Whom owns a Lotus?

Steve, when I make my 12 month move to Adelaide in the next 2 weeks , we gotta catch up for a steak and beer/whiskey and show me around the Emira.

I'm a Lotus aficionado but I've yet to really warm up to the Emira. And I want to.

I think Lotus moving to Toyota power units starting with the Elise Series 2 was an excellent choice and although on paper, the supercharged Toyota units should never feel as special as a Porsche six, BMW six or even a Honda K24 (if making a comparison to the 4 cylinder in the Elise), I suspect on road, the engines do a pretty fine job with delivering a rewarding driving experience. What are your thoughts so far?

Given you had one of the greatest engines ever conceived in the F355, how far behind is the supercharged Toyota unit?

P.S
What is your opinion of the self closing red cover over the starter button? I don't mind it per se, especially if it has a nice tactile feel but I never liked it had that self activating soft close feature?

P.S.S
I wished Lotus had used the LT5 engine they designed for the Corvette ZR1 rather than their own 3.5 twin turbo unit. Surely they could've brought it off GM under some reverse licensing arrangement.

 

Hey Rennie. Absolutely will do.
I’m in Dallas for the next couple of weeks but once you’re settled in in Adelaide let me know and we’ll grab a bite and a beer and I can show you around the Emira and go for a drive.

Comparing it to the 355 is interesting. There are one or two areas where it was never going to be as good - mainly the sound and the overall “exoticness” of the Ferrari.
That said, I don’t think it sounds bad at all. The supercharger whine is quite cool and it has (to my ears) a quite nice sporty note.
I think it sounds just as good as any current V8 Ferrari (I don’t they’re anything special in the sound department after the 458).

Performance wise it feels noticeably faster than the 355 even if the on-paper stats say there’s not much in it.
That’s mainly due to having plenty of low down torque. Throttle response is instant due to the supercharger rather than turbo so it feels more n/a.
If you remember it’s never going to have modern Ferrari straight line performance and scare the crap out of you it’s plenty fast enough for the road.
It’s a car where the overall driving experience is what it’s about, and on that score it’s superb.

As for the looks (totally subjective of course) but I actually think it looks as good as the 355. That’s a big call and not one I expected to make but I it looks very very nice. If you think it looks decent in pictures it’s much better in the flesh. Proper junior supercar.

The steering is way better. The best of any car I’ve driven, probably.
I’m no driving God (quite the opposite) but the overall handling seems excellent and the limits are so far above my abilities it’s laughable.

The interior is nice. Nothing to make you go “wow” but it’s comfortable and everything works as it should.

As for the cover over the starter button I don’t even notice it. If it wasn’t there it would make no difference to me.
Perhaps it would be better in black than red (it’s the only red thing in the cabin), but things like that don’t bug me at all.

Probably the only thing that I’d change if I could is the feel of the steering wheel in my hands.
It’s not a bad wheel at all but the overall feel of the leather is hard and I prefer a little softness and give.
Again, just personal preference.

 

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Lotus 18 FJ - on my list

 

I drove the car few days ago V6 manual, and i have to say I really like it! simple, nimble, driver's car. what a machine. great size too. It surprisingly had a nice sound for a toyota v6, the supercharger sound was interesting, but not overpowering. torque is good, steering is amazing. only draw back is i felt the clutch and shifter is a bit too heavy, not too great for Shanghai's traffic, and no auto-hold is a bit of a problem on some of our roads here. another thing is no front lift, but i suppose might not be that big of an issue.

I think i'm getting one. it's a fun little thing.

PS, turns out one of my good mate was one of the first batch to pick up his I4, he picked me up for a drive last night, he said the I4 had a little of glitches here and there, doing all the debugging for lotus, he had all sort of warning lights comes up, but lotus care was pretty good, no cost flat bed every time (6 time in two month), apparently, they have this issue where the fuel line was too long, so overtime it builds up water vapour, so now all the new cars comes with a shorter hose.

 

Next stage of man cave building is getting the Elan Bodyshell off the trailer and onto wheels (furniture dolly wheels). Some bricks, wooden beams, wooden blocks, milk crates and step ladders, and my 14 year old son and I managed.

 

Pics.

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Time for a beer.
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There is a guy in Melbourne who has been lap sprinting his and for the last 15 years racing it in Historic Group SB.

 

Rohan H? He's got a very well developed S4. He was going to build my engine for me, but has retired.

 

Its a Chapman at his best era car - shouldn't you be able to pick it up with one hand?

 

That is the man ,I 1st lap dashed against him in 1980

 

Chassis 42kg + strengthening, body bare 41.5kg + doors, bonnet, bootlid and FIA cage which I couldn't be bothered removing - call it 130-140kg or so. Still pretty light, but I wouldn't want to bench press it.

 

Lovely chap and still racing.

 

I remember him for being that ,true enthusiasts

 

Nice. Is Jack into cars? My girls have zero interest and neither do my nephews.

 

Both my boys are. Joey's 14, but has put dibs on the Elan (when it's finished). Jack's nearly 16, and wants to get a manual licence, learning in the Ferrari, which he can, as I'm going to switch out the motor next year. You'll have to wait it out and see how the grandkids turn out

 

Switch the motor out? Huh?

 

Learners aren't allowed to drive V8s or turboed 6s

 

So he’s going to pull the motor out and put something else in? I’m so confused

 

He’s going to put the motor from the Elan into the Mondial, and vice versa.

Right?

 

I'm building a Frankenferrari

 

Well. That shows how confused I am…

 

QV block, bored out liners, 360 crank, Ti rods, slipper pistons, flowed heads, EFI - it's a mid-life crisis sort of thing
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