Italian Lotus Emira V6 First Edition: All the Problems I've Encountered Since Purchase

[Davide28]

Hello everyone,

I want to share my experience with the Lotus Emira V6 First Edition, detailing all the issues I've encountered since I bought the car. As of now, I have only driven 6,700 km with the car.

Initial Problems (Within the First 500 km):​

1. Warning Lights for Safety Systems (ESC and ABS): These systems were not functioning properly.
2. Tire Pressure Sensor Malfunction (specifically REAR LEFT).
3. Misalignment of the Rear Bumper: It was colliding with the bodywork.
4. Bodywork and Paint Issues: Various blemishes and paint defects were present.

Despite the poor customer service from Lotus in Italy (up until last year they didn’t even have operators who spoke Italian), I reached out to the Lotus dealer who sold me the car, Autotrend in Bari. They provided excellent support, picking up the car from my home and giving me their demo Lotus Emira as a replacement vehicle. Once they took the car, all issues were resolved, including replacing connectors and sensors for the tire pressure and safety systems, and polishing out the paint defects. There was also an issue with the passenger door seal, which would whistle at speeds over 160 km/h. The dealer ordered a replacement seal under warranty.

Problems Encountered Since September 2023:​

1. Electrical Issues with Dashboard Illumination: Occasionally, despite bright sunlight outside, the dashboard and instrument panel lights stay dim, making them nearly unreadable. This problem occurs rarely.
2. Electrical Failure: Twice, the car has "frozen" during startup with the electricity completely cut off. The only way to reset it is to open the trunk and disconnect and reconnect the battery.

Ongoing Issues:​

1. Clutch and Gearbox Problems: As I became more familiar with the car, I noticed some issues that I believe can be resolved with clutch and gearbox adjustments:
   • Clutch Engagement: It seems to need adjustment. With the gear engaged and the clutch fully depressed, it doesn’t seem to disengage 100%.
   • Gear Shifting: At high speeds, the gears often struggle to engage, especially when shifting from third to fourth gear.
2. Speaker Vibration: There's a vibration from the passenger-side rear speaker at medium to high stereo volumes.

Recent Issue:​

1. Engine Stalling: After sitting idle for a few days, the car has difficulty maintaining idle and stalls repeatedly before starting. On the fifth attempt, the engine warning light came on. This problem has occurred for the second time.

Currently, I’ve contacted the dealer again, and they have kindly agreed to pick up the car to address all the known issues.

What do you think? Have any of you experienced similar problems with your Lotus Emira or other vehicles?

 

[Eagle7]

The electrical issues all sound like a weak battery. Tell the dealer you want a new battery under warranty. The clutch and gear shifting sound like they just need adjusting, which is something the dealer should easily be able to do.

 

[Davide28]

The electrical issues all sound like a weak battery. Tell the dealer you want a new battery under warranty. The clutch and gear shifting sound like they just need adjusting, which is something the dealer should easily be able to do.

---

Hi Eagle7,
I agree with you that the electrical issues might be due to a weak battery, and I will ask the dealer for a replacement under warranty. The clutch and gear shifting problems do seem like they could be fixed with adjustments.
However, what worries me the most is the latest issue with the car struggling to start after sitting idle for a few days, eventually triggering the engine warning light. This problem has occurred twice now and is quite concerning. Additionally, I sometimes feel slight power losses around 5000-5500 rpm when accelerating hard.
Thanks for your advice!

 

[Eagle7]

---

Hi Eagle7,
I agree with you that the electrical issues might be due to a weak battery, and I will ask the dealer for a replacement under warranty. The clutch and gear shifting problems do seem like they could be fixed with adjustments.
However, what worries me the most is the latest issue with the car struggling to start after sitting idle for a few days, eventually triggering the engine warning light. This problem has occurred twice now and is quite concerning. Additionally, I sometimes feel slight power losses around 5000-5500 rpm when accelerating hard.
Thanks for your advice!

That start issue is definitely a symptom of a weak battery. I don't think the factory batteries were all that good to begin with, to be honest. I've replaced mine with an Antigravity lithium battery which has been great (although a bit expensive), however a good AGM battery from another manufacturer (I don't know what's available in Italy) would probably be a good move.

As far as the power loss at the upper rpms, have you ever replaced the air filter? 6,700 kms is enough to possibly need a filter replacement.

 

[Davide28]

That start issue is definitely a symptom of a weak battery. I don't think the factory batteries were all that good to begin with, to be honest. I've replaced mine with an Antigravity lithium battery which has been great (although a bit expensive), however a good AGM battery from another manufacturer (I don't know what's available in Italy) would probably be a good move.

As far as the power loss at the upper rpms, have you ever replaced the air filter? 6,700 kms is enough to possibly need a filter replacement.

Hi Eagle7,

Thank you for your input. The starting issue feels more like an engine problem rather than a battery issue, since the car will start if I manually accelerate; otherwise, it stalls. This makes me think there might be something wrong with the engine management system.

Regarding the battery, could you recommend a specific type or brand that would enhance performance? Additionally, I'm considering changing the air filter—any suggestions on which one to buy for better efficiency?

Thanks again for your help and advice!

 

[Eagle7]

So it won't idle? That could be a fuel filter issue, or something fuel related. I'd let the dealer sort that one out.

I don't know what brand batteries are available in Italy, but Duralast are good here if they have those there. You need an H6-AGM size.

For air filter I know one of our vendors, @GRP has them, but I don't know if he ships to Italy:

High-Flow Dry Media Drop-In Air Filter for Lotus Emira V6

Drop In Dry High Flow Air filter for your Emira V6! These drop in panel filters are designed to meet both durability and performance needs. These efficient oil-free filters will increase horsepower and torque. The dry high flow design is cleanable with basic soap and water and will be the last...

www.gregsraceparts.com

You're welcome!

 

[nimbus]

Hello everyone,

I want to share my experience with the Lotus Emira V6 First Edition, detailing all the issues I've encountered since I bought the car. As of now, I have only driven 6,700 km with the car.

Initial Problems (Within the First 500 km):​

1. Warning Lights for Safety Systems (ESC and ABS): These systems were not functioning properly.
2. Tire Pressure Sensor Malfunction (specifically REAR LEFT).
3. Misalignment of the Rear Bumper: It was colliding with the bodywork.
4. Bodywork and Paint Issues: Various blemishes and paint defects were present.

Despite the poor customer service from Lotus in Italy (up until last year they didn’t even have operators who spoke Italian), I reached out to the Lotus dealer who sold me the car, Autotrend in Bari. They provided excellent support, picking up the car from my home and giving me their demo Lotus Emira as a replacement vehicle. Once they took the car, all issues were resolved, including replacing connectors and sensors for the tire pressure and safety systems, and polishing out the paint defects. There was also an issue with the passenger door seal, which would whistle at speeds over 160 km/h. The dealer ordered a replacement seal under warranty.

Problems Encountered Since September 2023:​

1. Electrical Issues with Dashboard Illumination: Occasionally, despite bright sunlight outside, the dashboard and instrument panel lights stay dim, making them nearly unreadable. This problem occurs rarely.
2. Electrical Failure: Twice, the car has "frozen" during startup with the electricity completely cut off. The only way to reset it is to open the trunk and disconnect and reconnect the battery.

Ongoing Issues:​

1. Clutch and Gearbox Problems: As I became more familiar with the car, I noticed some issues that I believe can be resolved with clutch and gearbox adjustments:
   • Clutch Engagement: It seems to need adjustment. With the gear engaged and the clutch fully depressed, it doesn’t seem to disengage 100%.
   • Gear Shifting: At high speeds, the gears often struggle to engage, especially when shifting from third to fourth gear.
2. Speaker Vibration: There's a vibration from the passenger-side rear speaker at medium to high stereo volumes.

Recent Issue:​

1. Engine Stalling: After sitting idle for a few days, the car has difficulty maintaining idle and stalls repeatedly before starting. On the fifth attempt, the engine warning light came on. This problem has occurred for the second time.

Currently, I’ve contacted the dealer again, and they have kindly agreed to pick up the car to address all the known issues.

What do you think? Have any of you experienced similar problems with your Lotus Emira or other vehiclesssues with cars not starting

Hello everyone,

I want to share my experience with the Lotus Emira V6 First Edition, detailing all the issues I've encountered since I bought the car. As of now, I have only driven 6,700 km with the car.

Initial Problems (Within the First 500 km):​

1. Warning Lights for Safety Systems (ESC and ABS): These systems were not functioning properly.
2. Tire Pressure Sensor Malfunction (specifically REAR LEFT).
3. Misalignment of the Rear Bumper: It was colliding with the bodywork.
4. Bodywork and Paint Issues: Various blemishes and paint defects were present.

Despite the poor customer service from Lotus in Italy (up until last year they didn’t even have operators who spoke Italian), I reached out to the Lotus dealer who sold me the car, Autotrend in Bari. They provided excellent support, picking up the car from my home and giving me their demo Lotus Emira as a replacement vehicle. Once they took the car, all issues were resolved, including replacing connectors and sensors for the tire pressure and safety systems, and polishing out the paint defects. There was also an issue with the passenger door seal, which would whistle at speeds over 160 km/h. The dealer ordered a replacement seal under warranty.

Problems Encountered Since September 2023:​

1. Electrical Issues with Dashboard Illumination: Occasionally, despite bright sunlight outside, the dashboard and instrument panel lights stay dim, making them nearly unreadable. This problem occurs rarely.
2. Electrical Failure: Twice, the car has "frozen" during startup with the electricity completely cut off. The only way to reset it is to open the trunk and disconnect and reconnect the battery.

Ongoing Issues:​

1. Clutch and Gearbox Problems: As I became more familiar with the car, I noticed some issues that I believe can be resolved with clutch and gearbox adjustments:
   • Clutch Engagement: It seems to need adjustment. With the gear engaged and the clutch fully depressed, it doesn’t seem to disengage 100%.
   • Gear Shifting: At high speeds, the gears often struggle to engage, especially when shifting from third to fourth gear.
2. Speaker Vibration: There's a vibration from the passenger-side rear speaker at medium to high stereo volumes.

Recent Issue:​

1. Engine Stalling: After sitting idle for a few days, the car has difficulty maintaining idle and stalls repeatedly before starting. On the fifth attempt, the engine warning light came on. This problem has occurred for the second time.

Currently, I’ve contacted the dealer again, and they have kindly agreed to pick up the car to address all the known issues.

What do you think? Have any of you experienced similar problems with your Lotus Emira or other vehicles?

Some people have had issues with cars not starting smoothly after not being driven for a while.

Cold start stalling

I did notice on the drive home that it now seems to have the hill start assist so I’m guessing that was part of the update too? It was there since day one.. maybe they have the parameters to engage fixed now. Before you had to be standing in a very specific way somehow (never engaged for me...

www.emiraforum.com

The latest Lotus software update fixed this for some people.

 

[LOTUSSTEVE]

Hello everyone,

I want to share my experience with the Lotus Emira V6 First Edition, detailing all the issues I've encountered since I bought the car. As of now, I have only driven 6,700 km with the car.

Initial Problems (Within the First 500 km):​

1. Warning Lights for Safety Systems (ESC and ABS): These systems were not functioning properly.
2. Tire Pressure Sensor Malfunction (specifically REAR LEFT).
3. Misalignment of the Rear Bumper: It was colliding with the bodywork.
4. Bodywork and Paint Issues: Various blemishes and paint defects were present.

Despite the poor customer service from Lotus in Italy (up until last year they didn’t even have operators who spoke Italian), I reached out to the Lotus dealer who sold me the car, Autotrend in Bari. They provided excellent support, picking up the car from my home and giving me their demo Lotus Emira as a replacement vehicle. Once they took the car, all issues were resolved, including replacing connectors and sensors for the tire pressure and safety systems, and polishing out the paint defects. There was also an issue with the passenger door seal, which would whistle at speeds over 160 km/h. The dealer ordered a replacement seal under warranty.

Problems Encountered Since September 2023:​

1. Electrical Issues with Dashboard Illumination: Occasionally, despite bright sunlight outside, the dashboard and instrument panel lights stay dim, making them nearly unreadable. This problem occurs rarely.
2. Electrical Failure: Twice, the car has "frozen" during startup with the electricity completely cut off. The only way to reset it is to open the trunk and disconnect and reconnect the battery.

Ongoing Issues:​

1. Clutch and Gearbox Problems: As I became more familiar with the car, I noticed some issues that I believe can be resolved with clutch and gearbox adjustments:
   • Clutch Engagement: It seems to need adjustment. With the gear engaged and the clutch fully depressed, it doesn’t seem to disengage 100%.
   • Gear Shifting: At high speeds, the gears often struggle to engage, especially when shifting from third to fourth gear.
2. Speaker Vibration: There's a vibration from the passenger-side rear speaker at medium to high stereo volumes.

Recent Issue:​

1. Engine Stalling: After sitting idle for a few days, the car has difficulty maintaining idle and stalls repeatedly before starting. On the fifth attempt, the engine warning light came on. This problem has occurred for the second time.

Currently, I’ve contacted the dealer again, and they have kindly agreed to pick up the car to address all the known issues.

What do you think? Have any of you experienced similar problems with your Lotus Emira or other vehicles?

As far as engine stalling,mine was fixed with a software upgrade by the dealer.

 

[Shahaf2911]

I want to share my experience with the Lotus Emira V6 First Edition, detailing all the issues I've encountered since I bought the car. As of now, I have only driven 6,700 km with the car..

Sorry to hear about your issues, I had a couple of them like you have (but definitely not as many), hope everything will get resolved quickly.
I see you’re from Termoli, beautiful area!
Regarding the electrical issue, I had the same problem, what my dealer found out is it was a weak ground, the remedy was like yours until the dealer fix it, I would definitely tell them to check it out if the new battery didn’t help.
Regarding the stalling, I didn’t have it for around a year, then it started but a software update presumably solved it, tho I’ve seen that some say it’s the fuel.
I couldn’t tell which one was it if I’m honest.
How did they manage the paint blisters situation if I may ask ? I didn’t notice any, hopefully I won’t see any this weekend I’m with the car before I export it in a week or two
Hopefully you’re still enjoying your car, I sure have, it was a great year and a half so much so I’m exporting my Emira (from Italy) to my home country to make it my daily thus having to pay additional ~93k € in taxes haha and idk if I’ll ever sell it to be honest

 

[LOTUSSTEVE]

2

Sorry to hear about your issues, I had a couple of them like you have (but definitely not as many), hope everything will get resolved quickly.
I see you’re from Termoli, beautiful area!
Regarding the electrical issue, I had the same problem, what my dealer found out is it was a weak ground, the remedy was like yours until the dealer fix it, I would definitely tell them to check it out if the new battery didn’t help.
Regarding the stalling, I didn’t have it for around a year, then it started but a software update presumably solved it, tho I’ve seen that some say it’s the fuel.
I couldn’t tell which one was it if I’m honest.
How did they manage the paint blisters situation if I may ask ? I didn’t notice any, hopefully I won’t see any this weekend I’m with the car before I export it in a week or two
Hopefully you’re still enjoying your car, I sure have, it was a great year and a half so much so I’m exporting my Emira (from Italy) to my home country to make it my daily thus having to pay additional ~93k € in taxes haha and idk if I’ll ever sell it to be honest

Wow that's a lot of tax,is it paid to Italy or your home country.
Where is your home country and excuse my ignorance but why not just buy another one from your home country.

 

[Shahaf2911]

2

Wow that's a lot of tax,is it paid to Italy or your home country.
Where is your home country and excuse my ignorance but why not just buy another one from your home country.

Italy's tax rate (VAT) is 22% which I paid when I bought my car 1.5 years ago, I rather buy more special cars there at this rate as it’s better than where I mostly live (Israel) because over here the tax rate is ~150%. But I might be able to get a VAT refund in Italy.
Though I specifically bought the Emira in Italy firsthand so I could fix any issues there because there are no lotus dealers here (good luck to me haha) and enjoy the depreciation (1.5yr) thus paying less taxes later.

 

[LOTUSSTEVE]

Italy's tax rate (VAT) is 22% which I paid when I bought my car 1.5 years ago, I rather buy more special cars there at this rate as it’s better than where I mostly live (Israel) because over here the tax rate is ~150%. But I might be able to get a VAT refund in Italy.
Though I specifically bought the Emira in Italy firsthand so I could fix any issues there because there are no lotus dealers here (good luck to me haha) and enjoy

Italy's tax rate (VAT) is 22% which I paid when I bought my car 1.5 years ago, I rather buy more special cars there at this rate as it’s better than where I mostly live (Israel) because over here the tax rate is ~150%. But I might be able to get a VAT refund in Italy.
Though I specifically bought the Emira in Italy firsthand so I could fix any issues there because there are no lotus dealers here (good luck to me haha) and enjoy the depreciation (1.5yr) thus paying less taxes later.

 

[LOTUSSTEVE]

Ouch! either way you get stung an incredible amount.
Thanks for the reply,It's good to see another dedicated Emira owner,I've had mine for 18months and will be keeping it for many many years.
Best wishes and lets hope this war gets sorted quickly.