After making a global debut at the Goodwood Festival of Speed last year, the Lotus Emira has been introduced in Thailand.
Besides being the sole replacement of the previous Lotus line-up consisting of the Elise, Exige and Evora, the Emira is also the final Lotus model to be powered by an internal combustion engine. All future models will be electrically-powered, starting with the Eletre crossover that debuted globally on March 29.
Production of the Emira happens at the Lotus plant in Hethel, England, which has a production capacity of 5,000 units per year. Lotus recently invested £100 million (4.3 billion baht) to improve its UK facilities.
Customers have a choice of two engines — a Toyota-supplied supercharged 3.5-litre V6 and a turbocharged 2.0-litre i4 engine made by AMG, the tuning arm of Mercedes-Benz.
Lotus says the V6 produces up to 400hp and 420Nm, propelling the Emira from 0-100kph in 4.2secs, and to a top speed of 288kph. Both six-speed manual (comes with see-through gearchange mechanism) and automatic transmissions are available.
The AMG powerplant, meanwhile, pumps out 360hp and 430Nm, and is mated to an 8-speed DCT (dual-clutch transmission) also from AMG. According to Lotus, a manual gearbox is not offered in this model due to a decline in its popularity as well as the superior shift speed and refinement of a DCT.
Lotus Cars Thailand country manager Teeraphong Rodloy said the Emira is a junior supercar with high levels of comfort and functionality, allowing it to serve as an everyday car.
However, the Emira’s design isn’t one you’d expect from an “everyday” car, with heavily sculpted surfaces and crisp feature lines. It’s heavily influenced by the Lotus Evija electric hypercar, with various design elements clearly highlighted around the car’s body.
They include the front bonnet vents, which expel hot air through the radiator, and additional side intakes. Lotus says that besides cooling purposes, they also help improve aerodynamics.
The Emira is built on Lotus’ new Sports Car Architecture, and features the widest track compared to any recent Lotus road car. This helps raise the level of road grip and stability and lowers the car’s centre of gravity.
The cockpit features a wrap-around dashboard that gives occupants a sense of connection with the car, as well as a good level of luxury from large amounts of soft-touch areas.
Besides sporty seats and a flat-bottomed sports multi-function steering wheel, the Emira comes with modern interior features including a 10.25-inch centre touch screen, digital 12.3-inch dashboard, Apple CarPlay/Android Auto compatibility and even cruise control. Another highlight is the 10-speaker audio system from British high-end manufacturer KEF.
As with any modern car, you also get a USB port, 12-volt socket, 12-way powered driver seat with memory and parking sensor with rearview camera. Luggage or other large items can be stored behind the two seats (208 litres) or in the 151-litre boot, which Lotus says will take a standard-sized flight case or a set of golf clubs.
In terms of safety, there are front and curtain airbags, along with an Advanced Driver Assistance Systems package.
With this type of performance, the Emira will be competing against other compact sportscars in the Thai market such as the Porsche 718, Jaguar F-Type and even the BMW M2.
Retail pricing of the Emira starts at 7.99 million baht for the i4 Base Edition and can reach up to 11.9 million baht for the V6 First Edition, produced in limited numbers.
There are several no-cost options available for the Emira, such as suspension setting and tyres (touring for everyday use with Goodyear Eagle F1 Supersport LTS or sport for everyday/track driving with Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2) and three 20-inch wheel choices.
The interior comes in black, red, tan or grey Nappa, or black Alcantara with grey, black, yellow or red stitching.
A move towards electric
The Eletre is the second electric car from Lotus to be built in China for the mass market.
It’s a large four-wheel-drive electric hyper-SUV with a battery capacity of over 100kWh and has more than 600hp at its disposal.
According to Lotus, a 350kW charger will deliver a 400km range in 20 minutes, while a full charge will yield a maximum WLTP driving range of approximately 600km.
According to figures from Lotus, the 5.1m-long Eletre can accelerate from 0-100kph in under 3secs and has a top speed of 260kph.
In 2017, Lotus became a part of China’s Geely (which also owns Volvo and the Polestar brands), meaning that it now has strong funding for the development of future models, starting with the Emira and now the Eletre. Before the Geely takeover, the last Lotus model was the Evora, launched in 2008.
The overall exterior and interior design were produced by an international team based at the Lotus Tech Creative Centre in Warwickshire, England. In terms of production, the Eletre is the first Lotus to be built at a new state-of-the-art production facility in Wuhan, China.
Peter Horbury, senior vice-president design at Lotus, said the arrival of the Eletre signals the start of a new era of pure electric SUVs.
“The Eletre is a rare creative opportunity in performance car design,” he said. “The result is a ‘Hyper-SUV’ that is genuinely different to what’s on the market; the electric powertrain has inspired a ‘cab-forward’ design that echoes the iconic mid-engined layout of Lotus sports cars, creating a unique look and position in the SUV segment.”
The Eletre is built on Lotus’ new Electric Premium Architecture (EPA). The low-to-the-ground design means outstanding handling, and the EPA can easily adapt to accommodate C+ to E+ vehicle class battery sizes, motors, component layouts and intelligent driving technologies.
This new platform will be the basis for an all-new range of premium lifestyle performance electric vehicles from Lotus, the first being the Eletre.
Keyword: In with the new Lotus Emira arrives in Thailand while the electric Eletre is launched worldwide