Is Lotus losing its mojo?
07/08/2021
The day before yesterday, Lotus presented the new Emira, which it claims is the "most accomplished Lotus ever made".
The performance data in telegram style: around 360 to 400 hp, four or six cylinders, turbo or supercharger, manual gearbox, automatic or DSG, just over 1400 kg, 290 km/h fast, 4.412 meters long, 1.895 meters wide (mirrors folded), digital cockpit, cupholders, assistance systems, Apple Play, etc.
What a shame! We had so hoped that the last Lotus with a gasoline engine would be a compact, lightweight and easy-to-drive sports car (with a round steering wheel). The Emira competes directly with the Porsche Cayman and Co., with prices starting at EUR 72,000 it is not overpriced, but it is also not a car that really continues the Elite-Elan-Europe-Elise tradition. These were all extremely compact and lightweight cars which, even with small engines and low horsepower, were able to outrun significantly more powerful competitors if the road had enough bends.
Alpine has proven with the new A110 that it is still possible to build compact and lightweight cars. At least the Emira retains the hydraulic power steering and the driving characteristics will certainly be able to match those of its predecessor, the Evora. But for many fans of classic Lotus sports cars, the new model should simply have been a little narrower, shorter and, above all, lighter. Then the wheels could have been one or two sizes smaller and even with 300 hp there would certainly have been enough driving fun.
To be fair, it has to be said that Lotus has always built more luxurious cars, such as the Esprit or the Evora, but these were much less committed to the original Chapman-Lotus genome than the more minimalist cars such as the Elite or Elan.
But perhaps the Emira is exactly what today's car buyers want? We'll see at the latest when more DSG and automatic versions are sold than manual transmissions ...
