Lotus 75th Anniversary Celebrations

[jimichanga]

If they’re spending a fortune at Goodwood then it’s not a money issue, they must have decided that they are better off promoting the new cars to a wider audience. They may well be from a purely financial point of view but it still feels like another flick of the Vs to the people who kept the lights on during the many lean years.

[LotusLeftLotusRight]

To be honest, do other car manufacturers invite hordes of owners to their factory for an anniversary every 5 years? It’s probably not worth the effort. 
Anyway, here’s a reminder of last time.

[jep]

New Radford definitely will.....but it won't be hordes, no Red Bull catering budget required 😊

[Bibs]

2 hours ago, jimichanga said:

it still feels like another flick of the Vs to the people who kept the lights on during the many lean years.

Current Elise/Exige/Evora or older car owners aren't excluded from Goodwood nor would any event (if it happened) require a car newer than 6 months to go, that certainly wasn't the case at the 70th so there's no exclusion on Lotus's part! 

[C8RKH]

Well they did EXCLUDE Hethel built VX220's that even had an all aluminium lotus designed engine, but let in a variety of others like the Carlton and Sunbeam.

Bit of a snub given the VX actually did save Lotus and allowed the S2 Elise to be built.

[Escape]

13 hours ago, Bibs said:

Current Elise/Exige/Evora or older car owners aren't excluded from Goodwood nor would any event (if it happened) require a car newer than 6 months to go, that certainly wasn't the case at the 70th so there's no exclusion on Lotus's part! 

I think what is meant is that those general events to promote the new cars wont appeal to some/many owners of older models. Celebrations in Hethel like in 2018 where the track was filled with a wide range of different Lotus models from different eras is something else entirely.

And yes, other brands also reach out to their customers. Last year Fiat offered a free evening on track in Francorchamps for all Abarth owners. Land Rover used to have a free off road playday in a quarry, but stopped as they obviously no longer want to deal with off road enthusiasts. 

Maybe Goodwood etc is the best way to spend the PR budget, but it does leave me a bit disappointed as well. I can still see the banner upon leaving Hethel, that really got our hopes up!

[RichardC]

Well, the summer is over now. That was disappointing. Never mind. See you all at Lotus 80 in 2028, maybe?

[C8RKH]

Lotus is now a Chineses company. The UK arm in Hethel is merely a side division that makes a sports car. That is plain to see given the lengths they went to in China to celebrate 75, versus here. Cause as we all know Lotus has a far vaster Chinese heritage than in the UK.