Wont start

[Stealthinnimbus]

Has anyone had a problem where the car wont start but will if you get out lock it unlock it and get back in

Symptoms:
- unlock
- open door
- close door
- press start
- fuel pump starts
- nothing else

Lock and unlock whilst in car using remote makes no difference

Get out lock and unlock starts fine

Happened three times in the past week

(Yes i have a dealer fitted “lotus” scorpion tracker )

 

[Eagle7]

Do you have the seat belt on when you're in it? If so, trying unbuckling your seatbelt too and see if it will start. You might want to have the dealer check the health of the battery; it may not be taking or holding a full charge.

 

[seriously]

Did you try ⬆️⬆️⬇️⬇️⬅️➡️⬅️➡️BABA select start?

 

[nimbusblack]

sounds immobiliser related? change the battery in the fob?

 

[Aero]

I agree sounds immobilizer related. Try your other key fob (if comes with 2) see if does same thing. Could be the car's module not sensing the key if no change.
Could also be the clutch or brake depress sensor. Next time it wont start cycle the clutch then brake a time or two before getting out to see if makes difference.

 

[Trickytimes]

Has anyone had a problem where the car wont start but will if you get out lock it unlock it and get back in

Symptoms:
- unlock
- open door
- close door
- press start
- fuel pump starts
- nothing else

Lock and unlock whilst in car using remote makes no difference

Get out lock and unlock starts fine

Happened three times in the past week

(Yes i have a dealer fitted “lotus” scorpion tracker )

I have had the same issue since the dealer updated the software. Just got it back after a 2nd attempt at fixing it and the problem remains. Absolutely no sense whatsoever to it. I called Lotus a couple of weeks ago and they said they weren't aware of the problem which I know for a fact is a lie. I have gone from loving the car and covering 3K in 5 months to now not being able to use it for 6 weeks.

 

[nimbusblack]

Same problem if you use the second fob?

 

[Ftype]

Same problem here
Thread 'Still won’t start any suggestions?'
https://www.emiraforum.com/threads/still-won’t-start-any-suggestions.3871/

 

[Stealthinnimbus]

Thank you all. Been back with lotus for 2 weeks now. No sign of a fix. Beginning to wonder what to do. Full refund is getting tempting…

 

[Stealthinnimbus]

But i love the car

 

[Chrisu0815]

I have the same problem. Fortunately, I'm not dependent on the vehicle as I don't use it as my daily driver, but those who rely on it daily are facing issues. The problem has been ongoing for months, and it feels like nothing is being done. It's an absolute outrage what's happening here. I've never experienced anything like this. Absolutely unprofessional. Who knows what other issues the Lotus might have. They released three vehicles in a short time, and it seems like the company is overwhelmed. Lotus hasn't responded to my email. It's all a big joke. If all problems aren't resolved by spring, the car goes back, and Lotus can scrap it or do whatever they want with it.

 

[Eagle7]

I'd start checking ground wire connections. ECU module, starter motor, starter switch, engine itself, etc. Are they properly grounded? Is there a fuse from the starter switch to the starter motor? Does it use a relay?

Start simple, and check the obvious first.

 

[Tom]

My car went for the update start of October, and only starts when it feels like it now, rendering it pretty useless, as I darent go anywhere in it. No issues whatsoever pre update.
lotus Bradford tell me they are Expecting a software Fix from Lotus in mid January ! 🤯🤯 They’ve said they will take the car in, and a lotus engineer will look at it, but realistically I would rather keep it in my warm and dry garage until they know what the issue is and how to fix it. I love the car, and plan to stick with it, but it’s all a bit Shit, and everyone i Know that told me I should have bought German is looking very pleased with themselves at the minute. 🙄

 

[EyeFour Eemeerah!]

I'd start checking ground wire connections. ECU module, starter motor, starter switch, engine itself, etc. Are they properly grounded? Is there a fuse from the starter switch to the starter motor? Does it use a relay?

Start simple, and check the obvious first.

Start simple. Your assuming everybody buying these things are mechanically/electrically inclined or mechanics. How about the 95 percent that bought, simply wanting to drive their 105k USD paperweight without the frustration of pretending to play Mr. Fixit??

 

[Eagle7]

Start simple. Your assuming everybody buying these things are mechanically/electrically inclined or mechanics. How about the 95 percent that bought, simply wanting to drive their 105k USD paperweight without the frustration of pretending to play Mr. Fixit??

I hear ya, and in a perfect world you'd be absolutely correct. No offense, but not only is it not a perfect world, but this is a British sports car, and it's a Lotus. As much of an "I don't want to hear this" reality as what I'm about to say is, from my years of experience owning and driving sports cars, becoming mechanically/electrically inclined is something you should just expect. High performance cars tend to be more susceptible to issues, probably because of how they're used, and being able to do your own troubleshooting helps a great deal. Especially if it's your only car.

Know your animal and what it's like when it's healthy and when it's not. It usually lets you know when something isn't quite right and needs attention. The good news is it's usually a few things that develop the need for more attention more often than others, and once you either figure that out, or find out through other people's experience, then you can be more pro-active at keeping your car healthy.

Maybe my experience is unique, but I've never had a sports car that didn't need some kind of attention for various things that shouldn't need it, but it did. I just learned to accept it, keep on top of whatever it was that needed attention, and enjoyed the car. The common experience of ownership creates a community of people who tend to help each other, and usually they'll figure out the issues before the dealers do, or even the manufacturer themselves. If this doesn't sound like something you're interested in, then I'm sorry to have to say that this may not be the car for you. If however you don't mind learning the experience, I think you'll find owning a British sports car is much more than just owning and driving a car.

 

[Rainier]

I hear ya, and in a perfect world you'd be absolutely correct. No offense, but not only is it not a perfect world, but this is a British sports car, and it's a Lotus. As much of an "I don't want to hear this" reality as what I'm about to say is, from my years of experience owning and driving sports cars, becoming mechanically/electrically inclined is something you should just expect. High performance cars tend to be more susceptible to issues, probably because of how they're used, and being able to do your own troubleshooting helps a great deal. Especially if it's your only car.

Lotus are supposedly going after a larger, more mainstream audience that I don't think will put up with the old Lotus foibles.

 

[Eagle7]

Lotus are supposedly going after a larger, more mainstream audience that I don't think will put up with the old Lotus foibles.

Yeah and I expect we'll soon find out how successful the 'new' Lotus is, and what the 'new' customer base is going to be willing to put up with. Probably somewhere between the old and the new.

 

[EyeFour Eemeerah!]

I hear ya, and in a perfect world you'd be absolutely correct. No offense, but not only is it not a perfect world, but this is a British sports car, and it's a Lotus. As much of an "I don't want to hear this" reality as what I'm about to say is, from my years of experience owning and driving sports cars, becoming mechanically/electrically inclined is something you should just expect. High performance cars tend to be more susceptible to issues, probably because of how they're used, and being able to do your own troubleshooting helps a great deal. Especially if it's your only car.

Know your animal and what it's like when it's healthy and when it's not. It usually lets you know when something isn't quite right and needs attention. The good news is it's usually a few things that develop the need for more attention more often than others, and once you either figure that out, or find out through other people's experience, then you can be more pro-active at keeping your car healthy.

Maybe my experience is unique, but I've never had a sports car that didn't need some kind of attention for various things that shouldn't need it, but it did. I just learned to accept it, keep on top of whatever it was that needed attention, and enjoyed the car. The common experience of ownership creates a community of people who tend to help each other, and usually they'll figure out the issues before the dealers do, or even the manufacturer themselves. If this doesn't sound like something you're interested in, then I'm sorry to have to say that this may not be the car for you. If however you don't mind learning the experience, I think you'll find owning a British sports car is much more than just owning and driving a car.

So, in essence I should have first worked for decades on shitty British sports cars, to get to the point of being able to own an Emira? Got it. And you’re right. It’s not the car, nor the company for me. I thankfully turned down the demand to finalize my build for an i4 back in August. And look at what Lotus has done now to those poor folk still holding out hope.

I own and have owned high end sports cars, and they have never let me down, unlike the first hand accounts that are here are testament to. Perhaps I’m comfortable enough financially to be able to have others perform maintenance on my vehicles. Or perhaps I’m just interested in the pleasure of the drive and could care less to perform repairs and troubleshooting. But for these members here to have to jump through hoops to troubleshoot, because they have a car they can’t get into, or ECUs which are neutered because it’s a damp morning, or cold start stalls, or paint blistering off of their panels, wipers that dont work, AC blowers malfunctional, software update, software update, software update….. When is enough enough??

All these are NEW CARS. I get that you take pleasure in getting intimate with your vehicle. Turning a wrench may give you pleasure. But for the majority of these folk with issues, I guarantee they simply are looking to enjoy their ride, and didn’t think they would need a resume of experience fixing “a British car, and it’s a Lotus.”

 

[Eagle7]

My car went for the update start of October, and only starts when it feels like it now, rendering it pretty useless, as I darent go anywhere in it. No issues whatsoever pre update.
lotus Bradford tell me they are Expecting a software Fix from Lotus in mid January ! 🤯🤯 They’ve said they will take the car in, and a lotus engineer will look at it, but realistically I would rather keep it in my warm and dry garage until they know what the issue is and how to fix it. I love the car, and plan to stick with it, but it’s all a bit Shit, and everyone i Know that told me I should have bought German is looking very pleased with themselves at the minute. 🙄

Yeah so it looks like it's something an update did, which is definitely a software issue. I used to be a beta tester for a few major software companies, and they are a bear to troubleshoot and isolate. The main problem is figuring out how to replicate the condition that causes the problem, so the software engineers know where to look in the code base.

Sorry you and the few others who are having this issue are having to go through this. Lotus seems to be going through and fixing issues as they come up though, so hopefully it won't be long.

 

[Eagle7]

So, in essence I should have first worked for decades on shitty British sports cars, to get to the point of being able to own an Emira? Got it. And you’re right. It’s not the car, nor the company for me. I thankfully turned down the demand to finalize my build for an i4 back in August. And look at what Lotus has done now to those poor folk still holding out hope.

I own and have owned high end sports cars, and they have never let me down, unlike the first hand accounts that are here are testament to. Perhaps I’m comfortable enough financially to be able to have others perform maintenance on my vehicles. Or perhaps I’m just interested in the pleasure of the drive and could care less to perform repairs and troubleshooting. But for these members here to have to jump through hoops to troubleshoot, because they have a car they can’t get into, or ECUs which are neutered because it’s a damp morning, or cold start stalls, or paint blistering off of their panels, wipers that dont work, AC blowers malfunctional, software update, software update, software update….. When is enough enough??

All these are NEW CARS. I get that you take pleasure in getting intimate with your vehicle. Turning a wrench may give you pleasure. But for the majority of these folk with issues, I guarantee they simply are looking to enjoy their ride, and didn’t think they would need a resume of experience fixing “a British car, and it’s a Lotus.”

No. In essence, since you bailed out, you shouldn't be in here complaining about anything. To me, it looks like you're just in here hoping there are still problems, so you can feel better about yourself for cancelling. There's a few of you that do this.

It's a brand new car being built in a brand new facility, using a brand new manufacturing system Lotus has never used before. Not surprising that there are teething issues. And on top of all that, they had a global pandemic and all those issues added to their plate. Lotus is now building thousands of these, and we've seen the numbers of problems being reported steadily diminish as they get on top of them and get them sorted out. It's rough for those who have to go through the teething issues, but by all accounts, once the car is sorted it's a really good car. It says something when reviewers are ordering them for themselves.

I get that you're not the pioneer type. Enjoy whatever else you bought, and don't worry; you won't have to suffer with an Emira.