Final Production Seats: A Deeper Dive

[Guest142]

Great write up. Here are some pictures of final production seats from the recent European customer and dealer deliveries:

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Pics: Stino, Thierry Verhiest

Wow!

 

[centerpunch]

I just can't understand how Lotus all of the sudden is this state of the art company with great craftsmanship.

Well, I think Lotus is in fact a new company, essentially starting over, with a new car (yes, using existing architecture), a new factory, and new suppliers.

The previous Lotus was doing essentially everything by hand (including making the seats and upholstery), probably both out of habit, and because the volumes were too low to get real suppliers interested.

If Volvo's success is any indication, Geely knows how to build companies that can build great cars. And they see the Emira as the admittedly low volume vehicle that can jump-start the brand's renaissance in the public's mind. Certainly the Emira will be hitting the covers of a few US car magazines soon.

I'm not surprised the production startup has slipped a bit, that's probably actually a good sign that they know how important the quality of the first cars is.

Fingers crossed.

 

[Nova]

Fingers crossed indeed. Lets hope that the chassis and drivetrain are the only things carried forward and that the rest of the car does get a modern boost in quality.

 

[CDM1855]

Pardon my interruption but I hope Lear is not pronounced Lier or Lotus will be in serious trouble. I've been dealing with Lotus since 2005 so stories does not do much for me anymore. I, like every customer out there want to start seen results! I recently purchased a 2021 Evora GT with 3500K miles and less than a year old and the $5K seats are coming undone, have a water leak (14 years in the making) the AC stopped working twice, the pillar covers are ungluing, for a customer coming from Porsche or even KIA these series of events could be devastating. I just can't understand how Lotus all of the sudden is this state of the art company with great craftsmanship. The interior on the Emira reminds me so much of a Tesla (a car I would never buy) Can't wait to see the three beautiful indentations on the seats coming unglued like my eye bags, you're going to have to use that cream on TV to put it back together!
I also feel sorry for those of you that are planning to seriously track your car, you will have to put some serious money to make it full track ready or buy the GT4 instead....
I am seriously deviating whether I should keep my deposit or just weight until the I4 3.0 comes out with more power and new and improved seats or even hold on until the electric in 2026. Nuff with my rant, have a good evening!

Newer Tesla’s are a lot better finished than the original ones. The seats still crease up quickly though.

Met a guy who works for Tesla and previously worked for a an authorised Ferrari centre, he said the new Tesla’s are far better built than most Ferrari’s

The original Tesla roadsters were of course built by lotus at Hethel

 

[VL3X]

Newer Tesla’s are a lot better finished than the original ones.

The original Tesla roadsters were of course built by lotus at Hethel

I see what you did there.

 

[CDM1855]

I see what you did there.

Ha, not knocking lotus

Merely pointing out that Tesla’s have improved over the years, It’s been a long time since I sat in a roadster, It’s likely they were a lot better quality than the model S which followed from California (which were pretty awful inside)

 

[RENDERMAN]

Ha, not knocking lotus

Merely pointing out that Tesla’s have improved over the years, It’s been a long time since I sat in a roadster, It’s likely they were a lot better quality than the model S which followed from California (which were pretty awful inside)

I took my wife to test out a Tesla several years back and even for her linear taste she found it too bland, she wouldn't even sit in it, my crystal ball tells me once all the major car manufacturers prefect their Electric cars, Tesla will fade like Saturn did...

 

[Cutting42]

I took my wife to test out a Tesla several years back and even for her linear taste she found it too bland, she wouldn't even sit in it, my crystal ball tells me once all the major car manufacturers prefect their Electric cars, Tesla will fade like Saturn did...

Speaking as a Tesla owner I agree but it will be their dealer and service model that pushes me away back to BMW et al rather than their somewhat middling car quality.

 

[RENDERMAN]

Speaking as a Tesla owner I agree but it will be their dealer and service model that pushes me away back to BMW et al rather than their somewhat middling car quality.

I think Porsche and BMW will rule the electric car market in the future!

 

[Cachaco131]

I think Porsche and BMW will rule the electric car market in the future!

Only if BMW improves its designs...the XM and the M2 are just horrendous. I'm not a fan of Teslas but the exteriors are not insulting to the eyes.

 

[centerpunch]

Regarding Tesla, Bob Lutz knows some stuff. He was a skeptic, but now says:

Tesla Model S is the most sought-after big luxury sedan in the world and it outsells the Audi A8, the Mercedes S-Class and the BMW 7 Series combined. That’s pretty outstanding. People are forgetting the power of the brand. When the general public sees electric vehicles, they think of Tesla.

And it’s not going to be easy taking leadership away from Tesla, because it’s not just about how many miles does it go, how fast is it, how long-lived is the battery, how fast does it recharge, all those things are important but it’s just like putting Cadillac against BMW or Mercedes, the Cadillac may be just as good, but people say, yeah, yeah, I know, but I want that prestige badge on my car.

In electric vehicles now, let’s face it, Tesla is the gold standard. And it will be very difficult for other manufacturers to unseat them.

More here

https://www.hagerty.com/media/people/bob-lutz-at-90-is-still-smarter-than-everybody-else/

 

[Cachaco131]

Regarding Tesla, Bob Lutz knows some stuff. He was a skeptic, but now says:

Tesla Model S is the most sought-after big luxury sedan in the world and it outsells the Audi A8, the Mercedes S-Class and the BMW 7 Series combined. That’s pretty outstanding. People are forgetting the power of the brand. When the general public sees electric vehicles, they think of Tesla.

And it’s not going to be easy taking leadership away from Tesla, because it’s not just about how many miles does it go, how fast is it, how long-lived is the battery, how fast does it recharge, all those things are important but it’s just like putting Cadillac against BMW or Mercedes, the Cadillac may be just as good, but people say, yeah, yeah, I know, but I want that prestige badge on my car.

In electric vehicles now, let’s face it, Tesla is the gold standard. And it will be very difficult for other manufacturers to unseat them.

More here

https://www.hagerty.com/media/people/bob-lutz-at-90-is-still-smarter-than-everybody-else/

It's the same as the Apple cult.

 

[centerpunch]

Ah, yes, the ”cult“ of millions of happy customers.

Thinking the hundreds of thousands of folks buying Teslas every year are somehow confused or too dumb to know that they really shouldn't like their car is like saying people only buy iPhones because they are too dumb to realize how bad they are, and any day now, Apple's market share and valuation will plummet.

I think the Apple haters been saying that for about 15 years now….…
.

 

[scarzie]

Regarding Tesla, Bob Lutz knows some stuff. He was a skeptic, but now says:

Tesla Model S is the most sought-after big luxury sedan in the world and it outsells the Audi A8, the Mercedes S-Class and the BMW 7 Series combined. That’s pretty outstanding. People are forgetting the power of the brand. When the general public sees electric vehicles, they think of Tesla.

And it’s not going to be easy taking leadership away from Tesla, because it’s not just about how many miles does it go, how fast is it, how long-lived is the battery, how fast does it recharge, all those things are important but it’s just like putting Cadillac against BMW or Mercedes, the Cadillac may be just as good, but people say, yeah, yeah, I know, but I want that prestige badge on my car.

In electric vehicles now, let’s face it, Tesla is the gold standard. And it will be very difficult for other manufacturers to unseat them.

More here

https://www.hagerty.com/media/people/bob-lutz-at-90-is-still-smarter-than-everybody-else/

Wouldn't the model S compete with the 5 series/A6/E class just based on size?

 

[Cachaco131]

Ah, yes, the ”cult“ of millions of happy customers.

Thinking the hundreds of thousands of folks buying Teslas every year are somehow confused or too dumb to know that they really shouldn't like their car is like saying people only buy iPhones because they are too dumb to realize how bad they are, and any day now, Apple's market share and valuation will plummet.

I think the Apple haters been saying that for about 15 years now….…
.

Wow you took it personally lol. It's not about hating one company or the other. It's about acknowledging that even when presented with a better alternative, some consumers will have an inclination to disregard certain facts and lean to whatever their beliefs guide them to.

I've an Apple, but I can switch to Samsung or equivalent of it had better features. Many folks wouldn't. Same happens with cars. The quality of interior, panel gaps etc of a Tesla, is not appropriate for a 60k+ car, it just isn't because the Germans one offer a better alternative. Still, many buyers disregard those interior and quality control items and buy a Tesla.

Don't be offended by the word cult.

 

[centerpunch]

I didn’t take it personally at all. I just think it’s funny when some folks somehow believe that certain market leaders, e.g., Tesla and Apple, only succeed because their customers are dumb.

 

[centerpunch]

Btw, I’d bet money that the current Cayman GTS is unquestionably a “better” car than the Emira, in probably every quantifiable way (performance, reliability, resale, comfort, quality, even infotainment, luggage space, etc., etc.) but yet here we are on the Emira forum. Is that because we’re all dumb, or just because we irrationally prefer the Emira and thus have apparently joined the Emira cult?

 

[FlyNavy01]

Wow you took it personally lol. It's not about hating one company or the other. It's about acknowledging that even when presented with a better alternative, some consumers will have an inclination to disregard certain facts and lean to whatever their beliefs guide them to.

I've an Apple, but I can switch to Samsung or equivalent of it had better features. Many folks wouldn't. Same happens with cars. The quality of interior, panel gaps etc of a Tesla, is not appropriate for a 60k+ car, it just isn't because the Germans one offer a better alternative. Still, many buyers disregard those interior and quality control items and buy a Tesla.

Don't be offended by the word cult.

Tesla is by no means perfect (FSD is insultingly overpriced/hyped, the yoke steering a joke, etc), however, a slight drop in cosmetic build quality is worth it for better range & performance, the supercharging network, vastly superior software and battery tech, no dealership nonsense, and all the various other benefits Tesla's currently offer over the competition. I'm glad the Germans are releasing some quality alternatives, but Tesla is going nowhere but up in value at least for the next 3-5 years. Saying anything otherwise is denying the obvious.

Most people focus on their cars, but their number one advantage will be in manufacturing (vertical integration) and eventually energy generation/storage.

 

[Pops68]

Btw, I’d bet money that the current Cayman GTS is unquestionably a “better” car than the Emira, in probably every quantifiable way (performance, reliability, resale, comfort, quality, even infotainment, luggage space, etc., etc.) but yet here we are on the Emira forum. Is that because we’re all dumb, or just because we irrationally prefer the Emira and thus have apparently joined the Emira cult?

That may be true but exculsivity and looks are a big part of the game. In those catagories the Cayman just can't compete. And that tall gearing......

 

[centerpunch]

I’m with you. I’ve had a bunch of Porsches, but have zero interest in a current Cayman, or really any of their other cars. I’m really glad Lotus has emerged from the depths and seems to finally have the financial backing to turn into a real car company.