Alternative transportation pioneer ZAP held automotive talks over the weekend at its headquarters in Santa Rosa with the management team of Lotus Engineering, including CEO Albert Lam, Project Manager Steven Woolley, and West Coast Operations Manager Rexford Park.

Lotus Engineering came to Santa Rosa to explore the next steps in the development of a new generation of electric vehicles with ZAP. The team of Zap and Lotus Engineering has targeted new technologies and technology suppliers with the goal to create the most advanced electric cars in history. Representatives from these other companies were invited to the meeting and ZAP CEO Steve Schneider expects to announce more developments soon.

"This was an important meeting because Zap and Lotus Engineering are working to bring new technologies to bear that could change the auto industry forever," said Schneider. "With Lotus Engineering's capabilities, and ZAP's vision and entrepreneurship, we are building a world-class team to tackle this important endeavor."

Lotus Engineering has been behind the design and construction of some of the most successful cars in history and is one of the world's premier automotive consultancies with engineering centers in Asia, North America and Europe. CEO Albert Lam said the venture with Zap is a "fantastic" opportunity for Lotus Engineering to be a leader for green automotive technologies.

"The venture with Zap is a dream come true because we are creating the most advanced electric vehicles in history," said Lam. "Lotus Engineering is very happy to be associated with Zap in bringing this vehicle to market. The technology is ready for electric vehicles so they don't have to be slow, they can have a long range, and they can be exciting to look at."

ZAP automotive dealers, who were in Santa Rosa on Friday for electric car service training, received an exclusive presentation from Lotus Engineering on ZAP's future projects. Lotus Engineering also toured ZAP's manufacturing and distribution facilities for the XEBRA electric car and truck.

Earlier this year, Zap and Lotus Engineering entered into a feasibility study to explore the development of innovative electric vehicle designs, including a crossover electric SUV called ZAP-X, based on Lotus Engineering's award-winning APX aluminum chassis technology. In the past few months, officials from Zap and Lotus Engineering have held meetings in Norwich, England and Santa Rosa, California, "to take the venture to the next level," said Schneider.