2024 Lotus Emira (V6 / 6MT) // Full Review

[@GearboxCarReviews]

A few other notes: It pulls hard over about 2k. Down way low in the tach, there's not a ton of grunt and it almost feels naturally-aspirated, so light to light and traffic aren't ideal. Of course, that's not what it's built for anyway, and pulls great up higher in the tach. I did have a touch of understeer on my last run down the mountain after I'd wrapped up. I know with mid-engine cars, spinning is one of the big concerns though. I never got unintentional oversteer. I also didn't try to find the oversteer limit because if I did lose it, I'd be at the bottom of a mountain... And to clarify on the sound, it sounds great from the outside, it's just inside that I didn't love. What are your thoughts on Cayman vs Emira (or C8 or anything else you're shopping)?

[@mattyb1624]

viv😊v😊gqa23qsßexda2

[@dougshugarts3105]

Really lovely car. I'd be tempted if I could find a service garage near me.

[@kirbygriffin836]

Hey man! Great video. I liked it a lot. I just wanted to give you a little tip: try to speak with a brighter tone. You kinda sound tired and like you aren’t excited about the car, which I’m sure you are. Showing emotion is a challenge but you will get the hang of it dont worry. Good luck!

[@GearboxCarReviews]

Thank you! I really appreciate it! Yeah, I know I'm not a big emotion guy. If I'm being real here, I also am very tired in this one. Trying to keep a KZbin channel like this up and running between a day job and family time doesn't leave a lot of room for sleep, then add jet lag in for this one, and it's not a great combo. But the Joe Raiti and Doug Demuro style of speaking just really aren't in my personality and trying to keep that kind of act up would just lead to burnout quickly for me. Thanks again for the comment though! The kind words really do mean a lot!

[@NashKetchum]

@@GearboxCarReviewsI disagree with what they said truthfully, I appreciate your calm and professional approach. Only Gen Zers need loud noises and stupid sound effects to keep them interested.

[@meenboli]

Great review - Ordered mine about 16 months ago. It's the manual gearbox appeal for me. Too many cars with dual clutch style autos - not that they're not brilliant, but they're everywhere... The V6 Auto - albeit a torque converter auto - changed gears very very well - and I'd personally (if I was buying auto) go for that over the AMG setup. I've been told April '24 delivery. I'm quite excited! 😆

[@GearboxCarReviews]

Thanks! And congrats on the car! Yeah, if you want a new mid-engine car with a manual, it's pretty much this or the Cayman/Boxster at this point. Interesting to hear the V6 auto is the one to get. I honestly thought that one would be more of an afterthought, but good to know it's solid. Congrats again! Enjoy the car when it comes! I'm sure you will :)

[@meenboli]

@@GearboxCarReviews I have an Audi S5 with a DSG - and couldn't tell any noticeable difference between the speed of gear changes on the V6 Auto Emira than the S5. The AMG i4 (I've not driven one) appears to be laggy - the V6 Auto certainly wasn't.

[@lamontmiller1761]

I've been watching videos on this car a few times a day for the last two weeks. You are the first person I heard, and the engine sound is not good. Everyone else loves the engine sound.

[@GearboxCarReviews]

🤷‍♂️ it was one of my first thoughts. It was "holy crap, an Emira," followed by "where the heck is the third pedal," followed by "it doesn't sound that great in here." I loved the sound from the outside, but inside the cabin it really wasn't awesome to me. I've seen some talk on the forums of people with "fixes" for their Evoras, so there are definitely some others out there. Good news for most people though, if I'm in the minority on this one 🙂 You planning to pick one up?

[@lamontmiller1761]

@GearboxCarReviews I'm thinking about it. I'm looking at a C8, 911, or Lotus. The thing is, in my life, I've had 23 cars, and 21 was with a manual transmission. I love the reviews on this car.

[@GearboxCarReviews]

Nice, that's a solid lineup! Yeah, if you want something special, and if you want the most engaging experience, you really can't beat what Lotus is doing. The 911 and the C8 are easier to daily drive, which is really the main thing that would hold me back from the Emira. The C8 is faster of course, the 911 is going to feel like higher quality and a bit more buttoned-up. Definitely just depends on your use case, but tough to go wrong with any of those.

[@lamontmiller1761]

@@GearboxCarReviews you just made it tougher, 😆 🤣 😂 😹

[@GearboxCarReviews]

sorry, was trying to help 😂😂

[@bluemyself]

I had the pleasure of driving one this weekend along with a 2021 Evora GT. Both manual and both were brilliant. I think I will be putting a deposit down on the Emira.

[@GearboxCarReviews]

Very nice! I'd love to drive one back-to-back with an Evora GT. Hopefully it doesn't take long to get yours if you go for one. What else are you considering?

[@bluemyself]

@xCarReviews Back-to-back you really feel how less "refined" the Evora is, but also that it feels faster, harsher, and louder, for better or worse. Both drive amazing, hard to tell the diff between the two in a 30 min drive. The Emira is just so nice inside compared to the Evora. Honestly only considering the Emira :)

[@GearboxCarReviews]

I can definitely see that. Appreciate the extra insight! Yeah, it's so tough to get a full picture in 30 mins, but driving them back-to-back at least gives you some insight into the differences. The Emira is definitely a big step forward all-around. And if you want driver engagement, there's really nothing else out there at this price new that's gonna match it. Good luck with the search if you decide to go for it!

[@bluemyself]

@@GearboxCarReviews Thank you! It seems like it'll be a year when I would even be able to get my hands on one :(

[@GearboxCarReviews]

I've seen some people trying to hock their allocations in the Emira groups on FB if you wanted to try to move up the list, and I imagine there'll be some on the used market fairly quickly, but after the 2.5 years everyone's been waiting for theirs so far a year doesn't seem too crazy. I realize that's a lot easier for me to say as someone who doesn't have to wait though.

[@FooFahFoeFum]

Why is it that the Emira GT4 use 18 inch wheels with fat 40/45 tires, while this street model degrades performance by using 20 wheels?

[@neilparry14]

Picking mine up tomorrow

[@GearboxCarReviews]

Woo! Congrats!

[@thomasgohlke-r4c]

Very nice review. Best car ever...

[@charlesrogers8420]

With the hype of EVs waning…..Lotus better keep making ICE engines.

[@nbaumg]

complaining about the lack of sound while in touring mode? it sounds good in sport and track

[@GearboxCarReviews]

I was in sport mode most of the time. It just didn't sound great inside. Sounded great outside though.

[@rrvcds]

Maybe it is better if one were to enjoy the KEF sound system in full glory? Thanks for great in-depth review @@GearboxCarReviews

[@Wiz33]

Get the touring suspension unless you really plan to track this car quite often. For those younger folks that have not driven a sports car with a hydraulic Steering rack is that you will feel every bump and cracks through you steering wheel and while it's mostly handleable single handed on touring, You'll want both hand on the wheels on rough surface or bad road on sport as it's amplified by quite a bit. The feedback is so much better than my 2024 Cayman S though. The Cayman S while very precise does not communicate half as much information to the driver compared to my Emira.

[@JH-qu8hi]

The sound is muted because you are in Tour mode.

[@GearboxCarReviews]

I spent quite a bit of time in Sport mode too. It sounded great from the outside. I just didn't love how it sounded inside.

[@markcoopers1930]

That doesn't look like CT. Sweet ride. Broke out the MX-5 for the first time this year after the winter wait. Nothing quite as refreshing as a good car on some good roads. I bet that was a blast.

[@GearboxCarReviews]

If you go to the far west edge of CT...then just keep going for like 3k miles. So, close ish? 😆 Yeah it was an excellent road and exactly where this car shines. Was really a great time. Getting to those roads and back were awful experiences in this car though. Definitely high highs and low lows. Nice to hear you got the Miata out! I've seen a few around here. It's tough not to have a good time driving around in a Miata. Sometimes it's just what the doctor ordered.

[@ArhamisScom-mt2ey]

Very nice, down to earth, honest and practical review ‼️Thanks a lot. Helped me choose not to buy this car as 80% of my usage is daily city commute. Keep up the great work, excellent review 👍🏽👍🏽

[@GearboxCarReviews]

Thank you! I really appreciate that! There are plenty of people out there commuting in them or planning to commute in them, but yeah for me this one was especially rough in LA traffic.

[@Rex_Racer]

Apparently, deleting the third cat really opens up the exhaust sound.

[@GearboxCarReviews]

Good to know! I actually did like how it sounded from the outside, it was really just the noise inside the cabin. Hopefully that would help more of the good stuff break through into the cabin.

[@Slowster]

Great car. Love the drive. I think Lotus did a great job on this car. That said, doesn’t Emira top out around 75mph in 2nd gear (based on gear ratios calculator)? The Caymans at 7600rpm hits 80mph.

[@GearboxCarReviews]

IIRC the Emira tops out around 70 in second and the Cayman is about 85. So that's the difference between using third occasionally and not using it at all on the road I was on. But it's especially noticeable when you're not winding it out all the way on the street. You can row through the gears comfortably on a regular/not-so-spirited drive and still have plenty of power available, whereas with the Cayman the upper gears are near unusable on the street.

[@Slowster]

@@GearboxCarReviews yup. The figures you mentioned are what viewers noticed from Harry’s video from a while ago by looking at the speedo reading assuming the driver has hit the redline. The numbers I threw out were from plugging the relevant numbers into gear ratio calculators online, assuming the driver tops out at the redline.

[@elvispresley3340]

HA - I prefer my PANTERA - but this is such a NEATO modern car - I am discussing the order of 2 x with the local dealer for two of my kids - but how I wish that had a V8 - then I would have an order for 3 x EMIRA. CHEERS from AUSTRALIA

[@xxxmarekxxx505]

SUPER Lotus Emira !!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[@salimrandall]

My only dislike is the car does not depreciate like normal cars. It’s tough to get one used for a good price.

[@GearboxCarReviews]

Definitely a tough one on the buying end, but hopefully that means it'll keep its value when it comes time to sell it.

[@johnsimms3693]

Dude your going 50mph ... A fart would be louder then the exhaust note your holding ... Smh

[@GearboxCarReviews]

You mean because I complained about the sound? I wasn't going fast in the video, but I did get it up to speed plenty in my time with the car. Or you just mean for the sound clip?

[@u2bgeye679]

Its a sweet looking car but Lotus will never top the looks of the exige/elise.

[@GearboxCarReviews]

I can respect that for sure, but I think the Emira takes the cake for me. It's just such a beautiful car. The Elise and Exige took a little warming up for me, but they're so immediately recognizable for sure, and I definitely see the beauty in them now.

[@dewalt24walton8]

What's ur opinion on the Evora and their electric SUV?

[@GearboxCarReviews]

Not sure if you mean mean or u2bgeye, but the Evora has a bit of a spaceship look to it to me. It's interesting, but not as appealing as the Emira to me. The Eletre looks don't really stand out against the competition and the front-end is a little funky, but also about the only piece of it that has a bit of Lotus vibes.

[@sennedegroof4728]

I would definitely buy this over a Cayman not only for the handling but the looks. The Porsche looks okay but this just has that rare and special look to it. And it probably drives even better than it looks.

[@casperoner2352]

Nice thumbnail NERD

[@GearboxCarReviews]

Thanks?

[@RealAvus]

This is basically the spiritual 3rd gen Honda/Acura NSX. I mean in terms of original NSX philosophy - Rear mid-engine, LIGHTWEIGHT, focus on handling, simple exterior design, RWD sport car. Just like the Evora.

[@GearboxCarReviews]

Similar philosophy definitely, but it's also been Lotus's MO since before the NSX. Either way though, I love to see automakers going for that lightweight, great-handling, mid-engine driver's car. My favorite type of car 😁

[@muffinman4353]

Not impressed.... Better cars in the market.

[@GearboxCarReviews]

Better is such a broad term, and it's different for different people. There are cars that sound better, there are cars that are more comfortable, there are cars that have better features, there are cars that are better at different things, but you'll be hard-pressed to find something that's better in terms of driver engagement.

[@thegadfly1951]

Better at what?

[@muffinman4353]

@@GearboxCarReviews The car's a piece of junk with a Toyota engine. Don't try to make it something that it's not.... Wake up.

[@GearboxCarReviews]

Cannot agree, but I know it's not for everyone. To each their own

[@muffinman4353]

@@thegadfly1951 Everything, the car is cheaply made but nicely displayed with a Toyota engine.