British sports car manufacturer Lotus may have struggled to turn a profit over the last sixty years, but it's working hard to change that. It gave us the Evora 400, a sports car so excellent it nearly won our 2017 Performance Car of the Year award. Then Lotus built the Evora 410, a version of the Evora that's even lighter, faster, and more powerful than before. It's also working to redesign the venerable Elise and Exige. But the next step in Lotus' plan will likely be an SUV.

Speaking to Autocar, Lotus CEO Jean Marc Gales confirmed that an SUV is still in the works. It's still in the early stages of development, but Gales suggested it's "four or five years away, as with the rest of the new range"—meaning it would come after the upcoming redesign of the Elise (current generation shown above), Exige and Evora sports cars. The way he sees it, adding an SUV could significantly increase Lotus' sales—potentially as much as threefold.

Gales also added that an SUV would make "a nice addition to the line-up," claiming that "no one makes a lightweight, good-handling SUV." We'd argue that the Porsche Macan GTS handles pretty well, but its 4500-lb. curb weight definitely underscores Gales' point.

This also isn't the first time we've heard about Lotus' interest in building an SUV. But now we have a more-definite timeframe. The question is, though, is it actually possible for a Lotus SUV to stay true to the brand? In a few years, it looks like we'll find out.

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