[smoseley]

Sorry for the chaos.

Just trying to earn my title!

I took the fake article offline.

 

[Randy Chase]

Thanks.

To be clear. Lotus Hethel is fine. The cars and factory are fine. Everything is going according to plan. All Chrome Orange cars are delayed by 19 months unless you agree to switch to Kermit Green.

Thank you.

 

[tidalwdave]

I posted that info/link on S2Ki also, had some fun.

Now about the CO, why are they delayed! I'll have to call my dealer regarding that. I'll change my color back to SY. I don't want CO if they aren't being built right away.

 

[LarryB]

Ok, well give my dealer a call to switch to - April fools, um Kermit Green.

 

[babak]

Thanks.

To be clear. Lotus Hethel is fine. The cars and factory are fine. Everything is going according to plan. All Chrome Orange cars are delayed by 19 months unless you agree to switch to Kermit Green.

Thank you.

I honestly think that KG would do fine, it's not as bad a shade as we had feared. April fools or not CO rocks but in a pinch I'd seriously consider KG.

 

[xxxotic]

Steve:

You are a creative genius. I thought it was an April Fools joke, but then I saw the CNN link and then I realized what you had done.

I did the same thing at work about a year ago. We were using different employees in print ads in papers around the country. I did the first one and then was replaced by a hot looking co-worker. I joked that I had been replaced since she looks better than me. (The fact that she looks like Cameron Diaz and wore a tight shirt on the day we took the photos didnt hurt either) The following week, I copied the ad, and replaced her picture with one of Britney Spears, saying that she is now the official spokesperson for our company. The girl believed me for about a week, until I told her that it was a fake.

I forwarded your link to Don at the dealership, but now that the link has been removed, he will wonder what I was referring to. I told them to call you and tell you that they recieved their allocation for the next two years until they switch over to the new model in 2007 and to tell you that sadly your one number short of their allocation, but that you could get a special edition pink May Kay version that they decided to make, or since your deposit is not refundable, they would just give you a credit towards a Yugo that someone just traded in.

Seriously, Ryan called me and left a message saying that their rep just gotback and said that the car was better than the Lambos. Ferraris, and even a McLaren that he had driven in the past. Also said the interior looked great too. Now that makes the wait seem even harder.

I'll call him back tommorrow and see i I can get the allocation numbers from him. Last week he said the cars will be coming in at all differant times. They might get 2 cars one day, a car a week or two later, then maybe another car or two a few days later. No specific numer all coming in on one day or time period

Makes me kind of think that they are all going to one port, being put on a car transporter and dropped off at diffferant dealerships along the way.

 

[smoseley]

Thanks, man. I just hope Lotus didn't get too upset about it! In retrospect, I realize that even though not intended maliciously, the story could have had a serious negative impact on them if the rumor broke out. I'm glad it died down relatively early and that everyone knew it was an April Fools Day gag.

 

[xxxotic]

Thats OK- I bought a ton of Photon stock today when the price dropped after the announcement and resold it later on in the day after the price increased after it was determined to be a rumor.

I used the money to place orders to 5 more Elises

I expect the SEC to soon be questioning me and ask me it if I had insider knowledge from Transio. I will flee in my Elise and cause a traffic chase to be filmed on CNN giving more free advertising to the Elise, causing the cars I ordered to jump in value. I will then sell them on eBay since I will be in jail when they are delivered, but I will secretly keep two cars and ship one to some mountainous island where I will live after escaping from jail after bribing a guard with the keys to the other Elise.

 

[smoseley]

LOL.... I'm gonna start applying for prison guard jobs!

 

[smoseley]

PS - isn't the company called Proton? I think you got lucky on the Photon stock, though! Check out PHTN - it was up $4.16 today... a 12.7% hike! Congrats on the pick!

PPS - not bad for a company that has earnings of -$2.90 per share

 

[Randy Chase]

The day after, Lotus responding to the fire fools

From: Lotus Cars UK
Sent: donderdag 1 april 2004 19:10
To: Europe Territory Managers; All Lotus dealers
Subject: Reponse to fiery April Fool's joke

RED HOT LOTUS, BUT NOT ABLAZE

World-famous sports car maker emerges unscathed from "tumultuous 3 hour blaze"

Reports that Group Lotus' headquarters in Hethel were destroyed by fire this morning, 1st April 2004, could have sent a shockwave across the world.

However, a spokesman informed the media that initial reports by rogue investigative journalists may have been slightly misleading regarding the severity of the blaze. In reality, the worldwide community of Lotus
customers and fans can breathe a huge sigh of relief, as the reports were identified as a very clever April Fool's joke.

It is, in fact, business as usual in NR14, and that is producing exceptional sports cars and undertaking world-class engineering consultancy for the world's automotive industry.

"The simple fact is that no fire is as strong or as powerful as the burning commitment we have here at Lotus," said Victor Kiam, deputy chairman, Group Lotus. "This is a company of extraordinary skill and
expertise, and that we find ourselves hard at work this morning is entirely predictable."

Indeed, by all accounts, by 7am this morning, the site was open once again, ready for a standard working day. Remarkably, no evidence of the destructive towering inferno was visible.

It has been an exciting and thrilling morning, like most days at Lotus.
And what's more, the only thing smoking at Hethel this morning was burning rubber out on the famous Lotus test track - as per usual.

_______________________________________________________

http://www.lotuscars.co.uk
http://www.lotuseng.com
http://www.lotussport.com

Group Lotus plc (Co. Reg. No. 606189)
Lotus Cars Ltd (Co. Reg. No. 895081)
Registered Offices, Hethel, Norwich, Norfolk, NR14 8EZ, England.

 

[zvezdah1]

I think Lotus' reply to the April Fools joke was quite good, instead of all kinds of threats and blustering they responded with wit!!

GReat fun, Steve will go down in the history books for this!
Chris

 

[Paul MD]

Well done Lotus - that was the right kind of response!

I heard that there's a hit out on Transio....

 

[ivan1]

Actually if I was him I would make sure I keep a fire extinguisher in my car at all times, in case Lotus plans a little revenge and does some special mods to his car....

 

[smoseley]

Steve will go down in the history books for this!

In infamy, no doubt. Again, I want to send my sincerest apologies to Lotus for causing so much trouble. I think I'm gonna change my last name to Bartman now and go into hiding.

 

[zvezdah1]

Steve,
I've heard they got an asterisk by your name on the production schedule, don't really know what it means, but foot noted at the bottom, *special edition


Looking at their response, I don't think they got so worked up about it and wouldn't worry, it was a classic af joke.
Chris

 

[OneFastLotus]

Well here I was thinking the Lotus response article was a fake too because I always thought Victor Kiam was that guy who purchased the remington shaving company " I liked it so much I bought the company" ...and I thought that companies parent name was close to proton. I figured Randy was having fun too.

lol

 

[JBurer]

Is Photon a publicly traded company?
I seem to remember that it was privately held and sponsored by it's country's government.

PHTN refers to a company that is involved with flat screen TV's
http://finance.yahoo.com/q/pr?s=PHTN

 

[_JD_]

Well here I was thinking the Lotus response article was a fake too because I always thought Victor Kiam was that guy who purchased the remington shaving company " I liked it so much I bought the company" ...and I thought that companies parent name was close to proton. I figured Randy was having fun too.

lol"

He dead.

 

[OneFastLotus]

yeah I just read that. Guess he bought the farm.