We haven’t driven or tested a new Lotus in years—unless you count the 2015 Hyundai Genesis or the Proton Satria we wheeled in South Africa, both of which were touched by Lotus Engineering—primarily because there hasn’t been a new Lotus in years. But there is a new Lotus CEO.
Jean-Marc Gales, former president of PSA Peugeot Citroen between 2009 and 2012, is now leading the Malaysian-owned British sports-car builder. Lotus had been headless since its board fired Dany Bahar from the top post in 2012, leaving COO Aslam Farikullah as the interim man for nearly two years. Gales, who recently ran the European Association of Automotive Suppliers and knows a thing or two about lobbying the EU Parliament, has a mechanical engineering background and also bounced around in top positions at Mercedes, Volkswagen, Fiat, and General Motors. Gales claims to speak six languages, including his native Luxembourgish. “We believe that with his strong technical and managerial expertise and leadership, Jean-Marc will be able to drive the Lotus transformation plan and further enhance Lotus’s business and capabilities,” Dato’ Abdul Harith Bin Abdullah, CEO of Proton, the Malaysian automaker that runs Lotus, said in a statement.
Yet that “plan” couldn’t be more unclear. During Bahar’s tenure, Lotus got weird in a hurry. The company cobbled together six concept cars for the 2010 Paris show, intended to shift the brand from lightweight, chuckable sports cars to a full lineup of expensive exotics. Five of those cars, including a reimagined Espirit, were supposed to go on sale by 2015. Hip-hop producer Swizz Beatz was named a vice president, Mickey Rourke and Bob Lutz started appearing at Lotus auto show stands, and the company burned through enough cash that it couldn’t get the Elise federalized for the U.S. after 2011. By the end of 2012, Proton considered selling Lotus entirely.
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Lotus had its highs, too, over the past half-decade or so, including launching the Evora and Evora S models, assembling the chassis for the electric Tesla Roadster, and releasing several track-only models to whoop big-name European cars. Since Proton took Lotus off the market and pumped in £100 million of capital last year, it hasn’t made promises of any kind. Gales, if he sticks around long enough, could start pleasing the brand’s fans by simply installing smart airbags in the current Elise and sending that fantastic little thing back to the U.S.
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