When the new Lotus Eletre was first revealed in autumn 2022, the boldly shaped and controversially scaled electric SUV caused something of a stir. Could this car really be called a Lotus, given it was so far departed from the Norfolk-based company’s traditional fare? However, car design and engineering are very much a global concern, a supply chain of parts, technologies and talents that reaches around the world. By contrast, car marketing is almost parochial, relying on flag-waving, national pride and a solid core of nailed-down cultural identity to get ideas across.
