Youngman Lotus launches the Europestar Persona/Jingyue

[Wimbledon]

*** A Lotus Enthusiast World Exclusive ***

Originally Posted by Lotus Enthusiast

The new Europestar Persona (“Jingyue” in Chinese) debuts at the Guangzhou Auto Show in China this week. These are the first official images leaked from Europestar.

Zhejiang Jinhua-based Youngman Lotus is a joint venture between Youngman Auto and Lotus Engineering, which is an affiliate of Proton. Youngman Lotus manages the “Europestar” car marque, which was launched in January 2008 as a new nameplate to sell Lotus-designed Proton vehicles in China.

The first model Europestar launched was a re-badged Proton GEN-2 hatchback sold as the Europestar Lotus RCR (“Jingsu” in Chinese).

The new Persona is simply a GEN-2 sedan. Power comes from a Lotus-designed 1.6 litre gasoline engine paired to a four-speed automatic or five-speed manual.

Europestar has not yet disclosed official pricing, but orders can currently be placed with a deposit of 2,000 yuan ($293) at Youngman Lotus dealerships.