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If I recall correctly, I believe it was Gavan who said they weren't including ADAS on the V6 FE because they discovered the system they had didn't comply with some regulation it needed to. They had to get an updated system. Probably the electronics/chipset would be my guess. However they've been developing/testing it all along; the 007 Prototype car was an ADAS development vehicle, and ADAS teams have been seen testing in Europe all year.
The problem they may have now, is due to production being pushed out, instead of the V6 FE being a model year 2022 car, it's now a model year 2024, and there were new regulations coming in that they may now have to comply with. One of them I believe was the gas particulate filter. That may be U.K. only though, I don't know.
As far as validation for the U.S., most manufacturers just get their cars validated for California, which has the strictest regulations. If it passes for California, it's a 50 state car, but they may require something that other states don't, so that could be something Lotus is wrestling with. Other states are more lenient.
The longer all this takes though, the closer they get to the tougher regulations coming into play, and the less time they have to be able to use the V6. Tough spot to be in, but hopefully things will start to loosen up next year and production can ramp up.
The problem they may have now, is due to production being pushed out, instead of the V6 FE being a model year 2022 car, it's now a model year 2024, and there were new regulations coming in that they may now have to comply with. One of them I believe was the gas particulate filter. That may be U.K. only though, I don't know.
As far as validation for the U.S., most manufacturers just get their cars validated for California, which has the strictest regulations. If it passes for California, it's a 50 state car, but they may require something that other states don't, so that could be something Lotus is wrestling with. Other states are more lenient.
The longer all this takes though, the closer they get to the tougher regulations coming into play, and the less time they have to be able to use the V6. Tough spot to be in, but hopefully things will start to loosen up next year and production can ramp up.