dany bahar

Lotus Welcomes new CEO with new Special Editions

Lotus is making a comeback. Following its early success in Formula One and the James Bond years with sports cars that put the company on the map, the British automaker changed management and ownership a few times, its once legendary product line dwindled down to one as the engineering powerhouse tried to carve out a niche for itself. But with the new Evora joining to Elise/Exige line on the market and a successor to the iconic Esprit on the way, Lotus is experiencing a renaissance. The company has been under reliable Malaysian ownership now for several years, is reportedly considering getting back into Formula One, and has just announced the hiring of a promising new chief executive.

After having engineered the success of beverage giant Red Bull, Dany Bahar moved to Ferrari just a couple of years ago, taking a new seat at the head of the company's newly created branding and marketing division. But following the resignation this past July of outgoing Lotus CEO Michael Kimberley, Bahar has been announced as the company's new chief. And as if to welcome their new director, Lotus has announced two new special editions of its core products.

Based on the new supercharged Exige S, the Exige Cup 260 takes advantage of weight-saving technologies to tip the scales at less than two thousand pounds. Following Lotus founder Colin Chapman's less-is-more mantra, the Exige Cup 260 needs only a tiny 1.8-liter 260hp supercharged Toyota inline-four engine to reach sixty in four seconds flat, and promises to lap the race track faster than machines with twice as much power. Following a similar ethos, the new Club Racer is based on the less extreme Elise model and goes back to the company's roots with throwback color options, special interior trimmings and new lightweight wheels with specially-made tires, selling in Europe for about €34k. But whether you can get your hands on one of these special editions or not, it's clear that Lotus is back to stay.

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Designer Dreams Up Concept Fila Ferrari Shoes

by Noah Joseph (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Luxury Cars & Autos, Shoes

Ferrari has made a killing off of its merchandising division. Between the sportscars and the t-shirts, the Maranello outfit makes enough to support its multi-million-dollar Formula One team – purported to have one of the biggest budgets in the hugely expensive pinnacle racing series – without requiring parent company Fiat to contribute one thin dime. Dany Bahar, the man largely responsible for the company's branding efforts after having done the same for beverage giant Red Bull, is now rumored to be moving to arch-rival Lotus to become its new CEO.

A few years back, Bahar brokered a deal with Puma to supply the team and company with branded sportswear. But before that it was the purview of Italian sportswear company Fila. Oregon-based designer Olivier Henrichot designed a whole range of conceptual shoes for both Ferrari and its two-wheel counterpart Ducati. When Ferrari names a replacement for Bahar, he might want to take a look at these. And so can you in the image gallery below.

Gallery: Ferrari and Ducati Fila shoe concepts by Olivier Henrichot