[jlj3394]

It is obvious from the IS-F, thier flirtation with motorsports, and their always rumored supercar that Toyota has come engineers and marketers that want something more than their "reliability at all costs" image.

Why not just buy Lotus and make that the performance wing of the company, leaving Toyota as the everyman's reliamobile, and Lexus as the buttoned-up Luxury car?

Hell, they're providing all of the engines and transmissions, why not just jump all in?

 

[darkSol]

[lukeskywalker]

Nooooooooooo!!!!

I'll never join you!

[/lukeskywalker]

 

[Chris Mackey]

Maybe Proton doesn't want to sell.
Maybe the arrangement is better for Toyota as it is.
Maybe there are legal barriers to doing so.
Maybe they're on crack.

 

[andykeck]

FWIW, Toyota used to own a chunk of Lotus.

 

[chapster5]

WHAT! so toyota can start making MR2's instead of Elise's! NO

 

[Bavarian Motorist]

I don't see how it would benefit their causes other than by association which they already have since they are supplying the motors to Lotus. I don't think owning the company necessarily widens that association too much since not many people really knows who/what Lotus is anyways.


The performance wing of Lexus is to about brand image, to compete with BMW, Audi, and Infiniti better.

 

[Conan]

It is obvious from the IS-F, thier flirtation with motorsports, and their always rumored supercar that Toyota has come engineers and marketers that want something more than their "reliability at all costs" image.

Why not just buy Lotus and make that the performance wing of the company, leaving Toyota as the everyman's reliamobile, and Lexus as the buttoned-up Luxury car?

Hell, they're providing all of the engines and transmissions, why not just jump all in?

Because Toyota doesn't take risks (relatively speaking). It's why they're currently the most successful car company on the planet. It's also why all of their cars are so freakin' boring.

 

[thruthefence]

from the Pliestecene

Toyota 2000GT - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

and:

as to "boring" scroll down to Mark IV.

Toyota Supra - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

 

[Bavarian Motorist]

Because Toyota doesn't take risks (relatively speaking). It's why they're currently the most successful car company on the planet. It's also why all of their cars are so freakin' boring.

They're taking a risk on the LF-A development and the F series in general.

 

[Exigin]

This should go under.

http://www.lotustalk.com/forums/f3/what-funniest-most-stupid-comment-you-ever-got-part-3-a-61786/

 

[Simba]

Toyota 2000GT - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

and:

as to "boring" scroll down to Mark IV.

Toyota Supra - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

... both of which are excellent examples of what Toyota can do, if they still gave a crap about motorsport or sports cars. They don't, and unfortunately, that era is unlikely to resurface for them.

I doubt Lotus is profitable enough for Toyota to consider an acquisition. The only way to make Lotus "Toyota"-grade profitable would be to greatly increase production, and aside from the fact that if they did so, the cars would likely take on a Camry-ish feel that would put people off, I doubt there's a market to support significantly more Loti than are already being produced.

 

[thruthefence]

Yeah, the engineering is definitely there, what's lacking is the will to build a "loss leader", no matter how interesting to enthusiasts. Probobly what happened to the 2000GT.

 

[JohnnyQuik]

The funny thing is Toyota currently has a far stronger racing culture than Lotus does. Too bad they abandoned perfromance cars when they killed the Supra.

 

[delise]

Lots of companies hire Lotus to engineer chassis components and high performance parts, it is in fact the most profitable part of the Lotus corporation with the most employees. Why buy an engineering firm when you can hire them per job as needed and not carry the overhead ?

 

[Genomaxter]

Toyota can do whatever it wants. They have already proven they can make amazing performance cars if they felt like it. They just decided to focus on keeping the company as financially sound as possible. Their last sports car was the MR-S, and that was a VERY great car to showcase that they can make a very light sports car that met all standards and used no exotic manufacturing techniques or materials. For the mass production car it was, it was and still is amazing. Just because Toyota makes only eco cars now doesnt mean they cant make anything else, they just choose not to... unfortunately. They arent "flirting" which motor sports at all. They have already been married to her and told her she needs to stfu for a bit while they do their thing to keep their quota up and she can just wait for that new purse she has always wanted.

 

[ExoticHottie]

Toyota used to make cool cars - Celica, Supra, MR2. Yes, now they are boring. But if you ever had to buy a boring 4-door sedan, the Camry is probably the nicest looking "average" car out there.

 

[6_speed]

Toyota spends all their motorsports monies on their TRD division making 'sports' pickup trucks :shrug:

They dug that hole. And the hole gets bigger and deeper each time a new TRD truck, SUV or Camry comes out.

They are the next GM (albeit a much better managed/engineered one).

The generation of Toyota engineers and managers passionate about sports cars and sedans are in their 70's and 80's; all retired.

 

[...m...]

...i'd rather prefer if the two companies grow entwined that lotus pull a porshe - twenty years ago, who ever would have expected them one day to emerge as the world's third-largest and most profitable auto manufacturer?..

 

[Minnis]

This should go under...

http://www.lotustalk.com/forums/f3/what-funniest-most-stupid-comment-you-ever-got-part-3-a-61786/

+1

 

[shokwaves]

Why fix what ain't broken? Toyota is probably the most successful Japanese car company, why in hell would they want to start buying out companies like Lotus? They you'd be almost really buying a Toyota, not a Lotus anymore. It's bad enough that people put down our cars by saying "it's a toyota" If they did buy it, I'm out.