, front
Via: Lotus

It is certainly a break from tradition for Lotus, to be producing a car this big, let alone with electric power. It is important to understand just what Lotus are bringing to us when it comes to the Evija. The statistics for this car are nothing short of staggering. The Evija has a frankly ludicrous 1,972 hp on offer thanks to its four-electric motors. This means its power-to-weight ratio exceeds that of the Bugatti Chiron, making it an absolute weapon. And it will be hard to get your hands on one of these thanks to just 130 examples set to be made at a cost of $3.4 million each.

The Evija is set to be the first electric hypercar from Lotus. And the speed stats also speak for themselves with this car. The top speed for the car will be around 200 mph, and the 0-62 time of it is set to be a quite frankly dizzying shade under three seconds. And if you want to get to 0-186 mph quick, then you are in luck, as the Evija will do it in a scarcely believable nine seconds. It is also wroth stressing that, at present, the 200 mph top speed figure is actually a conservative estimate from Lotus.

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A Small Battery Pack With Plenty Of Range

Yellow Lotus Evija
Via: Lotus

The battery for the Evija is possibly its one let-down, at just 69 kWh. But that small capacity battery means it is also small, and has some advantages. This is where things get interesting. For such a small battery, the range sounds pretty good. Lotus say you should be able to get 250 miles range out of the Evija. As you can’t give this car the beans on the road like on a racetrack, that battery really shouldn’t drain too quickly either. Fast charging at a 350 kW charger will take just 18 minutes, and in 12 of those you can go from 0 to 80%.

And it’s a light car too. Despite all the electrical components, the Evija weighs 3,700 lbs. A lot lighter than most SUVs weigh, and they seem to sell very well. The battery pack itself is located directly behind the seats. Sound familiar? Well, it's where you would find the engine in a mid-engine configuration car. And the battery cells are stacked vertically to give it a more similar shape and size to a standard engine. This could play out rather nicely when it comes to the handling characteristics of the Evija.

Retaining The Lotus Handling

Lotus Evija Front Quarter View Goodwood
via Lotus

This is very much a key area for the Lotus Evija. The brand is super famous for its handling and how nice its cars are to drive. So a car that is much bigger and heavier than the likes of the Elise, and even the Emira, could be tough to sell even without factoring in the electric power. But it sounds like Lotus has tried its best to retain some of that famous handling in this new car. This is where the Evija could be a bit of a game changer. Sports car handling in an electric hypercar.

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Setting The Standard For Electric Hypercars

Lotus Evija Front Quarter View In London
Via: Lotus

If Lotus can indeed keep some of their famous handling traits within the new Evija then they could well be on to a winner with the car. This is where it really could change the game. We are currently living in a world where cars are getting bigger, heavier, and more cumbersome. Even some performance cars are a bit guilty of that. Lotus is a name famous for lightweight and responsive cars. If it can do that with a hypercar, and an electric one too, then the rest of the world had best watch out.

Source: Lotus