This is a joke, right?

[ronin]

I never said anything Bibs personaly gezz sorry if it was taken like that, I also said I'd probably sing a different tune if Lotus had invited me to a tour and a free ride but they didn't instead they have a joke in Swizzle as their spokesman...

I'm not promoting myself and if anyone were to read www.Lotussport.org they would see I've been pushing the Lotus harder than anyone out there since I've never made a cent on all the work I've put into improving the brand.....

I as you know don't give a shit about how people think about me but when you put down my Lotus you better have back up....

The point I was tryin to make is have a look at You Tube and see what the younger guys are sayin and doin with the Lotus now where the fuck are the Swizzle YouTube videos showing us what a Lotus is really about. Seriously guys how many guys here with an old Esprit are in a position to drop silly money on this new Lotus... The new Exprit will be priced outta the leauge of 99% of the current Lotus market..

I'm the mental old guy postin videos helping to keep the brand alive.... Would you like to see videos of a bunch of fuckin gangsters flashin 45's out the window while doin a driveby or would you rather see a Lotus like this..

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S1LWmbAc-vw

[oneshot]

The new Exprit will be priced outta the leauge of 99% of the current Lotus market..

My current Esprit was out of my price league when it was new. I still ended up with one. They were obviously in the price range of some people otherwise no-one would have bought them

[Moxie]

I can tell ya a Lotus will self destruct after a drive through the city [NYC]....

Bullshit. I had no trouble whatsoever driving an '83 Turbo on any road here I wanted to, including the Deegan in the South Bronx you mentioned just last month with Shark Sandwich. And I happen to have interviewed a certain revered ex-Lotus CEO last week who, when asked his opinions on driving in NYC, said exactly what I did, unprompted, namely that like any other city, as long as you don't go on stupid bad roads you'll have no trouble. And he's driven on roads from Key West to Kuala Lumpur and knows what he's talking about. In fact, I think the Ronin Exige would have no trouble scaring the piss out of the locals in the Bronx any day. (HINT: Swizz is from the Bronx.)

When the car breaks down on the South Bronx expressway you can count on it being stripped to the bones...

Cell phone and a AAA card seem to help in those situations, yes? And besides, who's abandoning their Lotus on the highway anyway?

New York is the last place to show a Lotus, you would have to drive for hours north and west to find a diesent road...

"Show" a Lotus? Who gives a crap about showing a Lotus? Like you, I just want to drive one. And there are plenty of roads within 45-60 minutes that are fun, particularly with the incredible Evora suspension that glides over the dicey bits. And most of those roads are better than what you'd get within 30 minutes of Potash Lane! And I'd rather drive the 2 hours to Lime Rock or NJ Motorsport to blow off steam than tempt the cops more locally.

You do know they are not baged Lotus in China right ?

That's hardly a fair criticism. The only reason the Chinese cars are badged like this...

...is due to copyright conflict. (This is where everyone is supposed to see the huge irony in anyone giving a damn about violating Chinese copyright since they don't give a damn about violating ours.) Anyway, see here: http://www.china.org...nt_22818924.htm

Personally, my main gripe is twofold: 1) I think there are lots of other people better positioned and more creative to be brand ambassadors than Swizz* (I like the look of that car he rolled out, but if they'd given me the same money I could have blown it away, and I don't know shit about styling); and b) I think giving him a glorified VP title is probably offensive to good folks who's been busting their balls at Lotus (or outside) and are perhaps more deserving. All that aside, I do think it's a good thing to appeal to the bling crowd and give them their piece of the marque just as much as white boy track day dudes--or even those going to track days as well as putting a 4-year-old in the back like me--should have a piece. If the Lotus appeal can be broadened to attract multiple cultures, I think that's great.

{* AMENDMENT: After some more thought and research, I actually think Swizz is probably the perfect guy to pitch the rap crowd, but I still think his title is absurd. For me, the bigger publicity issue is the need for a big name to pitch flush dudes who might want to move up from their existing Loti. Bruno Senna obviously takes care of a large swath of South America, but there doesn't seem to be an ambassador to appeal to non-rapper Americans and Europeans, say like a Clooney, Damon, or Pitt (sorry--is my love for the Ocean's films showing?). Obviously really big names cost huge bucks, but the Baldwin brothers are not it. Other than Alec, the rest are generally the butt of jokes over here. Bottom line is if they could afford to get Daniel Craig then they probably couldn't make cars fast enough.}

But Ronin, what I can't get my head around is why you're so put off. You have what is arguably the single most badass Lotus road car on the continent, so who cares who else is buying an Evora? The amount it affects you = 0. As I said in another post, your car looks like it wants to eat your face, so rather than bolt to another marque like Audi or Porsche--which are far more populated by the bling crowd--why not look to this as the basis for Ronin Exige Mark II?...

[ronin]

Ahh Moxie Moxie my man, you do know that Exige V6 like the Evora GTE are not road legal here in the bling market don't you ?

And the roads in NYC suck big time still...

[rogerch]

Keep on Lotus'in ronin and having fun, that's what Lotus ownership is all about, leave the possers to the Porsches.

pssss, wanna work on flappy paddle electronic change for my 88 Esprit ?

[Iconic Ride]

Geeezzzz.....I bail for a couple of days and this thread turns into an exercise in cat herding. Or was that "cat fight?"

Mr Swizz, master of all things bling, may or may not sell more of the marque with his 15 minutes of fame as a quasi-titled corporate car designer, but he has mos def generated a definable degree of publicity aimed at a niche audience that might otherwise have remained unexposed to the potential of Lotus ownership. And hey, some of that crowd might even have the requisite purchasing power to lighten the local dealship's inventory. Call it an "exploratory market," if you like. Pitch enough bait into a fish fillled lake, and some will bite. They may not be the "traditional" buyers we've grown accustomed to, but their money is as good as anyone else's.

Lotus is now unquestionably committed to targeting a wealthier demographic than in years past. It's a gutsy game plan, but if it works it will vault the company into a financially better position. The "hand-to-mouth" existence of the past is simply unsustainable. Something had to change, and gamble that it is, the current strategy just might be the ticket to keeping the company viable. And while it might not please the hard core Chapman fanatics among us, it's a direction well worth trying. Who knows, they may even be able to incorporate enough Lotus historical DNA to satisfy even the skeptical diehards presently baying like hounds at foxes.

And long after Swizz has become a marketing footnote to the present enterprise, and the passage of time works its magic on the original sticker price, maybe, just maybe, one of those New Esprits will find its way into my garage.

[Moxie]

Ahh Moxie Moxie my man, you do know that Exige V6 like the Evora GTE are not road legal here in the bling market don't you ?

Actually I didn't know that. Why the hell isn't it intended to be street legal? Oh well, then I guess I won't see Swizz cruising in one around here! (Pretty sure I won't see him on the track either!) Too bad. That Exige S looks sexy in person. Ah screw it. Long before my Evora S rolls off the truck in February I will have ceased giving a rat's ass about any of this blingy branding blather which has not a jot to do with the fun I'll have with my car or that you'll have with yours. But I still think you should terrorize the Bronx locals with the Ronin Exige.

By the way, I think y'all need to catch this...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4w41ESyvHxg

Don't worry. I think that's the Baby Ruth bar from Caddy Shack.

[rogerch]

I fear for mankind

[Guest surferphil]

Well no one can accuse him of being anally retentive butt somehow I always knew he was full of sh1t!

That video is such a load of crap!

[Bibs]

You're shitting me?

[Moxie]

Personally I think the opening credits are priceless. Can't believe it hasn't been pulled for copyright yet.

Bibs, perhaps we should add the place at the end of the video as a required stop for all attendees of the NYC TLF Party. It's on 88th and 2nd:

[Bibs]

Will there be 2 girls?

[Moxie]

20. We do it large here.

So question for everyone who's sick of the off-topic commentary--if you could pick one person to be the new big Lotus endorser/brand ambassador, who would it be?

[Bibs]

Mr T.

[fmxa]

I pity the fool who doesn't buy a new Lotus!

[Moxie]

Selma Hayek, but only if they make front bucket seats an option.

[rogerch]

Nice t,ttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttt,tatoo !

[Günter]

nice face too.. !

especially for her age

Edited December 17, 2011 by Günter

[Moxie]

Yowza:

[fmxa]

Not as good as her performance in Dusk Till Dawn!

[rogerch]

Nice asp !

[red vtec]

You want to check out "after the sunset" an awful film that is only any good for the fact she wears a bikini a lot .

[Moxie]

So it's settled then. Salma Hayek is Lotus's new Vice President of Creative Design & Global Marketing. To paraphrase the press release:

So what makes Salma Hayek the perfect woman to add to the Lotus line-up? Three little facts:

1. Like Group Lotus, she means business: Her husband has more money than most third-world countries and is plugged in to the jet set and can probably move boatloads of Esprits. Plus she's smokin' hot and a great actor.
   
2. Like our cars, she’s multi award winning: Since 2001, she's won awards from Glamour magazine to Harvard University. Plus she's hot. Did we mention that?
   
3. Like Group Lotus she keeps good company: See #1, above.
   
4. Like Lotuses, she looks good standing still or in motion: I think we mentioned she's smokin' hot, but she's also hard-core in to yoga.
   

Have you seen the photo she attached to her CV?...

[Bibs]

I'm pleased you didn't add Mr T inappropriately to that image!

[Moxie]

No way. Ronin already used the Mr. T slogan to say I'm a fool for owning a Lotus in NYC, so that's enough of that phrase. But just for him, I am going to hire a local gang to pose with me and my Evora on the Deegan Expressway around 4:00am holding hacksaws, guns, and knives and wearing t-shirts with the infamous George Carlin quote that says, "L.A. is a small woman saying 'F--k me.' New York is a large man saying 'F--k you!'" And this is the large man, who you know well...