Lotus Will Replace The Emira With An Electric Sports Car In 2027

Lotus has another electric sports car on the way. Assigned the internal code Type 135, it'll reportedly be a fraction of the price of the roughly $1.5 million Evija. The British performance brand plans to unveil the new model in 2025 and price it at roughly the equivalent of $95,345 (75,000 pounds) when sales begin in 2027, according to Autocar.

"We need the bullseye of the brand, which has to be that two-seat sports car," Lotus Group Chief Commercial Officer Mike Johnstone told Autocar. "Otherwise, we’re just a brand with a Lotus badge. The sports car is an essential part of our future."

The Type 135 will replace the Elise and the Emira in the Lotus lineup. It'll be a two-seater and will ride on the LEVA (Lightweight Electric Vehicle Architecture) originally for Lotus and Alpine's now-defunct model collaboration (teaser image above), according to Autocar. The chassis structure is reportedly 37 percent lighter than the Emira's, though final weight will likely be higher thanks to the heavy battery pack.

One- and two-motor powertrains will be available, reportedly making 469 horsepower and 872 hp, respectively. The platform can accommodate rear- and all-wheel drive layouts, with Lotus telling Autocar it doesn't want to close off the possibility of adding a torque-vectoring AWD setup similar to the system found on the Evija. 

While these figures are undoubtedly potent, they're actually a bit less than Lotus' other EVs. The Emeya sedan is available with up to 905 hp. The Eletre SUV is available in 603 hp and 905 hp versions.

There will reportedly be 66.4 kilowatt-hour and 99.6 kWh batteries available, providing around 300 miles and 450 miles of range, respectively. Rather than putting the batteries underneath the floor like many EVs, Lotus plans to stack them behind the driver. This lets the occupants sit a bit lower for a more traditional sports car experience that buyers expect from the brand.

Lotus will build the Type 135 in England, unlike the Emeya and Eletre, which come from China. The company estimates it can sell 10,000 to 15,000 examples of the sports car globally each year.

We've reached out to Lotus to confirm all of this for ourselves. We'll be sure to update this article when we hear back.