Now that the Lotus Eletre has debuted, the British automaker is hard at work on Type 133, which should be called the Envya when it’s made official. Set to take on the Porsche Taycan as a performance all-electric sedan, this prototype was caught on camera in the Arctic Circle undergoing some severe cold weather testing. Although it is wearing some artistic and flashy camouflage, it’s easy to see that the sedan is going to be similar to the Lotus Eletre in terms of styling and design. A bit different than the route Hyundai went with its Ioniq 5 and Ioniq 6 models.
While little has been officially confirmed for this upcoming sedan, we can look at the Eletre to get an idea of what to expect. It’s very likely the Envya — or whatever it ends up being named — will ride on the same Electric Premium Architecture (EPA) platform. The Eletre’s performance tops out at 905 horsepower and 726 pound-feet of torque with the “R” model, while the standard Eletre gets 603 hp and 524 lb-ft of torque. We should expect similar figures for the sedan seen testing here. The Eletre is equipped with a 112-kWh battery pack, and it’s possible Lotus does a bit of tweaking in terms of battery capacity for the sedan.
We all know Lotus can deliver the performance based on the Eletre, but how well will the Envya handle is the important question. The Porsche Taycan is an incredibly impressive car and one of our favorite EVs on the market. Lotus has its work cut out if it wants to compete bumper-to-bumper with the Taycan.
Originally set to debut sometime this year, it appears the Envya might be delayed to next year due to issues caused by global supply chain shortages. The Eletre should go on sale in the U.S. in 2024 and if Lotus gives the green light to offer the Envya in North America, don’t be surprised if it also arrives in late 2024, as a 2025 model year. Sure, crossovers currently dominate the market in the U.S., but there are some sedan offerings and the Taycan does well in its own right. It sure feels like the Envya would have a good home here, don’t you think?
