📓 Journals McDonald's Emira Journal

[Lots_Of_Trouble]

Now that a week has passed since the elation on the day of collection, I have gathered a few thoughts.

Caveats:
Miles driven:110
Days used: 2
Road conditions:Salty and wet!
Limitations: Still half throttling revs up to 1000 miles.

Drive:
It pulls in every gear , unfortunately I still have to change before 4500rpm, so I'm not getting to hear that supercharger whine too much as it tends to kick in above 3500rpm I've noticed.
But it pulls more than enough for the road.

Gears:
Standard lotus,as you expect with the old cars,it's a short precise movement,I've buggered it up a few times annoyingly,the key is to do it smoothly and not rushed,as I'm sure most are aware.i feel I can get away with this more in other cars, just an adaptation to driving this,no biggie.

Seats:
Now,I was absolutely fine on the test drive,but even 30 mins drives now are KILLING MY LOWER BACK.
I presume that this is myset up and I probably should spend abit more time sorting the lower lumbar support,but a bit worrying if it keeps hurting me

Response from people:
I caught someone taking pictures yesterday, people lurk around it,rubber necks,thumbs up.

Infotainment:
Fast,smooth,if not abit glitchy when it comes to playing music.
When I turn the car on and I have to manually turn music on,the station acts like it's on vinyl,a skipping record for a few seconds....random,ill observe more over time.
I also pre set the seats to heat on start up via the settings,it didn't work this time and had to manually turn them on,again early days but something I'm aware of.

Colour combination:
It was a bold move to go for yellow and the red interior, but it paid off with the matching calipers and black alloys.
The only big is that Yellow shows everything,the car is filthy,but what can I expect.
Brilliant combo when it's clean

Tracker:
The app is diabolical.
Keeps cutting out,the icons are in bright yellow with white font,which I can't seem to change,stupid design,actually gutted I wasted another 500 pounds on the tracker,not worth it for me.

Overall impression so far after a weeks ownership:

When I first picked it up,I could help compare it to that GT4 I saw in the showroom,imagining that drive to be more solid and better, but I am obsessed with this machine,it is beautiful.
I look at it in the garage at night and first thing in the morning,it is stunning.

It's quick,it's nimble,it feels like an old elise still but luxurious enough to keep me from going to another brand.

Every day I love it more,its a keeper for me,as long as I manage to solve the seat problem hurting the back

 

[Snakes]

Now that a week has passed since the elation on the day of collection, I have gathered a few thoughts.

Caveats:
Miles driven:110
Days used: 2
Road conditions:Salty and wet!
Limitations: Still half throttling revs up to 1000 miles.

Drive:
It pulls in every gear , unfortunately I still have to change before 4500rpm, so I'm not getting to hear that supercharger whine too much as it tends to kick in above 3500rpm I've noticed.
But it pulls more than enough for the road.

Gears:
Standard lotus,as you expect with the old cars,it's a short precise movement,I've buggered it up a few times annoyingly,the key is to do it smoothly and not rushed,as I'm sure most are aware.i feel I can get away with this more in other cars, just an adaptation to driving this,no biggie.

Seats:
Now,I was absolutely fine on the test drive,but even 30 mins drives now are KILLING MY LOWER BACK.
I presume that this is myset up and I probably should spend abit more time sorting the lower lumbar support,but a bit worrying if it keeps hurting me

Response from people:
I caught someone taking pictures yesterday, people lurk around it,rubber necks,thumbs up.

Infotainment:
Fast,smooth,if not abit glitchy when it comes to playing music.
When I turn the car on and I have to manually turn music on,the station acts like it's on vinyl,a skipping record for a few seconds....random,ill observe more over time.
I also pre set the seats to heat on start up via the settings,it didn't work this time and had to manually turn them on,again early days but something I'm aware of.

Colour combination:
It was a bold move to go for yellow and the red interior, but it paid off with the matching calipers and black alloys.
The only big is that Yellow shows everything,the car is filthy,but what can I expect.
Brilliant combo when it's clean

Tracker:
The app is diabolical.
Keeps cutting out,the icons are in bright yellow with white font,which I can't seem to change,stupid design,actually gutted I wasted another 500 pounds on the tracker,not worth it for me.

Overall impression so far after a weeks ownership:

When I first picked it up,I could help compare it to that GT4 I saw in the showroom,imagining that drive to be more solid and better, but I am obsessed with this machine,it is beautiful.
I look at it in the garage at night and first thing in the morning,it is stunning.

It's quick,it's nimble,it feels like an old elise still but luxurious enough to keep me from going to another brand.

Every day I love it more,its a keeper for me,as long as I manage to solve the seat problem hurting the back

Thanks so much for the update which I find really useful and interesting. Keep them coming!

 

[Evotion]

The gear movement will continue to improve.

The most worrying thing is the seats.
Other people, like you and me, were fine with test drives but not that you have a few more miles on it, it is very worrying that you are now finding it very uncomfortable. This now speaks to me of a fundamental issues in the design. If you do find that positioning the lumbar differently eradicates the discomfort then report that good news back as others will be worried.

 

[Superman]

Great early update Keep the updates coming.

On the seats, do try out a few different positions... especially the lumber support - and remember, less lumbar support can often be better than more (counter-intuitive perhaps), so have a play around with that specifically.

 

[Lots_Of_Trouble]

Great early update Keep the updates coming.

On the seats, do try out a few different positions... especially the lumber support - and remember, less lumbar support can often be better than more (counter-intuitive perhaps), so have a play around with that specifically.

Thanks,will try this,I'm sure it's just getting the right setting...hopefully

 

[TomE]

Great update, really appreciate you taking the time to let us know.

The gear shift will improve as you get through running-in. Just keep using a measured and deliberate change action at this stage and it will help bed it in.

 

[Lots_Of_Trouble]

Update after 18 days of ownership:
Trips out:4
Mileage covered:250
Breakdowns:1
Days in for repair:6

Summary: I love it,but I abit dubious of the dealer relationship now.

Car:
Once issued were fixed,it seems to be running fine again,still itching to get above that 4500rpm but it's a keeper (or so it felt previously) so I'm looking after the longevity as guided.

Gearing:
Following a few of yours advice,with the slow precise Changes,the gear changes seem alot better and guided,it feels great already.

Seats:
I had an issue with this previously, I kept getting lower back pain as I couldn't get the seat right.
Since its come back from the dealer,the position is great,although this is only for 30 minute journeys.

Annoyances:
The cup holder is bloody useless for anything bigger than a small water bottle,completely In the way.

I hear the odd creak here and there,nothing major.

The seat belts seem tight and don't loosen as you try to pull it so easily,hard to explain,but not drastic so far.

The music player is annoying sometimes,when I start it,it doesn't always play the volume,I have to stop it and restart the song.... I can live with it but annoying.

Lights:
First drive at night, the beams are fantastic, crisp clear views.

Overall feel:
The car is beautiful and pulls I'm all gears.
The comments and looks I get are amusing,people asking if it's a ferrari etc,usual expected comments,a nice compliment.

Experience with dealers and HQ:
Let me get this clear,HQ were great in fairness,they were on it and quite a senior person owned it and delegated responsibility quickly.
They prioritised it,but the dealer didn't, which I can respect as they have their Book of Work,but I can tell they weren't happy about it,and I quite frankly didn't feel welcome with one individual who I won't name.

So much so, I'm not looking forward to future issues/dealings with the dealer,so I have asked another if I can move to their branch for servicing.

I'm due to go on the NC500 trip next month and Switzerland in June.
Fingers crossed the car holds out.

I love it, it has a great response from others and it drives well.

Stay the course if you are on the fence

 

[Snakes]

Thanks so much for your full and honest feedback. It really helps.

 

[schorsch]

What was the breakdown you had?

 

[VL3X]

What was the breakdown you had?

That thread can be found here.

 

[Superman]

Fingers crossed you get many miles of trouble free driving now and don't need to worry about dealing with dealers again for a while

 

[Lots_Of_Trouble]

What was the breakdown you had?

Mid life crisis-i bought a yellow car

 

[shaank]

Great write up If your doing the NC500, and have even 15mins to spare on the way I'd love to meet up and get some pics of two yellow Emira's in completely different specs side by side!!! (I'm in Edinburgh but can meet where ever.... if your up for it DM me your number and we can work something out!)

 

[GIN]

Thanks for taking the time to write the update. Hoping for trouble free driving going forward.

 

[Nick in Sydney]

The gear movement will continue to improve.

The most worrying thing is the seats.
Other people, like you and me, were fine with test drives but not that you have a few more miles on it, it is very worrying that you are now finding it very uncomfortable. This now speaks to me of a fundamental issues in the design. If you do find that positioning the lumbar differently eradicates the discomfort then report that good news back as others will be worried.

Seats are such a personal thing though. Harry drove his car over 2,000 miles in a few days with no issues.

 

[ino]

I hear the odd creak here and there,nothing major.

From my experience with Elise and Exige, no need to worry, it is Lotus as usual.
When I fasten my seat belt, when I look around, when I reseat, etc. they made noises.
It won't bother you for long.

I’m sorry to hear your frustration with dealer. Hope it would be solved when you found the another dealer.

 

[schorsch]

Mid life crisis-i bought a yellow car

Damn. Mine is yellow too. I will fetch it in a few days from the dealership.

 

[MPD]

Seats:
I had an issue with this previously, I kept getting lower back pain as I couldn't get the seat right.
Since its come back from the dealer,the position is great,although this is only for 30 minute journeys.

Thanks for the updates. Question - what changed on the seats to now provide a great position vs before?

 

[Lots_Of_Trouble]

Seats are such a personal thing though. Harry drove his car over 2,000 miles in a few days with no issues.

Such an unexpected thing,I've never had problems in any of my cars with seats,even the test drive in the emira wad fine and felt great.

There must be a perfect position, but odd it's taking me long to find it

 

[Lots_Of_Trouble]

Damn. Mine is yellow too. I will fetch it in a few days from the dealership.

It's a great colour, nothing to worry about