Lotus’ Electric SUV, the Eletre, Starts at $107,000 in U.S.

Did you know that, for the price of a Model Y anda Model X, you can own a battery-electric SUV that's only slightly less polarizing than a Mansory-fettled Urus? Orders are now open in the U.S. market for the Lotus Eletre, and deliveries are expected in the fourth quarter of 2024. Order now, and you can expect your least orthodox of Lotuses to be the subject of some family drama come Christmas.

This is not a Lotus as we have ever known one. The Eletre is a highly advanced example of a novel recipe, the performance-oriented electric crossover. As such, it impresses: Built on an 800-volt architecture, and sculpted to achieve a drag coefficient of 0.26 thanks to active elements, the Eletre is available with up to 905 horsepower and 727 lb-ft of torque. The interior is awash in touchscreens-seven total-running an in-house operating system and upholstered in new-age fabrics, such as Econyl, a nylon alternative; Alcantara, a synthetic suede, and Re-Fiber, made from recycled carpet.

A jaunt through the configurator reveals such a delightful array of colors and materials that we almost forgot our confusion at Lotus' new direction: Red leather with purple piping and brushed-aluminum trim! (Plus $5500.) A sort of electric sea-foam green leather (called Malachite) alternating with charcoal gray and dashes of dark blue steel trim! ($5500.) There's white Re-Fiber with yellow piping ($3500) for the less adventurous, red-accented black leather and carbon-fiber trim ($5000) for the motorsports-inspired, and tan leather with oak trim ($5500) for those who are feeling old-money-cool, in a totally new-school way. Even the default colorway is nice: dark grey Nappa leather accented with copper thread and complemented by gray wood. Complicate and add color!

Given the bold array of paint options, which include bright red, a Kelly-adjacent green, bright yellow, and a yummy warm gray, your Eletre could steal all the attention from your surgeon's wife's Urus.

Looks like an SUV, drives like a Lotus.

Eletre, now available to configure in North America.#ForTheDriverspic.twitter.com/f5a2NsMNsc

- Lotus Cars (@lotuscars) April 16, 2024

Europe gets three variants-the regular Eletre, the S, and the R-but for now the U.S. gets two: The regular and the R. Both are dual-motor variants with full-time all-wheel drive, though the Eletre R uses a rear transmission with two gears. In good industry tradition, the press release leads with the price of the entry-level vehicle ($107,000) while trumpeting the stats of the more powerful version, which costs $145,000: 0-62 mph in 2.95 seconds, a top speed of 165 mph, and a maximum driving range of 354 miles, assuming you aren't testing either of those acceleration or speed statistics. The lower-priced version makes 603 hp and 710 lb-ft of torque, with a top speed of 160 mph and a 0-60 time of 4.5 seconds.

If I had to spend $100,000 on a luxury SUV, I would walk straight to a Cadillac dealer and buy an Escalade-V in that gorgeous metallic sage. If I were forced to spend it on an electric one, I'd buy a Macan-it's prettier, more recognizable, and Porsche is a known quantity. If I were an automaker trying to keep Lotus alive in 2024? Hate to say it, but I'd consider developing an electric SUV with nearly 1000 hp.

Tell us: If you'd buy one, how would you spec Lotus' electric cash cow?