DIY Emira Maintenance

[jbug187]

Hi All. I'm seriously considering purchasing an Emira and was curious how manageable it is to do your own maintenance on these cars. I'm coming from a Subaru BRZ that I've had for years and that I've enjoyed doing basic driveway maintenance on. Are oil changes, brake pad changes and brake fluid flushes particularly challenging on an Emira? Thanks in advance for your advice.

 

[ManOfSteel]

Hi All. I'm seriously considering purchasing an Emira and was curious how manageable it is to do your own maintenance on these cars. I'm coming from a Subaru BRZ that I've had for years and that I've enjoyed doing basic driveway maintenance on. Are oil changes, brake pad changes and brake fluid flushes particularly challenging on an Emira? Thanks in advance for your advice.

No. Biggest task is removing/replacing the undertray. Not difficult, just time-consuming. Brakes are no more difficult than any other car.

 

[netsinah]

I agree. Nice to raise up the car to allow more room to work below it and like others, I purchased a power tool to speed up removal of the 40+ under tray bolts. You’re dealing with a Toyota engine with the V6 so oil/filter changes are easy once the tray is off. Check other threads for DIY advice on oil/filter changes.

 

[cedricchew]

Hi All. I'm seriously considering purchasing an Emira and was curious how manageable it is to do your own maintenance on these cars. I'm coming from a Subaru BRZ that I've had for years and that I've enjoyed doing basic driveway maintenance on. Are oil changes, brake pad changes and brake fluid flushes particularly challenging on an Emira? Thanks in advance for your advice.

I have a BRZ too, a 2013 Premium that's supercharged. It's my daily and I try to reserve the Emira for more special outings.

 

[RoryBellows]

No. Biggest task is removing/replacing the undertray. Not difficult, just time-consuming. Brakes are no more difficult than any other car.

To add to this the brake reservoir is in the front part of the car when you go looking for it. You have to remove the screws to flip the front hood. There's videos on youtube its not hard but you have to know its there.

Also know that the Emira uses lug bolts so the wheels are a bit more of a pita than normal. You can get cheater line up bolt things. I don't remember what they are called but they are helpful and easy to keep in your trunk bag. Worth it if you are doing wheel removals often.

 

[netsinah]

Also know that the Emira uses lug bolts so the wheels are a bit more of a pita than normal. You can get cheater line up bolt things. I don't remember what they are called but they are helpful and easy to keep in your trunk bag. Worth it if you are doing wheel removals often.

GRP (Greg's Race Parts) sells a "Powerflex Wheel Install Guide Pin" for the Emira, which is a pin/guide making it easier to locate and line up the lugs, when changing tires (read the GRP description on the link below):

Powerflex Wheel Install Guide Pin for Elise/Exige/Evora/Emira

Fitment for all 2004+ Lotus Cars Elise, Exige, Evora and Emira Our new PowerAlign Wheel Mounting Guide Pins are designed to allow the safer mounting and easy alignment of heavy alloy wheels on most common cars to use lug bolts. The individual pins come supplied in a reusable twist tube, Simply...

www.gregsraceparts.com

There are many others available on Amazon (search "wheel alignment pin"), of various lengths, and far cheaper. The GRP version has a coating on it, to better ensure it doesn't cause rim damage when contacting the rim, unlike others w/o any such coating. Some people put electrical tape over the non-coated ones, as a DIY solution. Some like to buy a second one, shorter in length, to use 2 at the same time. I've got the GRP one, plus a shorter one from Amazon, since I plan to swap tires/rims for track use. Only really needed if changing tires frequently as indicated by RoryBellows; up to you to decide if the convenience justifies the price.

 

[chirowolf]

no one would ever car me a mechanic, but the Emira is pretty easy to work on. Oil changes are straight forward (after removing bolts for undertray)
Brake pads are 2 pins
Much easier to get under the bonnet then the Evora.
Exhaust is similar to oil change (just removing undertray) Although I never had to remove headers.
Fuse box on passenger floorboard is easy to access.

I tend to avoid Lotus Service. My local experiences have been less than good and usually a bit pricy.

Overall maintenance is not bad at all

 

[jp129]

In my humble opinion, the mechanical parts of the car are standard fare. Nothing overly complicated for the layout.

However, it's the onboard electronics and information systems that I believe will be the test of the car's overall reliability.

Lotus' systems seemed to be pretty locked down at this point in time. A lot of the calibration functions, updates, etc are reserved for Dealership tools only.

We also have to bare in mind that this level of electronics in a Lotus sports car is a new step for the mfg compared to their previous cars. With anything new, there will be teething pains, as evident as all the updates that are required. Just something to consider.