The Perfect Partnership - Team Lotus Enterprise & Caterh

[MG Man]

THE PERFECT PARTNERSHIP

TEAM LOTUS ENTERPRISE ANNOUNCES NEW OWNERSHIP OF CATERHAM CARS

Duxford, UK - 26th April 2011


Team Lotus Enterprise today announces that it has purchased British sportscar maker Caterham Cars.

The acquisition by Tony Fernandes, Kamarudin Meranun and SM Nasarudin, the men behind the Team Lotus Formula 1 squad, from the shareholder consortium led by Corven Ventures, will see the legendary lightweight sportscar manufacturer expand its brand profile and product family.

The acquisition of Caterham Cars by Team Lotus Enterprise will not only signal the continued development of the legendary Seven, but will provide Caterham with the platform to apply its philosophy of ‘adding lightness’ to exciting new models for the 21st Century.

This exciting new era for Caterham will be led by the company’s existing management team, headed up by Caterham Cars Managing Director Ansar Ali.

Ansar’s direction has been responsible for energising Caterham’s export prowess during the last five years, creating the iconic Superlight R500 – Top Gear’s Car of the Year for 2008 – and Caterham’s first brand new model in 15 years, the stunning SP/300.R sports prototype racer.

As custodians of Colin Chapman’s two-seater Seven since 1973, Caterham has been responsible for the evolution of a car originally conceived as a ‘fit for purpose’ race-car for the road in 1957.

Today, the Seven is arguably the benchmark for the perfect balance between power and intuitive, user-friendly handling, and in spite of its years remains one of the most raced cars in the world. It has also been the inspiration for the recently-launched Caterham-Lola SP/300.R for the race and track day community.

Tony Fernandes said: “Caterham has a unique place at the heart of the motoring world. As well as being proudly and staunchly British, it has an enviable and uniquely unblemished reputation within the industry for performance, handling and engineering excellence.

“Caterham Cars has remained wholly faithful to Colin Chapman’s philosophy of ‘less is more’, and the DNA of the original Seven can still be traced to the newest additions to Caterham’s product offering.

“It is already a successful business with sales across Europe, Japan, Australia and the Middle East, and under the guidance of the existing management team,we now have all the ingredients and the launch pad to further evolve that spirit and take Caterham to new exciting horizons with innovative products and greater global brand exposure.”

Caterham Cars, Managing Director, Ansar Ali, added: “This is yet another exciting chapter in the Caterham story. Until now, the resources Caterham has had at its disposal have, naturally, limited the exposure of the Caterham experience and the legendary Seven has had to rely almost entirely on its remarkable reputation and legacy.

“We will remain entirely true to the philosophy that we, as custodians of one man’s motoring concept, have protected for nearly 40 years.

“However, the acquisition of the company by Team Lotus Enterprise will allow our existing management team to take Caterham’s core spirit of pure driving enjoyment to a hitherto un-served audience.

“While the Seven will now have the global springboard it deserves and will continue to be evolved yet further, we also have the opportunity to expand the Caterham family beyond the Seven and SP/300.R and breathe new life into our uniquely respected brand and mature it into a truly global business.”
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I know it's so, for I told me so

[MG Man]

Team Lotus Enterprise

Team Lotus Enterprise (TLE) is the holding company incorporated in the UK and owned by Tony Fernandes, Kamarudin Meranun and SM Nasarudin that provides the platform for the future expansion of the Team Lotus brand across a variety of industries.

TLE currently comprises four businesses:

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The Team Lotus Formula One squad
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EQ8 Energy Drink
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Team Lotus Merchandise and Licensing
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Caterham Cars

Team Lotus Enterprise is in its second year of operations, having initially created a truly professional and competitive F1 team and is now establishing itself on a global platform for further expansion into diversified areas based on capabilities, innovativeness and accessibility.

TLE has a very bright future in all its endeavours. The TLE management team has extensive experience across the global business spectrum including international sales & marketing, motorsport logistics and planning, engineering, design, innovation, research & development and production.


Caterham Cars

Caterham is the byword for fast, fun motoring the world over after almost 40 years as the manufacturer of the iconic Seven. First designed and revealed in 1957 by Lotus Cars founder Colin Chapman, the Seven was a competition car that could take to the road.

A dominant force in racing, the Seven became the car of choice for free-spirited young men throughout the ‘swinging Sixties’, embodied by the famous green and yellow example driven by Patrick McGoohan in the cult TV series The Prisoner.

Caterham Cars in Surrey became the UK’s main dealership for the pocket-sized supercar in 1959 and, in 1973, while Chapman was lured by the glamour of Formula 1, the firm acquired the rights for building, developing and distributing the Seven.

The rest, as they say, is history.

As well as developing the road car, Caterham has remained at the heart of international motorsport. Caterham’s unique Academy creates more brand new racing drivers in the UK than any other scheme and some 1,000 Sevens are raced across the globe.

Today the Seven remains at the forefront of Caterham’s product family, but is joined by the electrifying new SP/300.R – ushering in a new era for Caterham and its customers.
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I know it's so, for I told me so