Lotus Emira V8 in Testing & Other News

Okay so today's Lotus Technology group investor call happened this morning.

Here are some updates:

- Hybrid Plugin Macan Competitor 2026Q1 China, Q3 ROW
- Facelift 2027 Lotus Emira I4 with power increase
- Lotus Emira V6 Discontinued
- Lotus Emira V8 Euro 7 Compliant powertrain in investigation/testing/development.

Thanks @Lotustoronto for being our live discord blogger


Disclaimer: I'm basing this off recollections from someone else from the call, I haven't had time to listen to the full call myself, but some things may be inaccurate, and a lot of info has been missed too, I recommend you listen to the call yourself, the QA starts at 21 minutes in.

 

[B r I a n]

2nd quarter results should be out by the end of this month (Aug).
I do not expect them to be very good, will be interesting to see what the corporate messaging will be - I would expect "possible V8" to be part f it.

 

[John_Matrix]

I just don’t think the niche is big enough. The car barely sells as is. We know they can offer the V6 with a little more bhp as per the Exige application. The AMG unit can also develop more. Both those solutions are far cheaper than engineering and seeking requisite approval for an entirely new drivetrain. I’d think it unlikely even if the car was a massive sales hit.

 

[FlashingBlade]

They had to down tune the V6 to meet emissions, they're not going to offer any more from it with the engine itself being end of life.

Lotus does have a good opportunity here (or rather Geeley) in that Porsche has killed the Cayman, is scrabbling around to rework the EV alternative they had planned for it, leaving a Cayman/Boxster shaped gap in the ICE market.

IF (and its a big IF) they could do a NA V8 that put out 500bhp it would be a big play in putting the Emira squarely between the Cayman and the 911 but pricing would have to reflect that.

Alternatively, if they could find a V6 with a small battery and hybrid the car, that would work too. Think of a cut price Ferrari 296 or McLaren Artura.

 

[Black Ice]

Lotus does have a good opportunity here (or rather Geeley) in that Porsche has killed the Cayman, is scrabbling around to rework the EV alternative they had planned for it, leaving a Cayman/Boxster shaped gap in the ICE market.

This is a very good point, although I'll admit to having not really thought about it until now!

If(!) Lotus can get their act together it's a huge opportunity. This is probably wishful thinking, but if they were able to introduce a base model with the 360hp AMG engine and get the price down to maybe £75k, I think people would see it as a viable Cayman replacement.