Wait -- could the i4 get WAY more HP with a Tune?

[CornersOnRails]

If you look here, he says it could be tuned past 500 HP:



Any thoughts on this?

 

[Nova]

I recommend reading some of the existing threads that discuss the I4 and tunability of the M139. You are new here and sound very excited about the car, but I just want to make a friendly reminder that many of these topics have already been thought of and discussed since most of us have had nothing else to do for the past 2-3 years.

The quick summary is that while the M139 is tunable in an MB, we don't know what its tunability is like in a Lotus Emira. We won't know until someone make a go at it.

 

[CornersOnRails]

"since most of us have had nothing else to do for the past 2-3 years."
Hahah.

Yeah sorry about that. I am pretty excited. I will try to research a bit more. Just trying to figure this out because the dealer is bugging me to decide.

 

[VL3X]

"since most of us have had nothing else to do for the past 2-3 years."
Hahah.

Yeah sorry about that. I am pretty excited. I will try to research a bit more. Just trying to figure this out because the dealer is bugging me to decide.

Welcome to the forum (great pic btw)! There is a ton of useful info here on the forum and here is a long thread about the i4 power and tunability. To sum it up: The AMG M139 turbo i4 has lots of potential. It's only available with dual clutch auto transmission and cooling could be an issue when pushing higher power.

 

[Andy H]

By the way - love the name! Pretty Woman is my wife's fave film but I only remember it for the Esprit

 

[CornersOnRails]

By the way - love the name! Pretty Woman is my wife's fave film but I only remember it for the Esprit

I like yours too.

 

[Tokion]

Thanks “CornersOnRails” for adding a decisive reason (and explanation) why we definitely are getting the four-cylinder-version of the Emira (and when the time is right, we tune it to about 500 hp).

Long live the timeless beauty of the Esprit. Would be cool if someone rebuilt one properly with AMG M139 and 8G-DCT (restomod).

 

[Roland]

Thanks “CornersOnRails” for adding a decisive reason (and explanation) why we definitely are getting the four-cylinder-version of the Emira (and when the time is right, we tune it to about 500 hp).

Long live the timeless beauty of the Esprit. Would be cool if someone rebuilt one properly with AMG M139 and 8G-DCT (restomod).

Great watch, one of my fav films

Roland

 

[meenboli]

Most of the reviews make a point that they have the power balance just right - not sure if desperately trying to squeeze out 500hp is the best idea to be honest (he said upside-down from the nearest ditch).

I have a 500hp car already - and it's nuts - but it's 4wd an sticks like to a blanket.

I'm under no illusions what can happen in a RWD car with too much power.

I used to have a Toyota Supra back in the 90's - and on more that one occasion I left a roundabout backwards.


Not something at 52 that excites me anymore!

 

[MaybeNeedEmira]

Good point. Tire/tyre technology has definitely not kept pace with 200-400-500 hp going to just the rear wheels.

I'm not giving extra points to a RWD car in value/performance call for 500hp vs 400hp .. unless you like chasing cars on the straights on-track.

 

[Tokion]

Just to make sure; I am simply saying that it may become technically possible (later on) to for example tune up toward 500hp. However I am not recommending it, nor am I suggesting it. It would be nice to have the “standard” 420 hp (approximately) that the Mercedes AMG 45S has got. My other car (that I will keep alongside Emira i4 FE) is an Alpina B3 Bi-Turbo Touring with Akrapovic exhaust and Drexler mechanical LSD. It is RWD, and has got (standard) 410 hp (6 cyl 3 liter twin turbo)and weighs 1850kg. It is fast, and it has a good balance of power and handling (but it is no Lotus - so I will have to add that one to the garage).

Regarding my earlier comment about “Restomod Esprit with M139 and DCT” this is of course “fictional” and most probably not practical or doable. It may not even be desirable. The trend for the future may be that some owners of such cars may “electrify” them. But to speak about that opens “another can of worms” (ha ha ha)

 

[GetawayDriving]

Much easier to live out the Pretty Woman Lotus Hollywood fantasy than the other one.

No comment on why I chose silver.

 

[Porter]

Yeah sorry about that. I am pretty excited. I will try to research a bit more. Just trying to figure this out because the dealer is bugging me to decide.

My take is that you should consider getting the V6 with the manual while you still can. If it turns out down the road that the I4 is super tunable and you want to do that, you will always be able to sell the V6 manual at a premium and pick up an i4 to go nuts with.

You'll also likely take delivery of a V6 before the I4 if you lock in a formal factory order now. The I4 production schedule for the US doesn't start until next spring, and that plan may slip. So there's a practical advantage to the V6 on realistic timing.

 

[meenboli]

Or buy both...

 

[Tokion]

Much easier to live out the Pretty Woman Lotus Hollywood fantasy than the other one.

No comment on why I chose silver.

In my next life (second Emira i4 with all current issues sorted - probably an “S” or
an “R”) I will choose Osmium (silver) that in photos makes the car look stunning and very pure. (Should definitely NOT have any upper “black pack”)

May actually be a nice pair if I keep them both: One DV (no upper BP) tan interior, and one Osmium (no upper BP) also tan interior - both with silver forged wheels.

 

[meenboli]

In my next life (second Emira i4 with all current issues sorted - probably an “S” or
an “R”) I will choose Osmium (silver) that in photos makes the car look stunning and very pure. (Should definitely NOT have any upper “black pack”)

May actually be a nice pair if I keep them both: One DV (no upper BP) tan interior, and one Osmium (no upper BP) also tan interior - both with silver forged wheels.

Why no BP?

And why not change the interior between them - should you have two (hypothetically).

 

[Tokion]

Why no BP?

And why not change the interior between them - should you have two (hypothetically).

That’s my taste and preference. I think upper BP will destroy the purity and beauty of DV and Osmium. (I am aware others will choose differently - but my choice is mine;-)

I do not want a dark, black interior, and neither do I want a red interior, so that leaves me with tan and white/gray.

My preference is to coordinate the two (hypothetical) cars. If the goal is difference for differences sake, I guess one car would be an Emira and the other a Cayman (ha ha) - one black and one white.