American cars in those days were big and heavy, with massive chrome bumpers. They weighed tons (literally). I remember when my parents bought a brand new 1956 Chevy. We went to the dealership to look at new cars, and my dad wasn't sure about getting one, so we drove back home. A salesman drove out to our house the next day in a new '56 Belair in copper and white two-tone to talk to my parents and give my dad a test drive. I thought it was just gorgeous. I was almost 5 years old at the time. Everybody's cars in those days were muted colors, like black, white or gray. We had an old white Buick, so the two-tone copper looked fantastic to me. When we finally went down to buy one, my dad chose a silver '56. I was so disappointed he didn't get the copper two-tone one. I didn't know or understand at the time about having to pay more for fancy trim and paint. The Belair was the 'luxury' model. We got the standard one. When we went to go get it, we got all dressed up. My mom put me in fancy pants, collared shirt and my hard sole dress shoes. I remember walking into the garage area with my parents where the car was and seeing it for the first time. There was a big neon sign on the wall "MK Smith Chevrolet". This was in Ontario, California in 1956. Our old Buick was the only car I'd ever known, so getting into a new car that was all shiny and had new car smell was incredible. I've never forgotten it. 65 years later I can still remember the sounds, the smell and the feeling of being there.
My dad also had a co-worker who was a friend of the family, and we'd go visit them. His name was Tom Flaherty and he had an MG-TC. First time I saw it, I was stunned. I thought it was absolutely fantastic looking, in dark green with black fenders and wire wheels. The top was down, and it was parked next to some Eucalyptus trees. That began my love affair with British sports cars. There were a few Jaguars around town, along with some MG's, Triumphs and Austin Healey bug-eye Sprites. My dad worked for Convair at the time (which later became General Dynamics) and some of the employees had British sports cars. They would have company picnics and play softball, etc. so that's where I'd see many of these cars. First time I saw an XKE Jag it looked so space-age compared to the huge Chevy's, Buicks, Oldsmobiles, Studebakers, etc. that were the norm in the neighborhood.
It was such a different world then. The "future" was electric appliances, like going from an icebox (we actually had one, and a guy would come to the house and bring a big block of ice and put it in the bottom of the refrigerator) to getting an electric refrigerator that didn't need ice. Going from a tub/wringer/washboard (my mom had one, and I'd sit on a stool next to it and turn the handle for the wringer while she fed the wet clothes through it). To this day, the smell of hot water and chlorine bleach brings back the memory of that. When we got an electric washing machine, it seemed like something magical.
I'm glad I got to experience the world I did when I did. I'm sure kids today would look at that and think it was so crude and primitive, and compared to today's world, I guess it was, but we never felt like we were deprived or suffering. Driving the Emira and manually shifting the trans is going to be like sitting on the line between the past, the present, and the future. Virtually all the people of my childhood are gone now, but I won't forget them, or the days of British sports cars, wire wheels, the sounds of their engines and shifting manual transmissions.
, it's up to anyone to buy according to their own preferences, plenty of options out there for those for whom the Emira does not fulfill the brief. Misguided and futile to say "Lotus should have made it this or made it that"; between the designers, engineers, stylists, dynamics developers and marketeers they came up with this particular blend of attributes.
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that Emira delivers or sadly it will be another car I cross off the list and then I’ll maybe just go back to G80 M3 ( but don’t want a large car ) Anyone else have similar concerns ?
However your getting One of the most beautiful cars on the planet! 
