Emira vs Emira S/GT

[Emira2222]

I've been a long time admirer of the Lotus brand, mainly due to its exotic looks, exclusivity and performance. For the last 4-5 years I have been researching and contemplating the purchase of an Evora. However, with the end of the Evora and the release of the Emira, I've focused my attention on this stunning car. (A look that my wife actually approves!!)

In North America, the Evora hit the market in 2010 (non-S version) with 276HP. I believe the the price was around $65,000 US (~$84,500CDN). In 2011, they came out with the Evora S variant with a big power bump (supercharged) of +69HP (345HP). I believe the the price was around $77,000 to $90,000US (~$100,100 to $117,000CDN), at that time. Since then, the Evora has evolved slightly with minor modifications and better build quality, creating the 400+ and GT variants. All this over a 10 year span. In 2021, they came out with the best version of the car with the Evora GT. Pricing is around $99,150 to $116,000US ($125,000 to $146,000CDN)
As we all know, the Emira is deemed the last ICE from Lotus and supposed upgrade to the Evora. Based on the pricing of the Evora, I was not shocked to see a $120,000CDN price tag for the FE Emira. With all things considered, I thought we would be looking at a higher starting price for a loaded FE version.

With that, my question/concern is more related to the eventual Emira variant. I realize that we could be chasing the next best version of the car, but I am concerned that if you purchase the FE, Lotus will turn around and produce an S-variant with 50+HP the following year (and with which engine VS or I4)? I would hate to see what happened with the initial Evora (NA to S) and what Toyota did to the FE Supra owners. Plus, with the push for EVs, how long do we think the ICE Emira will be in production? I realize that this is a bit premature (considering the limited information to date), but do we have any idea/speculation on what/when we will get beyond the FE version?

 

[Stormcloud]

At a guess, the i4 will be hobbled to 360 for a year or 2, the v6 will probably have a slow climb to 430-450 max over its 6 year life. I think your concern is valid if the i4 was the only engine option, but while they have the v6 that cannot climb that much more in power, the i4 will be held back on paper. The v6 is the better bet, they'll do well to go from 400 to 440 and so just a 10% bump in its 5-6 year life, and you'll always have the manual bragging rights if that's your thing. 360 i4 is an easier thing to bump and may well increment that more often over the same period as the v6. All ifs and buts...

 

[Leonard]

I have thought about this and I don't think I'm too worried.
The FE V6 is going to be all the car you ever really need for the road and I'm glad it isn't going to launch with all the safety feature 'crap'
If they bring out an S then V6 power will only go up a bit. I'd push as an existing customer to allow us to have the additional power as an upgrade pack on the FE (Say £2-2.5k)
If they bring out a V6 GT4 model I cant really see how they will make it handle much better for the road. Not enough difference I would care anyway.
Now..... the Merc 4cyl. It will be interesting to see what they do with this as it obviously has the most potential. BUT Mercedes-Benz are going to want to make sure that you aren't going to risk them blowing up. So I'd say they will probably be limited to the 420 in the A45 AMG meaning the V6 could still be pushed a little higher say 450bhp.
Who knows though. You can imagine there may be a last hoorah with lightweight panels and big power (whichever engine, possibly the 4 cylinder because of gearbox) but then this will be a 110k car probably and hence not interest me anyway.

 

[New to Lotus]

Of course there will be an upgraded v6 car that's what all companies do, having said that I think the v6 can only go to 2026 before it is gone for ever, so I doubt they can do many different models as they couldn't make them, maybe one gt 430 product and possibly a final edition car?

 

[aEdMIRA]

I don't know if you want to take the same route as I did but I have deposited some money with my dealer and Lotus UK know about this - it is an intent to purchase the Emira GT (GT4 hopefully). It is fully refundable and if too close to my FE, will just not go ahead with it. If it is materially different e.g. a GT4 compared to a GTS, I will hopefully not lose too much on my FE. Either way it is just an insurance policy for my peace of mind .

 

[Emira2222]

I don't know if you want to take the same route as I did but I have deposited some money with my dealer and Lotus UK know about this - it is an intent to purchase the Emira GT (GT4 hopefully). It is fully refundable and if too close to my FE, will just not go ahead with it. If it is materially different e.g. a GT4 compared to a GTS, I will hopefully not lose too much on my FE. Either way it is just an insurance policy for my peace of mind .

Forgive my ignorance, but I may not fully understand the process that you have described. Are you saying that you have 1 or 2 deposits in with Lotus? (One for the FE Emira and another for a future purchase of the Emira GT?)

 

[eclat2emira]

I don't know if you want to take the same route as I did but I have deposited some money with my dealer and Lotus UK know about this - it is an intent to purchase the Emira GT (GT4 hopefully). It is fully refundable and if too close to my FE, will just not go ahead with it. If it is materially different e.g. a GT4 compared to a GTS, I will hopefully not lose too much on my FE. Either way it is just an insurance policy for my peace of mind .

Nice play. I doubt if you'll lose anything, possibly the reverse. I'm excited for you: Emira turned up to 11 -that's quite a prospect!

 

[aEdMIRA]

Hi Emira2recurring yes, exactly right. Just speak with your dealer. DO NOT TAKE NO FOR AN ANSWER. This is purely a speculative transaction, there may not be another manual version but if there is, you will be quite high up the list. All you are doing is transferring some funds from your savings account into a non interest bearing dealer bank account - no likey, no buyee and take your money back. It's kind of the same way Lotus aficionados placed deposits for the Emira before anybody knew what it looked like.

 

[Emira2222]

Hi Emira2recurring yes, exactly right. Just speak with your dealer. DO NOT TAKE NO FOR AN ANSWER. This is purely a speculative transaction, there may not be another manual version but if there is, you will be quite high up the list. All you are doing is transferring some funds from your savings account into a non interest bearing dealer bank account - no likey, no buyee and take your money back. It's kind of the same way Lotus aficionados placed deposits for the Emira before anybody knew what it looked like.

Interesting... Something I will look into! Thanks aEdMIRA!

 

[Lotushavefun]

No doubt there will be other variants of the Emira in the future. I also feel strongly that they will be adding more horsepower as the years go by, this is to keep the sales numbers flowing. Like it or not that's the way this automotive industry works.

 

[EM33RA]

No doubt there will be other variants of the Emira in the future. I also feel strongly that they will be adding more horsepower as the years go by, this is this to keep the sales numbers flowing. Like it or not that's the way this automotive industry works.

Absolutely correct every manufacturer does the same as part of the product life cycle till a new generation comes along. And starts all over again 😊.

 

[TomE]

Hi Emira2recurring yes, exactly right. Just speak with your dealer. DO NOT TAKE NO FOR AN ANSWER. This is purely a speculative transaction, there may not be another manual version but if there is, you will be quite high up the list. All you are doing is transferring some funds from your savings account into a non interest bearing dealer bank account - no likey, no buyee and take your money back. It's kind of the same way Lotus aficionados placed deposits for the Emira before anybody knew what it looked like.

Exactly what I did on the Evora while it was still Project Eagle and on the Emira while it was still Project Gamma. I have some other deposits down against possible future models. The only (small) risk is if Lotus fundamentally change the retailing model and switch entirely to direct sales. This is partly happening in the UK already, but a number of seller-dealers are remaining.

The Emira has a product plan the same as every car. So I'm sure there will be a V6 GT430 or similar (already proven in the Evora and Exige). And probably the same with upgraded versions of the i4.

The race GT4 is V6-based and I suspect after a season of race experience they will want to get a road-based (or rather a track-focused road-legal) version launched. That'll get a slight power increase but performance will come from removing 100kg+ of weight and having lots of carbon.

The V6 won't meet proposed EU emissions regulations (EU7) and Toyota won't rework it. The i4 also doesn't meet EU7 but AMG are more likely to update it. I assume Lotus got some sort of commitment from AMG to do that before they engineered the car to take it. The date EU7 comes into effect is still under consultation but at the earliest would be 2026. Feasibly, Lotus could continue selling the V6 outside Europe if it still met local emissions regs and Toyota continue building it. But I suspect EU7 will probably kill it off and the i4 will then take over as sole engine option.

You could spend years waiting for the next/better version. But the launch version will be brilliant and you can always swap it in for the next version if you decide, or do upgrades. There are already several for the Evora and with the Emira selling in higher volumes there should be more options coming to the aftermarket.

 

[chooch13]

The Emira has a product plan the same as every car. So I'm sure there will be a V6 GT430 or similar (already proven in the Evora and Exige). And probably the same with upgraded versions of the i4.

The race GT4 is V6-based and I suspect after a season of race experience they will want to get a road-based (or rather a track-focused road-legal) version launched. That'll get a slight power increase but performance will come from removing 100kg+ of weight and having lots of carbon.

You could spend years waiting for the next/better version. But the launch version will be brilliant and you can always swap it in for the next version if you decide, or do upgrades. There are already several for the Evora and with the Emira selling in higher volumes there should be more options coming to the aftermarket.

Thanks for the insights Tom, it's definitely helped me! I've always told my salesperson that my deposit was meant for a V6 performance version (Though I still have the option for a FE) and even though I'm sure the launch version will be brilliant, I'm a sucker for a track-focused model!

It's going to be tough sticking it out, but I've decided to wait for the track-focused version. It's definitely risky waiting for something that may never happen, but it is part of Lotus' product plan DNA.

 

[EspritGuy]

Exactly what I did on the Evora while it was still Project Eagle and on the Emira while it was still Project Gamma. I have some other deposits down against possible future models. The only (small) risk is if Lotus fundamentally change the retailing model and switch entirely to direct sales. This is partly happening in the UK already, but a number of seller-dealers are remaining.

The Emira has a product plan the same as every car. So I'm sure there will be a V6 GT430 or similar (already proven in the Evora and Exige). And probably the same with upgraded versions of the i4.

The race GT4 is V6-based and I suspect after a season of race experience they will want to get a road-based (or rather a track-focused road-legal) version launched. That'll get a slight power increase but performance will come from removing 100kg+ of weight and having lots of carbon.

The V6 won't meet proposed EU emissions regulations (EU7) and Toyota won't rework it. The i4 also doesn't meet EU7 but AMG are more likely to update it. I assume Lotus got some sort of commitment from AMG to do that before they engineered the car to take it. The date EU7 comes into effect is still under consultation but at the earliest would be 2026. Feasibly, Lotus could continue selling the V6 outside Europe if it still met local emissions regs and Toyota continue building it. But I suspect EU7 will probably kill it off and the i4 will then take over as sole engine option.

You could spend years waiting for the next/better version. But the launch version will be brilliant and you can always swap it in for the next version if you decide, or do upgrades. There are already several for the Evora and with the Emira selling in higher volumes there should be more options coming to the aftermarket.

Interesting foresight.

 

[eclat2emira]

Thanks for the insights Tom, it's definitely helped me! I've always told my salesperson that my deposit was meant for a V6 performance version (Though I still have the option for a FE) and even though I'm sure the launch version will be brilliant, I'm a sucker for a track-focused model!

It's going to be tough sticking it out, but I've decided to wait for the track-focused version. It's definitely risky waiting for something that may never happen, but it is part of Lotus' product plan DNA.

An admirable decision! The track-focused Emira promises to be in a class of its own.

 

[GarrethN]

Exactly what I did on the Evora while it was still Project Eagle and on the Emira while it was still Project Gamma. I have some other deposits down against possible future models. The only (small) risk is if Lotus fundamentally change the retailing model and switch entirely to direct sales. This is partly happening in the UK already, but a number of seller-dealers are remaining.

The Emira has a product plan the same as every car. So I'm sure there will be a V6 GT430 or similar (already proven in the Evora and Exige). And probably the same with upgraded versions of the i4.

The race GT4 is V6-based and I suspect after a season of race experience they will want to get a road-based (or rather a track-focused road-legal) version launched. That'll get a slight power increase but performance will come from removing 100kg+ of weight and having lots of carbon.

The V6 won't meet proposed EU emissions regulations (EU7) and Toyota won't rework it. The i4 also doesn't meet EU7 but AMG are more likely to update it. I assume Lotus got some sort of commitment from AMG to do that before they engineered the car to take it. The date EU7 comes into effect is still under consultation but at the earliest would be 2026. Feasibly, Lotus could continue selling the V6 outside Europe if it still met local emissions regs and Toyota continue building it. But I suspect EU7 will probably kill it off and the i4 will then take over as sole engine option.

You could spend years waiting for the next/better version. But the launch version will be brilliant and you can always swap it in for the next version if you decide, or do upgrades. There are already several for the Evora and with the Emira selling in higher volumes there should be more options coming to the aftermarket.

I made the decision yesterday that I might wait for an upgraded version but then realised my wallet seemed £3000 lighter today. I guess the decision to wait was overruled. Never mind, there’s no reason not to get another one………..

 

[Pegasi]

When watching the Carfection Emira video I noticed during the Gavan Kershaw interview that he made a point of saying Touring and Sport suspension setup would look the same and that only the car owner would know the use of the car. Either a daily driver/tour car or a track car.

I don't know what these means for variants, will the variants be subtle, but I just thought it was interesting how he made a point of saying only owners would know the use of their car. Meaning no spoilers, lower ride, etc for the sports setup. Would like to hear an opinion or fact of why this matters.

 

[TomE]

They both have the same ride height. They both use conventional springs and dampers, just different specifications. Both are non-adjustable. There are no differences to badging or colour schemes.

Sport has a slightly stiffer setup and a tighter geometry. You’d probably have to be a Lotus development driver to be able to spot that when the car drove past. You certainly wouldn’t spot it on a parked car. You might see the difference if you watched closely under hard cornering. On track you might see a 0.5s a lap difference, all other factors equal.

For Lotus, suspension setup is more about driving style, road conditions and personal preference rather than bragging rights. The Sports setup isn’t better, just different and may suit some people’s usage and preferences more closely.

So far the V6 FE configurations are roughly 60% Touring and 40% Sports.

 

[lbp]

Certainly we all desire power gains for this platform over life cycle, but I don't think it is a done deal: Emissions requirements will become increasing stringent over that same time frame.

- Hope I'm wrong.

..So bring on the Carbon Fiber which is expected to decrease in price over time.