Probably pulling the trigger in CA next week: seeking wisdom of the hive...

[Barry]

For me, this is the ultimate driver's car, a once-in-a-lifetime thing. It's a big decision, with practical implications, such as getting my wife to agree to lend me her SUV when I need to transport more than one person or one suitcase or if I need to drive somewhere the car won't be safe. I know many of my questions will have been discussed elsewhere in these forums but I hope you can bear with me if I gather all my questions together here.

- Bodywork: what happens if the car gets dinged? Can we assume that the Lotus service centers (I plan to use Galpin, Van Nuys) will stock replacement parts? How gloomy should I feel about the availability of body shops qualified to work on this car?

- Mechanical: I'm sure most people are reassured by the fact that the engine is Toyota's but what complexities do you anticipate from the supercharger or other such exotic refinements? Re. transmission, I will go for the manual (although I was reasonably impressed by the automatic I test-drove). Is there anything exotic, delicate or difficult to maintain about this gearbox?

- Obvious question: How much faith do you put in the service infrastructure here in the US? Do you believe that parts and service will be particularly costly, reflecting the "boutique" nature of Lotus in America? Do you think it will cost more, less or about the same to maintain the Emira compared with a Cayman GTS?

- Value: I intend to keep this car for as long as I can get in and out of it (I am 63, not overweight) but will it appreciate like a fine wine or depreciate like a Jaguar?

I'm a repeat offender; I owned an Elan Turbo in the '80s/'90s. I loved it but obviously the Emira is in a whole different category of sports car. The Emira costs three times as much as the Elan but I'm confident it will be at least three times the car. Regardless of cost, the service network here in Los Angeles for the Elan was adequate but replacing the old-school telescope radio antenna after my wife lowered the garage door on it was $300...in 1990. The cost of replacing the windscreen wipers was surreal. And it had tires that had to be special-ordered.

I will be grateful to to anybody who has the time and inclination to help educate me here, thank you very much in anticipation.

 

[cyanmauve]

I think the best way to answer your larger question is to look back at your experience with your Elan and ask whether or not you’d have done it again. If yes, get the Emira.

I can’t answer your questions specifically, and honestly, I think it will be hard for anyone else to either. These cars are too new for much meaningful reliability data to have been compiled, and dealers haven’t even been able to deliver them to customers for a full month. There will undoubtedly be horror stories about terrible dealerships, and lemons. But there will also be forum members that drive their cars hard, put ‘em up wet, and get 150k miles on the odometer without any problems.

I find that a lot of the transient annoyances and inconveniences of owning or doing anything unique are ultimately worth it. It’s why I will wait 2 or 3 times as long for a meal at a really good local restaurant instead of just going to a chain that can get the food out fast. Or why I prefer to wander on my own in a foreign city rather than take a guided bus tour. Or why I live in an older home with character rather than a brand new build.

Charm, uniqueness, and character come at a cost. But more often than not I’m willing to pay that price. I need my refrigerator to be dead reliable and blend into the background of my life. I don’t need or want my second car (which honestly is a toy) to be an appliance.

Practically speaking, the Emira is a very modern car and overall should function very well. Not as well as a plain Jane Toyota Corolla or Ford F-150, mind you, but nobody dreams about owning those cars, nor do they remember them once they’re sold.

I say go for it.

 

[virtualmacho]

It all depends on how good your relationship with your wife and her SUV is. Do they have your back or not.

 

[Nick in Sydney]

My two cents:

-- The core mechanicals of the Emira (Toyota engine, supercharger, gearbox, etc) are well proven and generally reliable. I wouldn't expect to experience serious problems in these areas. So far, software (fixable) and blistering body panels (much harder to fix but limited to a small number of cars) are the two main areas where owners have experienced problems.

-- Historically Lotus has done a poor job of supporting its customer base and there's no evidence yet to make us confident that has or will improve. Perhaps Lotus Technology will bring a wonderful new service ethos, but a betting man would assume that quickly getting certain parts will remain a painful process in the future, at least when compared to a brand like Porsche.

-- Future resale value is very very hard to predict because it will be caught up in the transition from ICE to BEV cars. The ICE Emira will be phased out in around 2027. Will it become an instant collectible? Who knows?