I’d like to test this question with a story which will be published early next week. But first, let me bring you up to speed on why your viewpoint is relevant.

Early last week South Norfolk MP Richard Bacon told the House of Commons that accountancy firm KPMG had been appointed to find a Chinese buyer for Group Lotus. The story was picked up by several ‘reputable’ news providers (including the BBC) and soon was reported as fact, most notably by Autocar’s Steve Cropley, who reported the statement verbatim without appearing to question the accuracy of the claim.

My interest was naturally piqued by this latest revelation, not only because we’ve been following the Lotus situation closely, but because as a former Partner in KPMG and an Alumni of the firm, I keep in touch with my old colleagues and this was definitely ‘news’ to me. So, naturally I dug a little deeper.

During the past few months we’ve spoken with people within Proton, DRB-Hicom and the Malaysian government. We’ve compared notes with respected writers, such as Joe Saward, and thoroughly validated any assumptions we’ve presented after talking directly with Lotus.

I’ve never shied away from criticising the Norfolk car maker, nor its charismatic CEO, but I believe in everyone getting a fair hearing and dislike careless innuendo or misinformation.

With an advisory hat on I’ve sat down with Lotus to find out what’s really going on, to understand the impact of such public scrutiny on their day-to-day business. Everyone makes mistakes and Lotus has been quite open with me about the ones they’ve made, but they expect (and I believe deserve) a fair hearing in the press.

What interests me most at this time is ensuring people are well informed and able to make their own decisions based on the available facts.

As you can probably gather, that’s not the situation which currently exists. Right now, Lotus’ greatest frustration is seeing themselves judged in the media based on misleading comment and biased rhetoric. And despite pursuing retractions, in most cases they are largely being ignored.

If you’re an enthusiast, a fan, or just someone who values the expertise built up in one of Britain’s most innovative companies, then I invite you to hold the media to account, voice your displeasure at careless reporting and question the intentions of those who share their point of view (including myself).

Likewise, help me to ensure all the important questions have been asked. Post any in the comments below and I will endeavour to answer them after meeting again with Lotus next week.

It’s ‘Have Your Say’ time, so take advantage of the opportunity to be heard.

Welcome to the world of Lotus, where the news is never dull.

* * *

Just 118 examples of the China Limited Edition Evora GTE will be put on sale, with each car featuring a numbered plaque inside marked with the China Limited Edition insignia.

The interior features more leather and carbon fibre, but according to Lotus the GTE’s performance remains undiminished. The same 444bhp 3.5-litre supercharged V6 engine provides the GTE’s motive power, making it the most powerful Lotus road car ever built.

When the Evora GTE was initially revealed at the Frankfurt Motor Show last September, demand was so high that the company sold its planned 114 production schedule within days. Much of the demand came from China, hence the reason why Lotus chose to increase production and offer a special version for the car’s biggest market.

Lotus CEO Dany Bahar, was in China at the car’s launch, together with Lichen Zhang, President & CEO of Lotus China. “As the top potential market for sports car brands, China is a vital part of the five-year revival plan we announced 18-months ago. We are committed to bringing our unique products, distinctive style and rich history to China to provide Chinese customers with diversified and personalized product choices” said Bahar.

* * *

Meanwhile back in Malaysia, new owners DRB-HICOM issued a denial that the famous British brand was for sale or about to go into receivership.

DRB-Hicom’s communications chief, Salaiman Yahya, said that contrary to reports, the British company will not be put into administration. It is currently undergoing an operations audit as part of the Malaysian business’s governance process, and did not know the source of speculation that it was selling the brand to China’s Youngman.

In a statement he said that DRB-Hicom was still supporting Lotus Group “both financially and management-wise” and confirmed that “DRB-Hicom has identified one of Proton’s senior management personnel to take up a position in Lotus Group in an effort to strengthen its management.”

* * *

Finally, under the headline ‘Lotus Raises IndyCar Commitment’, the car maker seems to have done exactly the opposite.

Following the first three races of the season, Lotus undertook a strategic review of its position to decide what course of action would be in the best interests of IndyCar and the teams it supports. With the unanticipated difficulties caused by the widely reported change of ownership (to DRB-Hicom) and the subsequent restrictions on resources, the company has admitted that it was unable to continue supplying the regulatory ‘five’ engines during 2012.

Whilst their IndyCar engine has shown promise, it remains under-powered, compared to the opposition and minimal testing has resulted in reliability issues. Even so, a top ten finish has been an impressive start to their IndyCar campaign.

Consequently the company has made offers (of compensation) to Bryan Herta Autosport LLC and Dreyer & Reinbold Racing LLC to end their agreements, which means that Bryan Herta Autosport will no longer participate in any races as a Lotus team, whilst Dreyer & Reinbold Racing will race one more time in Brazil next weekend.

Randy Bernard, CEO of IndyCar has promised to help Dreyer & Reinbold Racing and Bryan Herta Autosport in securing engines for the remainder of the season, but he said “..he supported Lotus’ decision.”

Going forward, Lotus is excited to be working closely with Lotus HVM Racing, the original partner team and Lotus Dragon Racing, who delivered Lotus’ best result so far this season.

Claudio Berro, Lotus’ Director of Motorsport, said: “..I’m delighted with our solution and I can assure everybody that the actions were taken after careful consideration and will assist in ensuring the brand’s high racing ambitions and the high expectations of the IndyCar community are realised.”

In an age of social news-casting on Twitter and one-click searches on Google, the skill of the investigative journalist is steadily being eroded. As audiences, we are sometimes too ready to jump on news stories that may only have taken 30-minutes to research and produce.

The upside is that we gain access to our news more quickly, but the downside can be that we’re eating more and more ‘half-baked’ dishes that can sometimes lead to a bad case of indigestion..

Take this weekend’s Bahrain GP. As I check the Google-sphere there are some 2,218 news articles online, mostly from reporters who’ve never visited Bahrain or almost certainly were not in the Kingdom during the grand prix weekend.

You’ll have learned, if listening to those who lived the GP first-hand, that their experiences differed greatly from the views reported back home, or spouted by opposition MPs in the House of Commons.

It has become increasingly obvious that our news and opinions are being spun by those whose interests are more aligned with the performance of their title’s ad revenues, rather than any deep seated need to inform.

* * *

The catalyst for this article is Lotus’ CEO Dany Bahar, and whilst he’s no buddy of mine, I do feel drawn towards correcting some of the misunderstandings I have read in the press today.

The Daily Telegraph newspaper sensationally reported this morning that the chief executive of Lotus has a clause in his contract that entitles him to a bonus if the car maker is sold. The implication of this statement is that Bahar has been fattening up the goose (i.e. Group Lotus) for a feast (i.e. the sale of Lotus to the highest bidder), at which he will celebrate his good fortune.

The reporter, Graham Ruddick, then goes on to say, “Mr Bahar’s contract, seen by The Daily Telegraph, says he is entitled to 5pc of the enterprise value of Group Lotus if it is sold or 5pc of the value of its shares if the car maker is floated on a stock market anywhere in the world.

“The potential payment comes on top of a guaranteed annual payment of at least £1.2m, including a £600,000 salary and performance-related bonuses.”

As we have written about the future of Lotus ad infinitum, I won’t bore you again by recapping all the ins and outs. If you’re new to the subject, you can catch up via the articles below.

The author of the Telegraph article closes by saying, “A spokesman for Lotus declined to comment”, which is usually reporter-speak for ‘they’re hiding something’.

Consequently, the impression I gained from reading it was this is another nail in the coffin of the beleaguered Lotus CEO – the greedy ba****d, and we (the great unwashed) should rise up and kick his skinny behind all the way back to his native Switzerland. Good riddance.

* * *

But putting aside any personal opinions you may have on Bahar’s stewardship of the Hethel car company, it’s worth bearing in mind the following.

A CEO’s contract is usually a fixed-term agreement (unlike most employee contracts) containing a number of clauses including the nature of their remuneration package (usually a mixture of base salary and a bonus based on meeting pre-agreed performance criteria, which is likely to be paid in either cash, shares or both).

The contract also usually contains a restrictive non-compete clause (should the CEO be poached or attempt to leave and join a competitor), plus a 12-month (or more) notice period on either side. The reason for this is because most senior executives, by the very nature of their non-compete agreements and highly-paid roles cannot simply leave one source of employ and join another – it can often take years to find their next challenge.

Likewise, there simply aren’t that many positions open at any one time, so the contract aims to both dis-incentivise the CEO from leaving and the company owners from using him or her as a scapegoat for political contretemps.

The other likely feature in the contract of a CEO brought on board to turnaround an ailing business, is some (significant) incentive to raise the ‘value’ of the business, either if the business is subsequently floated and receives a significant injection of new investor capital or is sold – either way shareholders of the company agree to reward a CEO for increasing their wealth and this can often result in the CEO receiving millions in compensation.

This is ‘normal’. There is nothing exceptional about such an agreement and therefore nothing can be implied about the intentions of either Proton or Bahar, without further evidence that a plan had been hatched to deliberately exploit Group Lotus for the short-term benefit of either DRB-HICOM/Proton or the Lotus CEO.

* * *

Despite the Telegraph being unable to reach Lotus for comment, I found it to be quite straightforward to reach out to Lotus’ Director of Communications, Thomas Hofmann, who responding to my request in less than 20 minutes.

As expected he was unable to comment on the specifics of Bahar’s director contract, but he was able to confirm that:

Fair enough. That sounds like the kind of neutral statement one would expect from a corporate communications man.

He went on to explain:

As already said, it’s in the nature of a CEO’s employ when turning around a non profit making business, to focus on an earn-out from its potential sale or flotation.

Whether such a transaction goes ahead depends very much on what most benefits the shareholders of the business, and therefore it’s entirely possible that Dany’s lottery ticket may in fact NOT come up during his time at the helm of Group Lotus.

So, as the standard line used by Will Smith and Tommy Lee Jones in the movie, Men in Black says – “Move Along, Nothing To See Here.”

Hopefully this helps you draw your own conclusions from the news you read, without getting blown along a path by yet another poorly researched exposé.

We spoke with Lotus this afternoon and you can read their responses below. There are still a number of questions outstanding, which we will update in this article when we hear back from them tomorrow. [Click Here to read the latest update]

Just 6 months ago a grant of £10.4m was made from the UK Regional Growth Fund to assist in the development of Lotus’ new models, with CEO Dany Bahar promising to create up to 1,200 new jobs for the region. Bahar said to BBC News at the time, “It was always our intention from the beginning to create jobs in the region, especially in the automotive manufacturing industry in the UK, which was an issue.” Business Secretary Vince Cable, said during his tour of Hethel’s facilities last July, “We do need companies like Lotus. The British car industry was written off years ago and is now really reviving.”

Proton’s Satria Neo R3, a limited-edition 145bhp 1.6-litre model painted in Lotus Racing colours. Is this what Malaysian or Chinese owners have in mind for the brand?

Whilst the future plans of DRB-HICOM remain in doubt, the promised regional growth funding for Lotus has now been put on hold. Ministers remain committed to keeping Lotus in Norfolk, and keen to support Lotus provided it creates new jobs for the region.

* * *

Meanwhile DRB-HICOM has been eager to distance itself from the highly publicised issues at Group Lotus, whilst Bahar is keen to ingratiate himself with any new buyers and secure their support for his future plans.

One such buyer is the current Lotus F1 Team owners Genii Capital, who confirmed over the weekend that it was considering making an offer for Group Lotus and told the BBC that it respected the “historic link” between Lotus and Norfolk.

Some of the challenges facing Lotus are perfectly normal in the greater scheme of things, Lotus (and Bahar’s plans for the car maker) are heavily dependent on the leveraged support of banks and shareholders and with DRB-HICOM’s acquisition of Proton, these were always likely to be disrupted.

Naturally, whilst DRB-HICOM undertook their post-acquisition due diligence, the financing was stopped and since the operation of its business depended on outside capital, Lotus were unable to meet some of their bills during the intervening months.

Without wishing to get stuck on semantics, whilst the above response may indeed be true from Lotus’ perspective, the information coming out from Malaysia casts a somewhat different light on the situation.

* * *

Coinciding with last week’s media storm, news then emerged that Group Lotus boss Dany Bahar had together with another Lotus director, Azman Bin Abdullah, registered the company, Lotus Youngman UK Automotive Company Limited at Companies House on January 13th 2012.

This was just three days before the sale of Proton was announced, prompting speculation that it was little more than a shell company, set up as a vehicle to facilitate the purchase of Lotus assets in an eventual sale.

China Youngman Automobile Group, who build and sell cars in China using a Lotus developed platform, were involved in a failed $446 million offer last year to buy the ailing Swedish car maker, Saab. Youngman sells passenger cars in China for the domestic market, including the L3 and L5 models, which are engineered with the assistance of Lotus Engineering and based on Proton running gear.

Norfolk MP, Richard Bacon, has called for an emergency debate in the House of Commons to review what is being done to safeguard jobs at Hethel. He said in an interview with Eastern Daily Press, “The government’s policies are designed to encourage more jobs not fewer, and last year the government promised more than £10m of its regional growth fund to Lotus. I want to hear what ministers are thinking about that and what they are planning to do.”

Bacon went on to say, “Lotus Youngman was incorporated in January 2012, so this raises serious questions as to why the Malaysian stock exchange wasn’t informed until last Thursday.”

British Prime Minister, David Cameron, told the House of Commons today (18/4) that he had raised the issue of Group Lotus with the Malaysian Prime Minister and its new owners. He also said that “..he is monitoring the situation closely”.

If this is indeed the case, then this may be yet another ‘storm in a teacup’, but one wonders why Lotus allowed such perceptions to form, given the scrutiny its business has been under these past few weeks.

Further questions..

The key issue at this juncture is one of trust. The ‘drip-drip’ of information, together with Bahar’s continued dismissal of any concerns is not the most prudent way for Lotus to regain its credibility.

One of the questions which remains outstanding is why the Malaysian stock exchange was only notified about Lotus Youngman UK Automotive Company Limited last week.

It’s a genuine concern and should be straightforward enough for Lotus to answer. We’ll let you know what they say.

* * *

Lotus have been keen to defuse any misunderstanding caused by their relationship with China Youngman, and generous with their time in providing further information on the points that we raised.

Our understanding is that whilst none of this precludes a future deal, for the time being discussions about the ownership of Group Lotus, should DRB-HICOM choose to sell, remain open and therefore no decision has been made which would adversely impact Lotus employees in Hethel.

More than ever, this week’s musings of allegations, contradictions, suppositions and bile have been dominating automotive content on the blogosphere, Twitter and mainstream media, but at the heart of this lie real issues relating to a much-loved marque, that now overshadow the livelihoods of many around the world.

Latest position

So what is really going on? And what, if anything, can be done to keep good people building great cars in Hethel?

We’ve spent the past 24 hours speaking to both sides of the situation, both here in the UK and Malaysia, gaining insight into the thinking of Lotus’ new owners and the steps they are now taking.

What next for Lotus?

None of us should be in any doubt how valuable Lotus Cars could be, under the right management. But it needs the scale and industrial processes of a major car maker, so that the undeniably talented folk at Hethel can do what they do best – make the best handling, most rewarding sportscars that money can buy.

With today’s customer expecting great performance, all the creature comforts AND a 7-year warranty, it’s simply not possible to deliver this at mainstream prices without significant economies of scale. This is something that has been hurting Lotus for quite some time and whilst financing is part of the problem, it makes no sense to re-invent the wheel and carry the burden of being a start-up.

Lotus need a new owner, someone who understands their brand, can use the synergies of their existing business to bridge the investment gap and keep one of the world’s best known marques open for business.

We know it’s possible. Just look at the success Volkswagen has had with Bentley, or BMW with Rolls-Royce and MINI. Our most iconic car makers can thrive in the right environment. And with Lotus back in Formula 1, the brand is now reaching the eyeballs of more than 500 million TV viewers worldwide.

Yesterday, a Lotus Exige S trounced the old Exige Cup 260′s lap time around the Hethel test track, recording a time of 1 min 32.68 seconds (Exige cup 260 – 1 min 37.90 seconds). If that’s not progress, I don’t know what is. Let’s hope we see plenty more of such achievements in the years to come.

DRB-HICOM, who now control Lotus’s owner, Proton, were originally formed by combining The Heavy Industries Corporation of Malaysia Berhad (HICOM) and Diversified Resources Berhad (DRB). Their mission is to make Malaysia a preferred automotive hub, for the import and assembly of vehicles and subsequent distribution across South East Asia.

Unsurprisingly, Lotus do not feature in the plans of such a business.

Malaysia has dropped behind Thailand and Indonesia in terms of the volume of vehicles produced and may even slip behind Vietnam. In its purchase of Proton, DRB-HICOM is focused on developing the most effective business plan to return Proton (and therefore Malaysia) to the top spot and removing anything that might hinder that goal.

As such we learned two things yesterday; DRB-HICOM has installed a new senior management team in Proton (replacing Proton MD Syed Zainal) and the decision has already been taken to cease all current and future investment into Group Lotus operations.

Moreover, the relentless negative attention about the sportscar maker’s future mean that the order has also been put-out to either sell Lotus – and to do so quickly – or to simply close-up shop and put an end to the car maker and the losses it incurs.

This is confirmed from our fact finding earlier this week. We also understand Lotus CEO Dany Bahar is involved in discussions (he’s certainly been noticeably absent from any outgoing publicity these past few weeks) to quickly find a buyer and establish a role for himself in any ongoing business.

As viewed from Kuala Lumpur and Putrajaya (the Malaysian federal capital), the situation has escalated to one of national embarrassment and Proton’s new keepers have been told to deal with the situation and to do it swiftly.

* * *

Turning to how Lotus might be saved and suddenly the situation becomes far more contentious.

Of the three most obvious candidates, two (Genii Capital and Tony Fernandes) might both be able to allow the Lotus name to continue, but face strong opposition from within Malaysia’s political and commercial elite; Genii because of the perception that they were participants in a conspiracy to acquire Lotus through stealth, and Fernandes because of the negative way that he has sought to engage Lotus, especially on the back of his acquisition of Caterham Cars.

Unlike Genii, Fernandes does enjoy some support from a number of junior Proton executives, but it is the establishment calling the shots and they’ve made their position very clear.

This leaves Pang Qingnian’s “Youngman” Group. Youngman, based in Jinhua, China, which already has a significant working relationship with both Lotus and Proton, producing a handful of “engineered by Lotus” models, and is both financially and structurally capable of making the investment required to acquire Lotus and to take it in whatever direction it chooses.

What’s not so clear is which direction this would be and how it would impact the many hundreds of dedicated employees in the UK, Europe, Asia and the USA.

In an ideal world, Lotus needs to find someone with the time, passion, resource, and above all, realism, to not only deal with the enormity of the task but to also consider how the marque can be carried forward to future generations.

One of the biggest challenges facing such a niche business is continuity; just as TVR became nothing without Peter Wheeler, so Lotus has waned without Colin Chapman. Much, of course, relates to money, but far more has to do with personality and leadership.

* * *

But this is only one difficulty facing any potential “white knight”.

Of more immediate concern will be how to justify the type of investment required that might allow Lotus to regain its reputation and future revenue potential. By this, I’m not referring to the recent multi-car ‘New Era’ plan but rather, a return to what the company is good at; building light-weight, affordable sports cars.

Lotus has a new V8 engine on the dyno, a stunning new test track at Hethel and some real engineering ‘substance’ behind all the recent marketing razzmatazz.

It is going to need courage, cash and above-all, a human face to deliver a return to key brand values and to rebuild the relationships with staff, customers, dealers and the media. This is what makes a business out of a brand.

For Lotus, time is now critical, and no-doubt over the weekend, there will be yet more derision cast in Hethel’s direction. And whilst we, the curious, read and reply to posts and threads on the internet, it’s important to remember that there are others who will be wondering when they’ll receive their next pay cheque.

As for the future, if the Lotus legacy is to continue, all I can do is to hope that it will be under the guiding hand of someone capable of instilling in the hearts and minds of men, women and children everywhere, that in an uncertain world, one thing they can aspire to is that some day, they too might own a Lotus.

However speculation continues apace that trouble is deepening at Hethel. Lotus sold just 10 cars in the UK last month, up from February’s performance of just 2 cars. Sales in the UK are down 70-80%, compared to this time last year, and our contacts in Malaysia tell us that Proton are looking closely at how to save face during the intense scrutiny of DRB-Hicom’s due diligence process.

So, we know Lotus are under a great deal of pressure at the moment and our thoughts go to the many hard-working folk in Hethel, who are dealing with the daily onslaught of questions.

In the light of continued speculation, Lotus has taken the extraordinary step this evening and released a full statement to dispel the most recent rumours and clarify the present situation. It’s an unconventional approach to calming down a PR crisis, especially considering how personally they’ve written the statement, but perhaps it reflects just how serious the situation has become.

And finally..

Last week we put together a satirical piece on Lotus CEO Dany Bahar, we wrote it as a light-hearted parody of the internet meme initiated by Samantha Brick’s article on the downsides of looking pretty.

Perhaps now would be a good time to share it and help lighten the mood..

* * *

‘There are downsides to being this gifted’: why people hate me for being so brilliant

In an EXCLUSIVE fictitious interview with the man himself, Dany revealed what it’s like to be so misunderstood..

“At a recent motor show, I was delighted when a journalist came over and paid me a compliment about my circle of famous friends, rewarding me with an article in his national newspaper right next to a piece about my good friend Swizz Beatz.

This was from a leading journalist – not one of those misguided and uninformed hacks from the UK press, who seem obsessed with how well our cars reflect the vision of some flat-cap wearing engineer called Colin Chapman.

You’re probably thinking ‘what a lovely surprise’ to be on the receiving end of such reverence. But while it’s wonderful to see people recognise my social achievements, it wasn’t a surprise. At least not for me.

You see, throughout my business career, I’ve had people pay me compliments for the cut of my hand-made suits, my superstar good looks and the sparkle I add to even the most humble board room.

Take Ferrari for instance, when I joined, an old guy working out of a small brick house at Fiorano called all the shots. He had no style or charisma and acted like he owned the place.

As Senior Vice-President of Ferrari’s Sales, Marketing and Communications, I single-handedly turned this company into the most desirable automotive brand in the world – all my celebrity friends say so, therefore it must be true.

As reward for my achievements I was showered with untold riches, then asked to head up a small Norfolk-based company in need of some sparkle. And whenever I’ve asked what I’ve done to deserve such treatment, the shareholders of each company have always said the same thing: my good looks, cocky demeanour and wunderkind aura that brightens up their day.

While I’m no Richard Branson, I’m trim, fit and have Sharon Stone on speed dial, and from what I tell myself, I’m gifted and uniquely brilliant. I know how lucky I am. To be me.

But there are downsides to being so brilliant – the main one being that other people seem to hate me for no other reason than I’m better than them.

If you’re a car enthusiast or journalist reading this, I’d hazard that you’ve already formed your own opinion about me — and it won’t be very flattering. For while many opportunities have been offered to me (literally) as a result of my engaging personality and film-star looks, just as many have been wrenched away — usually by those most jealous of my achievements and fearful that I’ll make them look bad.

As Chief Operating Officer for Red Bull, I put in place the groundwork for two world championships, but despite my success, was never asked to jump in the team pool at the Monaco grand prix.

You’d think they would have lifted me on their shoulders and cheered, but I guess people don’t want to hang out with someone more talented than them.

I’m not smug and I’m no fool, but over the years I’ve been ignored by countless colleagues and acquaintances who felt threatened if they were in the same room as me.

Let’s face it, I’m a winner. Not many people can say that.

But when ex-F1 world champions or politicians hang out at my Norfolk crib, all of a sudden I read ill-informed articles in the press saying I’m just some playboy. What do they know? How many of them are on speaking terms with Julia Roberts?

It’s not easy being so brilliant, I spend my days surrounded by people who will never know the taste of Cristal, but you won’t hear me complain nor curse their stupidity.

So now I’m in the headlines again and my bosses at Proton think I’ve made them look foolish. They talk about ‘saving face’ and ‘finding a scapegoat’.  But even if they are right, what have they got to lose?

Don’t they realise? I’m the one with the glittering career at risk..

They’re still driving for Lotus F1 Team, owned by Genii Capital, but this is now an entity which represents Lotus in name only.

In an interview published by Autosport this morning, Gerard Lopez, Chairman of Lotus F1 Team announced that they have terminated their title sponsorship deal with car manufacturer, Group Lotus.

Lopez told Autosport, “The sponsorship agreement and the obligations of Lotus have been terminated. There is no option from Group Lotus to buy into F1 now – that option was taken over by us. There was one, but we have taken it over now.”

* * *

Confused? I’ll try and explain as simply as I can.

Lotus F1 Team, based in Enstone, Oxfordshire is currently registered at Companies House with four directors, 40-year old Gerard Lopez, 44-year old Eric Lux, 40-year old Dany Bahar (Group Lotus CEO) and 49-year old Dato’ Sri Haji Syed Zainal Abidin B. Syed Mohamed Tahir (Managing Director of Proton).

Lotus F1 Team’s chairman, Gerard Lopez, is also co-founder of Luxembourg-based Genii Capital, who together with Eric Lux is also Chairman of Genii Group.

Gerard Lopez, Chairman of Lotus F1 Team and Genii Capital, speaks with Bernie Ecclestone.

• In 2009 Genii Capital acquired a majority stake in the Renault F1 Team, with their goal at the time being to return Renault to the forefront of Formula 1.
• Renault initially retained a 25% share in the team, but then sold this remaining stake to Genii Capital at the end of 2010.
• Group Lotus then came on board as ‘Title Sponsor’ with the backing of its parent company Proton. The deal assumed Group Lotus plc would become a major equity partner in Lotus Renault GP (renamed for the 2011 season), and remain title sponsors until the end of the 2017 season. The deal also offered Proton access to advanced automotive technologies by virtue of Genii’s association with Mangrove Capital Partners, founded by Lopez in 1998.
• Following resolution of the acrimonious conflict between Dany Bahar (Lotus CEO) and Tony Fernandes (Air Asia and 1Malaysia Racing CEO) over use of the Lotus name in F1, Lotus Renault GP was renamed to Lotus F1 Team for the 2012 season.
• In January 2012, Billionaire Syed Mokhtar Al- Bukhary’s DRB-Hicom purchased government-owned Proton (owner of Group Lotus) for $413 million, immediately freezing the assets of the business (including Lotus) whilst it carried out its post-acquisition due diligence. At the same time, DRB-Hicom Group Managing Director Mohd. Khamil Jamil said he was open to selling sportscar maker Lotus.
• Proton has been suffering in recent years, with huge write-downs (-76% year-on-year) in its profit forecasts mainly due to the financial burden of Group Lotus, which has not turned a profit since 1996.
• Whilst Lopez confirmed Genii Capital’s commitment to Lotus F1 Team in January following its name change, just 1 month later he said the company could be interested in acquiring Group Lotus plc, “provided they believed there is something good that can be done by acquiring the company”.

For matters to change so significantly between February 2012, when Genii and Group Lotus jointly supported the launch of Lotus F1 Team and then two months later for the partnership to split, reflects a very abnormal situation which can only partly be explained by the DRB-Hicom acquisition but also points towards a falling out between Lopez and Bahar – the most likely reason being a failure to consummate their title sponsorship role with the required funds.

With such a failure, Genii would then have been justified in terminating the agreement due to a breach of contract.

So, from a position in 2010 when we had ’2′ Lotus teams in Formula 1 (Team Lotus and Lotus Renault F1), we are now in the position where Lotus, the sports-car maker and engineering firm, is no longer in F1. Sad isn’t it?

While the directors of Lotus F1 Team will now presumably comprise just Lopez and Lux, Lopez explained to Autosport that he remains committed to the Lotus name: “We are happy to carry the Lotus name as we believe it is a good name for F1,” he explained. “We funded the team last year and the year before for whatever delta was missing. We would prefer to have sponsors up to the full amount – but if we have to fund it then we will fund it.”

* * *

So what fate will befall Lotus?

Without insight into the terms of existing agreements between Genii Capital, Group Lotus and Proton Holdings (now presumably being novated to DRB-Hicom), there are several outcomes that are likely:

• Lotus F1 Team will continue as-is during the 2012 Formula 1 season. The team are well funded, thanks to the recent sponsorship deals with Unilever and Microsoft Dynamics. Genii Capital will continue to make up any deficit in the team’s budget – although reading between the lines, it looks like Group Lotus had yet to put any money on the table, even though that was part of the original title sponsorship deal.
• Some people have speculated that the Lotus name will remain in F1 until 2017, but Genii and Lopez have not confirmed this. A breach of contract can trigger all sorts of exceptional clauses and Lotus’ new owners may decide that licensing Genii to use its brand is no longer in its best interest (or indeed are no longer prepared to offer such a deal quid pro quo)
• Genii must retain use of the Lotus name in Formula 1, partly because the patience of other teams to approve yet another name change will be zilch, but also because it’s a great brand that suits the ambition of Genii’s Automotive business and needs to stay in Formula 1.
• It seems clear that Group Lotus Plc are up for sale (despite what Bahar may say) and that Genii Capital are in a strong position to acquire the business. But Lopez is a businessman and venture capitalist and the numbers will need to add up, including how the company’s long-term debt is restructured when separated from the remainder of Proton Group. There are also several cash rich car companies who are already clients of Lotus Engineering and could make good use of Lotus experience in light-weight construction, so I would be surprised if either Volkswagen, Toyota or BMW didn’t show some interest.
• Tony Fernandes has left the scene and is now busy developing Caterham (cars and F1 team), so we’ll assume he no longer has any use for Lotus and will not be in the running, so Lotus’ future looks like being in the hands of Genii or a major car manufacturer, unless Bahar can gather sufficient partners to lead a management buyout.

Lotus 5-year ‘New Era’ Business Plan was never viable (as I said at the time) – not in the real world. For a business that hasn’t turned a profit in 15 years, whose plan depended on £360 million in funding from Asian investors (£120 million from Proton) and needs to generate £110 million (extra) from sales of its own cars, success was always based upon the most optimistic of scenarios.

Even then, Lotus would still need to service its existing liabilities (including a rumoured £4 million/week salary bill) and compete in an increasingly competitive marketplace with its ageing product line.

The ‘New Era’ plan requires a generous patron prepared to forego a return on their investment for most of the next 10 years and absorb a £0.5 billion liability on their balance sheet without such burden derailing the rest of their business. Proton couldn’t do so and I doubt Genii can either, so unless somebody new enters the bidding for Group Lotus we’ll be lucky to see even the new Esprit appear during the next 3 years.

Of course, I could be wrong. Our doubts may indeed be “uninformed”, as Bahar accused the UK press of last year, but if I were a betting man I wouldn’t expect favourable odds on Behar still being CEO of Group Lotus when the dust settles.

Bahar’s plan, it would seem, is in tatters.

[+] We’ve reached out to Lotus for their side of the story, and will update this article when we learn more.

Photo credit: Lotus F1 Team and Genii Capital

This week the Lotus International Rally team headed to the legendary rally Tarmac of St Remo, Italy, with works drivers Bernardo Sousa and Luca Rossetti. Their objective, to complete the final development tests prior to next week’s visit from the FIA to homologate the new Exige R-GT rally car.

The team will contest specific tarmac rounds of the championship in partnership with Italian team United Business, who won the title last year, but this is not the first time Lotus has competed in rallying, having previously won the 1981 World Rally Championship with the Talbot Sunbeam Lotus.

..things are coming together quickly. It’s really exciting.

Powered by a 298 bhp supercharged 3.5-litre V6 engine, the Exige R-GT weighs the regulation 1200kg (as per FIA R-GT technical regulations) and puts its power to the road via a 6-speed sequential gearbox, two homologated final drives and an LSD differential.

It’s the same basic powerplant as fitted to the Exige S, but 34 mm air restrictors to peg the power back under 300 bhp.

The Exige ran for 85km on Tuesday and 75km on Wednesday this week, and the testing was largely trouble free except for a small supercharger problem, which was remedied by changing the compressor belt.

The team will carry out another two-day test ahead of the R-GT’s race debut in FIA European Rally Championship on 19-21 April in Italy’s Rally 1000 Miglia.

Works driver, Bernardo Sousa, said: “I’m loving every km in the car, there is some work to do, but I’m sure that in the near future we will have some very good results, the car has great potential”

Claudio Berro, director of Lotus Racing, said: “The Lotus Exige R-GT’s development continues to go to plan and we were satisfied with the performance, mileage and data we got from the car and drivers.

We did a lot of work on set-up, and we should be perfectly prepared with a final two day test, schedule within the next ten days. Next week we’ll be having a visit from the FIA to homologate the car, so things are coming together quickly. It’s really exciting.”

The Exige R-GT is painted in Lotus’ iconic black and gold colour scheme, which looks fantastic when covered with a smattering of Imperian road grime.

Ten cars will be built this year, with seven allocated to the official team and European racing drivers.

Gallery

Somewhat surprisingly, there’s no mention of Fernando Alonso, who won the grand prix and now leads the drivers’ championship.

* * *

Anyway, here is what he said:

Double world champion and Lotus Ambassador Emerson Fittipaldi gives us his thoughts on last weekend’s Malaysian Grand Prix..

Lotus: This season is shaping up to be a classic. Have you been on the edge of your seat too?

Fittipaldi: The racing is better than last year and it’s good to see the teams closing in and in some cases being even faster than the Red Bulls. Of course it’s a great field with six world champions and a lot of new talent.

Lotus: Just two races in, and Kimi Raikkonen looks like he’s lost none of his speed. Are you surprised how quickly he’s got back to grips with F1?

Fittipaldi: I am surprised that it has taken no time for Kimi to be back at the top of his form. Michael Schumacher is on form this year too, but it took him two years to get back in the groove. Kimi was on it from the very first test.

Lotus: Romain Grosjean once again qualified strongly but ended in the gravel within four laps. What advice would you give him?

Fittipaldi: The same advice I’d give any driver, especially a young one: first you have to finish, then you can finish first.

Lotus: As a driver pairing, how good a partnership do you think Kimi and Romain make compared to the teams around them?

Fittipaldi: There are good pairings all around, and Lotus is no exception. With Kimi racing so well and Romain showing a lot of speed the pair will keep each other honest and the results will come.

Lotus: We had a red flag period for nearly an hour due to rain. How difficult is it for a driver psychologically when a race is suspended?

Fittipaldi: I’m totally in favour of stopping the race in critical aquaplaning conditions. There is nothing the driver can do to defend himself in these conditions. I actually believe the red flag period in this case to be beneficial to the drivers, they can enter again and re-start the race at their best.

Lotus: Lotus once again proved they are quick, but due to Kimi’s gearbox penalty they perhaps don’t have the optimum result. How do you think the E20 ranks compared to the McLaren, the Red Bull, the Mercedes and the Ferrari?

Fittipaldi: Lotus has made the most progress of any team. I am happy to celebrate the 40th anniversary of my 1972 World Championship with Lotus and see the marque becoming a serious contender in F1 again. I know so many of the people involved I am sure that they will get the job done. I have a lot of respect for the new management and especially for my friend Eric Boullier.

Lotus: In mixed-weather conditions, experience usually comes to the fore. How impressed were you with Sergio Perez, in just his second season, challenging for the lead like he did?

Fittipaldi: I have known Sergio since he was in karting, and he’s always been fast. He is Mexico’s new hope in F1, and this is great news. His strategy was perfect and he drove like a veteran, turning in the fast laps when it mattered and making everybody follow.

Lotus: You achieved success in F1 at an incredibly early age. What do you think is going through Sergio’s head right now? And how much is he daydreaming about Ferrari?

Fittipaldi: I think that he is taking things one at a time, and trying to do his best this season. Today he showed again that he is very focused, so I wouldn’t say he’s daydreaming just dealing with the present.

In a statement shortly after, team boss Eric Boullier confirmed Petrov’s contract had been terminated and that he would not be in line for the team’s test and reserve driver role (presumably linked to his recent outbursts against the team).

And that just leaves Senna looking for a seat. So it seems ironic that on the very same day as the Grosjean announcement, Senna should appear modelling the new Lotus ORIGINALS collection. When he pictured himself sitting in for Lotus in 2012, I doubt he envisaged it being a lounge chair..

Bruno Senna and Lotus CEO Dany Bahar open the new Lotus ORIGINALS retail store in Hethel

Is this the price to be paid for waiting in the wings?

For what it’s worth, I remember enjoying Bruno’s drives in GP2, where he would comprehensively out-drive Vitaly Petrov and battle on equal terms with Romain Grosjean, so apart from his variable performance at times, I can see little justification in replacing him with Grosjean apart from the obvious financial ones (Grosjean is managed by team boss Eric Boullier and French oil giant TOTAL will be a team sponsor in 2012).

Lotus describe their new retail concept as “..a clear sign of their new brand identity and befitting the current and future collection of cars planned for 2013 and beyond.”

The first step in this process is opening the brand’s first retail store at Group Lotus HQ near Hethel.

In fact, if you’re in the area it might be worth popping in and taking a look, because in addition to the latest range of apparel and accessories, the retail store is also showcasing the new look customers can expect from Lotus dealerships in the future.

The new Lotus ORIGINALS retail store in Hethel

The dealership environment has a modern look and feel with an inviting lounge area where customers can browse the Lotus library or leisurely spec their new Lotus car. Lotus’ latest models will be on display in the store, with full paint and trim swatches to complete the Lotus shopping experience.

Commenting on the launch Group Lotus Director of Licensing and Merchandise Wiebke Bauer said: “It’s a very proud day for us today, it’s more than a simple store opening. One of the biggest challenges we have as a business, outside of selling cars, is to make the Lotus brand as accessible as possible. We have many fans out there in the world who aren’t necessarily in a position to buy one of our cars but they still want to be part of the Lotus world and this means a lot to us.”

Opening hours are 8.30am until 5pm (Monday to Thursday) and 8.30am until midday on Fridays. Hopefully you won’t find Bruno serving from behind the counter, but within the broadly defined contract he seems to be under with Lotus, you never know.

Let’s hope we see him in a race suit and off the cat-walk soon.