Henry Catchpole - Carfection review

[VL3X]

Gavan has said he’s not satisfied they can get the ride and handling they want with an electronic active damper. It’s not a cost issue, as they’ve held out for other things that are more costly because they feel they are important.

Adjustable setup might come on the S/GT model, at least as a cost option. It was an option on the Evora GT430.

Ok, so one man in charge is not satisfied, yet most other modern sportscars (from entry-level to hypercar) use active dampers for some crazy reason.

It always comes down to money.

 

[For the drivers]

Adjustable Ohlins where standard on the Evora 430 and not a option and being a owner of a 410 GT sport on Cup 2s which i have previously stated is a fantastic handling car and havind had the opportunity to drive a few 430s the difference is massive. It is obviously down to cost Ohlins are not being offered please don’t let anyone tell you this is not the case.

 

[R1272]

Comments like this makes me think if 80% of emira members forum are hidden workers of porsche

No, but I have daily driven my 997 for 15 years!

I'm just responding to another luke warm review. It's out there for all to see. Forum saboteurs are not necessary.

 

[kitkat]

Comments like this makes me think if 80% of emira members forum are hidden workers of porsche

Does that make the remaining 20% Lotus marketing reps?

 

[TomE]

Ok, so one man in charge is not satisfied, yet most other modern sportscars (from entry-level to hypercar) use active dampers for some crazy reason.

It always comes down to money.

Multiple car companies come to Lotus for consultancy work on ride and handling, and they're widely recognised as the industry experts on this topic. One (very experienced) man heads up a large team who work on this stuff. Lotus pioneered the use of active dampers in F1, and have repeatedly looked at available options for each new Lotus car but so far have ruled them out on their sportscars.

If it was only about the cost then they wouldn't use a double wishbone setup. And they'd have selected different tyres.

 

[Pav]

Just watched for first time. I thought it was a positive review overall. I know I’ve said it before but for years Ducati reviews always said similar things; heavy on turn in, not the easiest to ride or the logical choice (Honda = Porsche) but very rewarding when you get it right on the right bit of road. Steering and power balanced the way the designers intended is a right faff to learn but that’s all part of the reason we like sports toys. It’s worth it in the end!

The stuff about sport/touring set up, old power train and clunky gear change just washes over me now. It’s just reviewer fishbait (nothing wrong with that, I’ve just got a bit bored of it.)

Clearly the Emira looks stunning and if as he says, it feels more connected to an Exige and Evora than the next gen of Geely funded cars, I’ll be more than happy I expect. Can’t wait for test drive now.

 

[TomE]

Adjustable Ohlins where standard on the Evora 430 and not a option and being a owner of a 410 GT sport on Cup 2s which i have previously stated is a fantastic handling car and havind had the opportunity to drive a few 430s the difference is massive. It is obviously down to cost Ohlins are not being offered please don’t let anyone tell you this is not the case.

Sorry my mistake, adjustable Ohlins were standard on the GT430 and a cost option on the GT410. It was £5,500 for the Ohlins in place of the standard non-adjustable Eibach/Bilstein setup. The GT430 was about £105k base and the GT410 was £85k base.

If Lotus offered adjustable Ohlins on the Emira for another £5-6k, how many people would take it? I expect it'll be offered as an option on the S/GT version.

 

[dgrace]

I wonder how much a little camber and toe out tweak could convince the Goodyears to turn in more aggressively, at the cost of a little extra tire wear.

 

[Cutting42]

I made the mistake of reading the doom and gloom on here first and almost did not watch the review. I girded my loins and bravely went in to battle and…………. Nothing. Henry’s usually relaxed style and lots of nice things said about the Emira? Bu but but, I heard it was terrible and an embarrassment, not fit to be spoken in the same sentence as the P word.

Honestly I really wonder what people are expecting from a £60k car, anything less than the best car ever made ever; bringing each reviewer to a messy climax is a disaster? I guess most folks live in such an idyllic perfect world anything less cannot be tolerated.

I need a break from this forum

NB, all the above is said somewhat tongue in cheek but it is like watching a football crowds shouting building in crescendo and pitch as they get near the goal and then a descending defeated ohhhhh as the ball is skied.

 

[Lotustoronto]

I made the mistake of reading the doom and gloom on here first and almost did not watch the review. I girded my loins and bravely went in to battle and…………. Nothing. Henry’s usually relaxed style and lots of nice things said about the Emira? Bu but but, I heard it was terrible and an embarrassment, not fit to be spoken in the same sentence as the P word.

Honestly I really wonder what people are expecting from a £60k car, anything less than the best car ever made ever; bringing each reviewer to a messy climax is a disaster? I guess most folks live in such an idyllic perfect world anything less cannot be tolerated.

I need a break from this forum

NB, all the above is said somewhat tongue in cheek but it is like watching a football crowds shouting building in crescendo and pitch as they get near the goal and then a descending defeated ohhhhh as the ball is skied.

I thought it was a pretty good review... car looks great. Only thing I'm still unsure of is touring or sport....

 

[Magma]

Comments like this makes me think if 80% of emira members forum are hidden workers of porsche

Lol...Porsche is not threatened.

 

[Green]

Hmmm I guess some people see the glass half empty and some see it half full. I watched the video twice. I thought the scenery was amazing. What beautiful countryside. The video was put together very well. Last but definitely not least the EMIRA looked truly amazing. More excited than ever! When you get professional reviews you can expect nitpicking. I really do not believe the average road driver will pick up on the nuance’s. Anything can be torn down if overly analyzed. I really cannot find another car that interests me. I will hold on to my manual R8 for insurance but I expect it will be for sale in the near future.

 

[Cachaco131]

Unless everyone on here has an FE on order, I think there is a lot of unnecessary panic. Drive the demo cars, maybe do the lotus academy and that will suffice to make a call. We should have some judgment of our own and not be entirely subject to the reviewers that for the most part drive a car in a very different way than we do.

 

[EspritGuy]

Reading between the lines.
The exerior design is great.

Frustration at lack of a finished car (I still don't believe it's just down to supply)

Lotus should have put a new drive train and engine in it for the FE launch car.

The AMG unit could be a better choice
Suspension (sports) is quirky

In Summary
A slightly confused offering as it could be a great car but some design choices have missed the mark. Still going to a great alternative to the 'other sports car'

And oddly nothing about wheel gap or bonnet seam.
So not that credible .

 

[rich64]

I thought the review was positive, yes they may have to do some tweaks over time to improve handling, what manufacture doesn't.... The CEO of VW/Porsche/Bentley was just given the sack for the amount of software bugs.
I drove the Emira last Friday, very impressed with the feel and handling. As others have commented, this is built to a price level and offers very good value. Half the price of a 911 I was looking at getting here in NZ, not half the car.

 

[kitkat]

Sorry my mistake, adjustable Ohlins were standard on the GT430 and a cost option on the GT410. It was £5,500 for the Ohlins in place of the standard non-adjustable Eibach/Bilstein setup. The GT430 was about £105k base and the GT410 was £85k base.

If Lotus offered adjustable Ohlins on the Emira for another £5-6k, how many people would take it? I expect it'll be offered as an option on the S/GT version.

For a set of TTX, hell yeah I’m in!

 

[daniel heald]

Ok, so one man in charge is not satisfied, yet most other modern sportscars (from entry-level to hypercar) use active dampers for some crazy reason.

It always comes down to money.

My local Porsche independant dealer is doing very nice business swapping active dampers out on 911s for a well tuned normal damper. He says they are great for journalists on a three hour test but useless for the real world over the lfe time of the car. He even said the Bilstien active are a low quality damper. I was surprised to hear this.

 

[Dabjbr]

Just adding my two cents…

I was hoping for a more positive review especially in the handling department (I had already accepted adequate-but-not-sensational acceleration.) So, I too am a bit disappointed and continue to lose excitement.

What I had hoped for was an Evora Gt feel, performance and rawness in a sexier shell with a modern day interior.

I’ve watched this Evora review so many times over the last year. Why couldn’t it been just this in a newer shell?! Ugh.

 

[Dabjbr]

And another thing, I get there will likely be other variants with more power and features but as an early adopter, that kinda blows. Didn’t a bunch of original Evora buyers get burned after the first year? Didn’t that also happen to Supra owners? (In each case, significant bumps in power after the first MY.

I know. It is what it is. But cant say I’ll be happy with it.

End rant. Onto processing childish emotions.

 

[emiraspain]

I'm not trying to be insulting here, but I don't know why I still watch Carfection videos... Every time I do, without fail, a minute or two into the video my eyes start glazing over and Henry's sultry, monotone voice starts putting me to sleep...

And it's the same story regardless of whether he's reviewing an Emira or an Aventador Ultimae. A very strange approach, when you consider how thrilling and exciting these machines are supposed to be.

Yes I agree 100%, he is not for me an interesting reviewer, he tries way to hard .... comes across as a retired english professor, not an animated car reviewer. He tries to be so eloquent with his words, and his clothes that look like he has just walked out of university, albeit Oxford and albeit jeans that are in fact designer and cost north of 120 pounds. I dont dislike him, but everything from his smile to his "acting" is contrived... sorry, he needs a wasp to bite him on the xxse and then do the review haha