Among all the surprises Lotus has delivered over the past few years, the biggest shock today isn’t the car itself — it’s the name. The company has chosen For Me as the badge for its first plug-in hybrid, a new variant of the Eletre that gains a gasoline engine for the very first time. And in typical Lotus fashion, nothing about this move is simple or expected.
To put this into perspective, this isn’t just another model. It’s the first hybrid in Lotus’ entire history, marking a major turning point for a brand that built its identity on lightweight combustion sports cars and, more recently, on fully electric machines like Evija, Eletre, and Emeya. For Lotus, stepping into the hybrid world is not merely a product decision — it’s a shift in philosophy.
The idea might sound exciting at first: adding a combustion engine to a model known so far only as an EV. But when that model is a big, heavy SUV, the enthusiasm of Lotus purists naturally softens. Still, the hybrid Eletre brings plenty of intrigue.
Let’s start with the name. For Me feels like something you would expect under the Smart brand — which Geely partially owns — rather than a marque rooted in pure British performance heritage. Yet this name is now official, appearing in documents published by China’s Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, where every new car destined for the local market is first listed.
The design looks familiar, but the hardware underneath is all-new. The For Me version gets a turbocharged 2.0-liter gasoline engine that can power the wheels directly, while also acting as a generator to recharge the battery. And instead of the original 107-kWh pack in the electric Eletre, the hybrid uses a smaller 70-kWh battery.
If the electric Eletre already felt like a departure from Colin Chapman’s legendary motto — “Simplify, then add lightness” — the hybrid moves even further away. Official data lists the SUV at 2,625 kg, making it heavier than several of its fully electric counterparts. Lightness is clearly not part of the equation anymore.
Performance, however, is anything but modest. The gasoline engine makes 275 horsepower, and when combined with the two electric motors, total output reaches 952 hp. The hybrid sprints from 0–100 km/h in 3.3 seconds, and it can travel up to 420 km on electric power alone under China’s CLTC test cycle. Fast charging from 30% to 80% takes only eight minutes.
The official reveal is scheduled for next month, and Lotus intends to offer the model outside of China as well. What remains uncertain is whether it will keep the For Me name in Europe or adopt something more traditional like “Eletre Hybrid.” Lotus had previously committed to phasing out combustion engines entirely by 2028, but the slower-than-expected global shift to EVs forced a reconsideration.
The truth is simple: Lotus cannot rely on the Emira alone, no matter how admired it is. Sports cars can’t sustain the business on their own anymore. The market now demands SUVs and sedans, and with stricter emissions rules worldwide, electrification — whether full EV or hybrid — is no longer optional.
And so Lotus enters a new chapter. A brand once defined by simplicity and lightness now finds itself expanding into heavier, more complex technologies to ensure its survival. Without Geely’s support — and without models like Eletre and Emeya — Lotus’ future might have looked far more uncertain.
