Once upon a time, Lotus from the United Kingdom captured the hearts of many fans with its small mid-mount rear-drive setting and pure driving experience, among which the three most unmistakable columns were Elise, which was first introduced in 1996, Exige published in 2000, and Evora, which debuted in 2008. However, with the change of times and the era of electric vehicles, Lotus also announced in December 2021 that the above three car series were officially discontinued, and the last traditional engine Lotus sports car we can have at present is only the newly released Emira in 2021.
With the change of the times and the era of electric vehicles, Lotus also announced in December 2021 that the above three car series were officially discontinued. This final group photo was taken at the factory of Hethel in the United Kingdom, the birthplace of these three cars and the place of the curtain. In the future, emira and the electric supercar Evija will also be built here. The models in the picture are from right to left: Exige Cup 430, Elise Sport 240 Final Edition and Evora GT430 Sport.
How important are Elise, Exige and Evora? According to official information, these three models have sold a total of 51,738 quantities since their inception, accounting for almost half of Lotus's total sales; even these three cars fully represent the brand spirit of Lotus. It is precisely because of this that the retirement of these "elderly" cars due to the integration of the car system and the trend of electrification may be sad for many fans.
Fortunately, Lotus released emira before letting these cars exit, so that fans can slightly alleviate the pain of the exit of classic sports cars. Regardless of the naming method, body size and power configuration, Emira can afford the word "passing on". Emira not only begins with the letter "E", but also has the meaning of "commander" and "leader"; its body size is slightly larger than evora, and it has the same two-seat Coupe space layout as Elise.
In terms of power, the Emira also inherits the mid-mounted rear-drive configuration, equipped with two engines, the 3.5-liter V6 engine from Toyota, code-named 2GR-FE, which has a maximum horsepower of 400 horses under the power of mechanical supercharging, and the more affordable version is equipped with a 2.0-liter turbo engine from Mercedes-AMG, with a maximum horsepower of 360 horses.