It's funny, but in Lotus circles, some drivers get upset when they find out that the company's actually owned by a company out of SE Asia. Me, I just find it an amusing sign of the times. Truth is, there's no such thing as an "American" or a "British" company, at least for companies that sell globally.

The Lotus brand has a neat history and lore, but honestly the reason that I bought the car is that it fits my needs and wants. The fact that it's got a Japanese powerplant is great -- making it cheap to maintain and reliable.

What *is* English about it (besides the fact that it was assembled in the UK) is the engineering -- by buying the brand, Proton got the engineers that have made up the backbone of Lotus's racing efforts -- and that shows up in the car's handling and balance. In short, doesn't bother me a bit.

Oh, and the engine's actually made by Suzuki, outsourcing for Toyota. You'd be surprised who makes many of the parts in your S2Ks.... ;-)

Cb

 

That's interesting. Learn something new everyday!

 

Yeah - I have done a little research on our rear differentials and found out Honda has been buying them from Mazda. I believe that Recaro makes the seat assemblies, so you can start the international list there and I can't believe for a moment that the final list is small.

I think I recently read that Toyota no longer assembles cars in Japan.....

I chuckle when I see the demonstrations screaming for us to buy American

 

All Lexus cars are assembled in Japan. I just assumed Toyota would too then.

 

I'm not sure if your making a point beyond the simple fact that Lexus are assembled in Japan, but even "assembled" (like "made in") is something of a squishy term. I think you can claim that something was "assembled" in a place even if all the major subassemblies are put together elsewhere and only a few parts are all bolted together by robots that don't particularly care what time zone (or country) they're in. In the end, the proof is in the product, not the lore. That's as true for the Elise/Exige as it is for the S or something "from" Maranello...











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[QUOTE=cbender,Dec 9 2006, 10:41 AM]Oh, and the engine's actually made by Suzuki, outsourcing for Toyota.