Recent content by Fido

The Al subframe is stated as cast, so I imagine much cheaper to make as well as lighter. It might just be that with the expected volumes the i4 justifies the investment whereas the V6 gets a jig welded steel subframe, stronger, heavier and more expensive. That also suggests that the V6 won’t be...

TAKT time is an interesting topic. In 23 minutes there is a lot of work to be done, and as a consequence, a lot of potential for variability in build. A 1 min TAKT time means each worker or robot has time to fit and fix one or two components at most. So everything is done in a very simple and...

Don’t forget that under WLTP options are added in to give a vehicle specific CO2 number. The current showing is for the LE derivative so it’s not unreasonable to assume that the base version will just sneak in under 200.

430bhp? 400bhp? Well it might add a few mph to the top speed but how fast do you want to go or can legally go? Torque is the key to acceleration along with weight and traction. Why do people always fixate on the max power figure?

Amazingly it took only a couple of clicks to find a picture of it on a garage website. It’s been resprayed I suspect and had the wheels done too but still looking good. Come on Lotus, add Aubergine to the colour palette!

My series 2 Elise was in Aubergine metallic purple and was stunning. The Emira would be equally stunning with silver wheels and the upper black pack in Aubergine if anyone fancies mocking one up!

Transport mode may also disable a number of other systems to possibly safety systems too. With the vehicle prepped for tether down for shipping there are coil spacers fitted to minimise suspension movement but if the safety systems detected what on the road might be an extreme manoeuvre and...

An interesting pic of the installation. The engine cover will sit nice and low (lower than the v6) so there looks like there might be a handy bit of stowage space in the back to pop your take-away in to keep it warm! 😊

So it’s in the same orientation as in the AMG. PTs are not cheap to design and you’d only do something as dramatic as changing the orientation with a very substantial redesign. This kind of thing would be completely out of Lotus’ budget for the installation. I see no fundamental reasons for...

While Lotus has declared their product strategy to fully electrify, the news of possible E-Fuel exemption from the EU ICE ban might just provide an option to extend Emira production. I think coupled with the issues EVs are having with infrastructure and availability of green electricity and the...

It’s a 680mm (26.8”) tyre family. So the vehicle will be set up to have that size and all of the wheel and tyre options will maintain the size by varying width, sidewall height (aspect ratio) and rim size. If you fitted 24” rims you’d have just 1.4” of sidewall so 245/15 x 20 tyres. The gap to...

I’m fascinated by the obsession with perceived ride height. You’re not alone mind and there are other marque enthusiasts just as keen. Some manufacturers are more bothered about this than others, often employing specially constructed “settling” roads consisting of a variety of carefully designed...

I wouldn’t call that a running-in procedure, really it’s saying “don’t abuse the engine, while it beds itself in”

Engine manufacture is sufficiently tight toleranced nowadays that a running-in period is not essential and won’t necessarily deliver any benefits. However, most enthusiastic owners will want to be as sympathetic as they can and avoid anything that might impair performance in the long run...

The transmission is limited by torque capacity not power. Power = torque x rotational speed so increasing the rev limit will increase power with constant torque. In reality, torque rarely peaks much above 4000rpm so liberating extra oomph above this speed won’t increase the forces on the...