i4 FE or V6 FE (6.25% price difference)?

[Iten]

Just want to get people's opinion here:

• I put in my deposit last year because I thought I can get a car that is comfortable, good looking(supercar look), and affordable (relatively).
• I was recently notified by the dealer that the i4 will be USD204K (vs 216K for the V6).
• They still have one quota left for the V6FE, and with the pricing so closed, I am getting even more undecisive.

Some of the things that I care about:

1. Early Adopters
   • The V6 FE will arrive toward the year end, but 1-2 months after the first batch of deliveries. It will still be a very rare car on the road.
   • In our market, manufacturing year is more important than model year in calculating residue value. If I get the V6, the car immediately becomes an one year old car in less than a week.
   • The i4 will be made in Jan 23 and arrives close to 6months after the first delivery, the car will still be rare, but most people would have seen it on the road already.
2. Transmission:
   • I am only considering manual in the V6.
   • have never driven a stick before. We have bad city traffic here, not as bad as New York or Boston. I have little time to rent a manual and try to live with it before making a decision.
   • I think the exposed gear shift mechanism is cool, but not that important. I also don't mind driving aids as I will be using it on long distance too...
3. Engine
   

   1. I think the V6 sounds great, and I find the AMG in Mercedes a bit artificial.​
   2. i4 has less HP but is quicker and more tunable.​
4. Warranty
   

   1. No extended warranty available for purchase after 3 years original manufacturer warranty expires.​
   2. Some people say the Toyota engine is very reliable. I am not sure about the AMG engine...I assume if I am forced to find a garage for maintenance after warranty...local Lotus experts will be more familiar with the V6 since it's basically a Evora?​

I want to keep this car forever, unless maintenance becomes such a headache that I have to get rid of it. I am still kind of surprised the demand for this car is so low here. If post warranty maintenance is not an issue, then residual value is not much of a concern to me.

 

[virtualmacho]

For me this will probably be my last car, and I too would like to keep it car forever (or at least until I crash it). My previous cars have been owned for at least 15 years each, so I've never considered residual value when purchasing a vehicle. In my mind, rarity on the streets would be more important than the dollar value for a transaction that would not happen.
Go for the V6 First Edition !

 

[Johnson]

Both engines will be terrific, and bulletproof. I think the key is that you haven’t driven a manual before… this is not a car to learn in, especially in HK traffic.

My vote: get the i4 FE.

 

[wallstbear]

Your decision will ultimately come down to stick shift or paddle shift.

I drove stick for years but personally do not feel strongly about stick as many enthusiasts seem to be (probably because my skills suck). In 2022, auto shifting has been proven to be better than manual in the hands of an average driver.

In my view, you will have an easier time driving the I4, but the V6 will probably hold the value marginally better (probably 5%-ish).

Performance numbers will be similar although you may end up slower in the manual car as you are new to stick.

 

[Eagle7]

You can still get a V6 FE with an auto. It's an available option. That way you get the FE bundle and the sound of the V6, but don't have to worry about learning a stick, although it's not that hard. Just go into a parking lot somewhere, and practice starts, stops and downshifting at low speeds. Just remember (it quickly becomes a habit) to push in the clutch and the brake at the same time for an emergency stop so you don't stall the car.

 

[Tokion]

Just want to get people's opinion here:

• I put in my deposit last year because I thought I can get a car that is comfortable, good looking(supercar look), and affordable (relatively).
• I was recently notified by the dealer that the i4 will be USD204K (vs 216K for the V6).
• They still have one quota left for the V6FE, and with the pricing so closed, I am getting even more undecisive.

Some of the things that I care about:

1. Early Adopters
   • The V6 FE will arrive toward the year end, but 1-2 months after the first batch of deliveries. It will still be a very rare car on the road.
   • In our market, manufacturing year is more important than model year in calculating residue value. If I get the V6, the car immediately becomes an one year old car in less than a week.
   • The i4 will be made in Jan 23 and arrives close to 6months after the first delivery, the car will still be rare, but most people would have seen it on the road already.
2. Transmission:
   • I am only considering manual in the V6.
   • have never driven a stick before. We have bad city traffic here, not as bad as New York or Boston. I have little time to rent a manual and try to live with it before making a decision.
   • I think the exposed gear shift mechanism is cool, but not that important. I also don't mind driving aids as I will be using it on long distance too...
3. Engine​
   1. I think the V6 sounds great, and I find the AMG in Mercedes a bit artificial.​
   2. i4 has less HP but is quicker and more tunable.​
4. Warranty​
   1. No extended warranty available for purchase after 3 years original manufacturer warranty expires.​
   2. Some people say the Toyota engine is very reliable. I am not sure about the AMG engine...I assume if I am forced to find a garage for maintenance after warranty...local Lotus experts will be more familiar with the V6 since it's basically a Evora?​

I want to keep this car forever, unless maintenance becomes such a headache that I have to get rid of it. I am still kind of surprised the demand for this car is so low here. If post warranty maintenance is not an issue, then residual value is not much of a concern to me.

Nobody (except insiders at Lotus) knows what the I4 is going to sound like. The final I4 to be delivered to customers has so far not been presented to the public. With Lotus engineers' original designs of intake and exhaust systems in a mid-engine configuration, the I4 will definitely not sound like a Mercedes A45S, just like the Lotus Evora/Exige/Emira V6 does not sound like a Toyota Camry.

I have ordered the Emira I4 FE for myself (I live in Japan) and it is my opinion that it is this I4 engine configuration that will make the Lotus Emira a completely new car design, and not just a variation of the Evora.

I have lots of experience driving manual sports cars (owned three Mazda RX-7 in succession, and also other manual cars.) When you live in an area (country, city metropolitan) with lots of heavy congestion, it is not a good idea to be dependent on a pure manual transmission. Dual clutch transmission (DCT) also called PDK and other names, is in reality an automated manual transmission. Bugatti, Ferrari, and the famous Nissan GTR all use this type of transmission, and it is thought to be the fastest shifting transmission short of pure racing sequential transmissions. I am personally looking a lot forward to my Emira with DCT transmission.

So please have confidence that the Emira I4 FE will be an awesome car with a great transmission, and I also expect good sound from it, although it will never sound the same as the V6 engine. But that is also not the intent. It will have its own sonic character.

 

[denk0815]

Check this out to get an idea of the i4 sound:

Nobody (except insiders at Lotus) knows what the I4 is going to sound like. The final I4 to be delivered to customers has so far not been presented to the public. With Lotus engineers' original designs of intake and exhaust systems in a mid-engine configuration, the I4 will definitely not sound like a Mercedes A45S, just like the Lotus Evora/Exige/Emira V6 does not sound like a Toyota Camry.

I have ordered the Emira I4 FE for myself (I live in Japan) and it is my opinion that it is this I4 engine configuration that will make the Lotus Emira a completely new car design, and not just a variation of the Evora.

I have lots of experience driving manual sports cars (owned three Mazda RX-7 in succession, and also other manual cars.) When you live in an area (country, city metropolitan) with lots of heavy congestion, it is not a good idea to be dependent on a pure manual transmission. Dual clutch transmission (DCT) also called PDK and other names, is in reality an automated manual transmission. Bugatti, Ferrari, and the famous Nissan GTR all use this type of transmission, and it is thought to be the fastest shifting transmission short of pure racing sequential transmissions. I am personally looking a lot forward to my Emira with DCT transmission.

So please have confidence that the Emira I4 FE will be an awesome car with a great transmission, and I also expect good sound from it, although it will never sound the same as the V6 engine. But that is also not the intent. It will have its own sonic characte

 

[Hell4Leather]

Just want to get people's opinion here:

• I put in my deposit last year because I thought I can get a car that is comfortable, good looking(supercar look), and affordable (relatively).
• I was recently notified by the dealer that the i4 will be USD204K (vs 216K for the V6).
• They still have one quota left for the V6FE, and with the pricing so closed, I am getting even more undecisive.

Some of the things that I care about:

1. Early Adopters
   • The V6 FE will arrive toward the year end, but 1-2 months after the first batch of deliveries. It will still be a very rare car on the road.
   • In our market, manufacturing year is more important than model year in calculating residue value. If I get the V6, the car immediately becomes an one year old car in less than a week.
   • The i4 will be made in Jan 23 and arrives close to 6months after the first delivery, the car will still be rare, but most people would have seen it on the road already.
2. Transmission:
   • I am only considering manual in the V6.
   • have never driven a stick before. We have bad city traffic here, not as bad as New York or Boston. I have little time to rent a manual and try to live with it before making a decision.
   • I think the exposed gear shift mechanism is cool, but not that important. I also don't mind driving aids as I will be using it on long distance too...
3. Engine​
   1. I think the V6 sounds great, and I find the AMG in Mercedes a bit artificial.​
   2. i4 has less HP but is quicker and more tunable.​
4. Warranty​
   1. No extended warranty available for purchase after 3 years original manufacturer warranty expires.​
   2. Some people say the Toyota engine is very reliable. I am not sure about the AMG engine...I assume if I am forced to find a garage for maintenance after warranty...local Lotus experts will be more familiar with the V6 since it's basically a Evora?​

I want to keep this car forever, unless maintenance becomes such a headache that I have to get rid of it. I am still kind of surprised the demand for this car is so low here. If post warranty maintenance is not an issue, then residual value is not much of a concern to me.

I still get stuck on the interview Lotus gave where they said the i4 was chosen for the female buyers in the Chinese market because the V6 gave an impression of too much power (rather true or not from an engineering standpoint).

 

[action_turtle]

Check this out to get an idea of the i4 sound:

Sounds good… but it is in a walled road, so most decent cars will sound pleasant

 

[EMIRADILEMMA]

Check this out to get an idea of the i4 sound:

Is it verified to be the i4 variant? If so it does sound a lot better than I had imagined!

 

[Speedluvver]

Is it verified to be the i4 variant? If so it does sound a lot better than I had imagined!

Sounds synthesised to me.. plus there is no perceptible gear change to confirm it.. the downshift sounds manual to me

 

[EMIRADILEMMA]

Sounds synthesised to me.. plus there is no perceptible gear change to confirm it.. the downshift sounds manual to me

Yea, to my untrained ear, it sounded very similar to the V6. Not similar to other AMG 2.0T I have heard. Still clinging on to hope that Lotus has somehow managed to make it sound as good though.

 

[denk0815]

Yea, to my untrained ear, it sounded very similar to the V6. Not similar to other AMG 2.0T I have heard. Still clinging on to hope that Lotus has somehow managed to make it sound as good though.

A45s for refference

 

[action_turtle]

A45s for refference

The sound out in the open is a good reference. I think it sounds fine. V6 is better, imo, sounds more high-end, and more of a race car. Even more so in sport mode! That i4 sounds more tinny and common around the streets. Like an aftermarket pipe.

I would be happy with either, I wanted the V6 regardless, so I got lucky that the noise fits my preference! Still, wait until the real i4 exhaust is fitted and we see/hear it in person before passing too much judgement, though.

 

[ShootingSight]

This is my thought process: turbos have lag! On a track, where you can keep your revs up, turbo is probably OK, but in everyday city driving, turbo lag sucks. I would rather have a supercharger than a turbo for daily driving.