Proton-Lotus: To sell or not to sell?

Earlier today, I was asked by cable news channel Astro Awani to comment on the likelihood of Lotus being sold by DRB-Hicom, the new owner of Malaysian carmaker Proton so I told them that any consideration for selling Lotus should be made after considering the British icon in three distinct parts.

This breakdown of Lotus into its three major components is probably the best way to evaluate what Lotus is all about, how to get about taking full advantage of the company and determine whether if any or all of the components are worth holding on to.

If we do not break down the company and have a clear understanding of the components, there is a very high likelihood that Lotus could be misconstrued a major drain on company resources and add nothing to Proton. I think Lotus is a wonderful asset but Proton and DRB need to take a fresh perspective as to what Lotus is.

Lotus sign Petronas for GT Motorsports

Ever since Lotus reactivated their Motorsports division to the level of activity that we see today, many Malaysians had wished that Petronas would support the effort but in Formula One, the national oil company decided to go with Mercedes-Benz because it is a top-flight team.

Yesterday Group Lotus announced that they have attracted the oil giant to their GT motorsports activity through Petronas Lubricant International. Petronas Lubricant International used to be known as Selenia, which Petronas bought over a couple of years ago.

Petronas is now a major partner of Lotus Motorsports, supplying lubricants for all their motorsports activities in this category and this includes the Evora GT4s in the British GT Championship, Blancpain European GT and the International Le Mans Cup (ILMC).

Group Lotus Chief Executive Officer Dany Bahar said: "For Lotus, motorsport isn't just a branding exercise – ultimately we're in it to win and PETRONAS share this philosophy. They have built a lot of technological knowledge during their time in motorsport and we can benefit in many ways from technology transfer especially when it comes to fuel and lubricants technology used today in race cars. We are all about technology and performance and in PETRONAS we have a partner who share our values and vision."

For the official Press Release please follow the jump

Lotus sponsors home team Norwich City FC

Lotus is a well known name in the Automotive world while Norwich City is, well, a name in English football.

To a petrolhead like me, this decision by Group Lotus to sponsor Norwich City looks a bit like giving back to the community because, let's face it, Lotus is probably more famous than Norwich City..

Congratulations are still in order for Lotus and their committment to the community.

Press release after the jump