Proton Could Sell Lotus Admits CEO
Rumors of the sale of Lotus by its Malaysian parent company Proton have increased steadily since the appointment of CEO Dany Bahar, who has done little to dissuade the rumors. Rather than a sign of instability, Proton has committed to funding the “new Lotus”, and Bahar’s actions have helped keep the small sports car maker in the headlines.
The latest rumor mongering comes from AutoCar, which quotes Bahar as admitting, “Proton could sell Lotus.” In an interview Bahar outlines three clear paths proton could take, “Proton could keep Lotus, float it off or sell it outright.”
Far from speculating, Bahar is simply spelling out reality, commenting that, “It would be quite understandable if an owner that has invested so much wanted to see a return on its investment, especially if the buyer were a major car maker that could back Lotus for the long term.”
Any return on investment won’t happen, however, until Bahar has built Lotus into a desirable company, one that makes money and one that sells cars consumers really want to buy. At last year’s Paris Auto Show, Lotus unveiled its plan for the future, with numerous new models starting with the Esprit, which is set to launch next year.
GALLERY: Lotus Esprit Concept
[Source: AutoCar]
With AutoGuide from its launch, Colum previously acted as Editor-in-Chief of Modified Luxury & Exotics magazine where he became a certifiable car snob driving supercars like the Koenigsegg CCX and racing down the autobahn in anything over 500 hp. He has won numerous automotive journalism awards including the Best Video Journalism Award in 2014 and 2015 from the Automotive Journalists Association of Canada (AJAC). Colum founded Geared Content Studios, VerticalScope's in-house branded content division and works to find ways to integrate brands organically into content.
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Wow, we have seen another act, of a 12 year old CEO OF LOTUS, the guy has driven the likes of success into the ground, one more time, the biggest mistake lotus owners have made is letting Dandy boy spend money and make too many decisions, This is what one person that has all the answers dose (((it dont work))) burn Dandy boys ideas down, If you have a lotus sale it, the appeal is going down, we understand, the apple of a marketable item is based on its worth and the ability to get people to perceive the value as a needed item, were in the universe dose making this swizzle stick a great move, we are trying to get 12-22 year kids to buy cars and poor people, great job Dandy boy, some one screwed up giving Dandy boy the CEO job why we could have given him a job at Lotus but at the back of the room with no Desk, Pen or Paper.