[Vampyre]

Evora GT > 400
comparison between the Lotus Evora 400 and the Evora GT

Track Times:

Track	Lotus Evora 400	Lotus Evora GT
Hockenheimring GP (Germany)	1:07.7	1:06.9
Anglesey Coastal (UK)	1:11.0	1:09.9
Bedfordshire (UK)	1:30.4	1:29.3

 

[lotusquacious]

I'll yield on items like cosmetics and interior appeal - some people like it, some people don't. It's subjective in the eyes of the beholder, and that's fine. My main point was on the performance and overall upgrades/changes on the side of things that make it overall better than the S1.

I'm not going to debate on S1 vs S2, but was merely laying down why the Evora GT is still the better car. If you were to get the Emira today, you'd get the latest hype at the cost of big depreciation for the next 1-3 years, whereas the price curve of the Evora GT is still the same, perhaps beginning to appreciate in the next 2-3 years.

In general I don’t disagree. Read my post again. After all, I own an S2.

 

[lotusquacious]

Inokinetic shifters better than 400/GT
Call me Gumby. Any Evora is EASY compared to an Elige/4C.
Smooth lines of Emira much more closely relate to S1 IMHO.
I have seen far too many Sparcos pop fasteners etc and they feel flat compared to the S1 Recaros. Only seats as good are those on my Quad. My long distance trips to VIR etc very comfortable. Its not plain street driving comfort, the side bolsters are much smaller and I don't fit into them like my Recaros that encase my ribs perfectly.
The looks are an opposite contrast to the earlier edgy Esprits v the later rounded models. Of course subjective.
Going to have to spend some serious seat time in an Emira. Getting the feeling they left a lot of room for a more hardcore version........a la Sport 410 etc.

Finally Lotusquacious nailed about the rawness. Those prettier fit n finished interiors on 400/GT are NOT as raw as an S1 which is more business with an esthetic dash shape. Again IMHO. Been in plenty at all speeds so I have PLENTY of comparison experience. Then again, a nice set of hethelsports refine the ride surprisingly so in many ways my S1 is now more refined than a 400 even though i am running 400 spring rates. I know my car is a stout 400HP at ~3050 lbs with better ratios than a 400/GT in the all important 4rth/5th zone so no 400/GT has pulled me yet at WGI back straight. I am at top of revs when they have to deal with the 5th gear land of torquelessness.

The comparo pics are fabulous and show how well the clock moved forward on the Emira. Hate to say it, but the Evora looks dated next to that Emira!!! As you can see, I have been bitching a lot but still think the Emira is pure eye candy!!!

I think you can make the case that with the right tweaks any vintage of Evora can be made to equal or exceed the performance of the later cars. I am also prepared to believe that Recaros are better than the sparcos but I find the Sparcos very comfortable and more than capable of doing the job on road. Not everything they changed under the Gales regime was for the better but for me just the ingress/egress improvement was worth the price of admission. I believe the factory materials cost of the S1 interior was actually higher than the later models but I also think other improvements in process generally favor the 400 and even more so, GT. I don’t think there’s any doubt the S1 interior cost them more to fabricate. And finally, the Emira is gorgeous.
All of this is debatable although, as taught in Humanities 101, in matters of taste there can be no argument!

 

[brightoncorgi]

I am also prepared to believe that Recaros are better than the sparcos but I find the Sparcos very comfortable and more than capable of doing the job on road.

The Recaros are legendary beyond just Lotus Evora having them. A tried and true sports car seat used by Ford and Nissan as well.

 

[Sunnyroses]

Evora GT > 400
comparison between the Lotus Evora 400 and the Evora GT

Track Times:

Track	Lotus Evora 400	Lotus Evora GT
Hockenheimring GP (Germany)	1:07.7	1:06.9
Anglesey Coastal (UK)	1:11.0	1:09.9
Bedfordshire (UK)	1:30.4	1:29.3

Very interesting to see the 400 not that far behind the GT. Not a great difference. I pine for a GT but finding one here in IPS will be difficult, in addition to paying an extra $20k+ is prob not worth it in the end for me. Plus I daily drive my 400, and its suspension is sublime for spirited and pothole-missing city driving. Seeing these numbers for the first time makes me think I have the proper model for my purposes.

 

[Sunnyroses]

IMO the order of best for on road driving out of the main larger cars.

GT, 400, Emira, Evora S, evora

I’ve ordered and then driven the Emira, I ended up cancelling my order after driving it.

The emira felt heavier and slower than my 400, I was not at all impressed. It feels like a 400 in a fat suit. I think the Emira serves a very different demographic, it’s more of a daily driver and less of a sports car / super car feeling to it.

on top of it, emira prices are already dropping quick. They are making tons of them, it’s not as rare as a GT or 400, and I think used emiras will quickly be selling for less than the GT / 400.

These are the comments I most treasure and was looking for when the Emira orders opened up. Other 400 owners. Fat suit is not a good look and is well put.

I have said numerous times that they built a Porsche Emira. They had to in order to sell some cars. I just received my Certificate of Provenance and found out there were only 5 IPS and 5 Manual 400s sent to Canada for 2017? They needed to build a refined sports car, and from every last thing I have read they succeeded. Steering not as direct, exhaust not as loud, more comfy overall. That was my 991.2 compared to my 400. I will say though if you can daily a 911 like me, then a 400 is absolutely doable as well. Only major difference for me so far is dealing with the crowd of onlookers at Home Depot surrounding my 400...

 

[lotusquacious]

IMO the order of best for on road driving out of the main larger cars.

GT, 400, Emira, Evora S, evora

I’ve ordered and then driven the Emira, I ended up cancelling my order after driving it.

The emira felt heavier and slower than my 400, I was not at all impressed. It feels like a 400 in a fat suit. I think the Emira serves a very different demographic, it’s more of a daily driver and less of a sports car / super car feeling to it.

on top of it, emira prices are already dropping quick. They are making tons of them, it’s not as rare as a GT or 400, and I think used emiras will quickly be selling for less than the GT / 400.

Here’s a take on future values. Agree? Disagree? Time will tell.

 

[EspritGuy]

Here’s a take on future values. Agree? Disagree? Time will tell

 

[NC25T]

I feel the older the Lotus the more Lotus it is, not by model year but the model itself.

the newer the cars have more electronics, safety stuff etc which add weight, complexity etc… which in the past isn’t what Lotus is about.

it doesn’t make the newer cars bad, it’s a different world now then days of the past.

I don’t know why Lotus added weight with the Emira and also dropped its power. Even my GT seems down on power, i can only imagine adding 100+ and also dropping 10-20HP.

If they can’t get 450HP from the v6, I almost wish they would have just ditched the manual completely and released the Emira with 450+ HP. I know that would of turned off a lot of buyers not having a manual, but the lack of power is having similar results.

 

[brgelise]

Put an Emira and any Evora side by said in a high volume foot traffic area. My gut tells me the compliments of one v the other will be 80:20 in favor of the Emira.
How it feels slower is probably just more refined suspension tuning. Same 400HP, same tranny, cars within 50+/- lbs. Its all in your head son. A SIMPLE LITHIUM BATTERY SWAP WILL REMOVE MOST OF THE WEIGHT DIFFERENCE. Hopefully our Euro friends will tell us the weight of the stock exhaust. I know my 2011S was like 44lbs v 18.5 = 25.5lbs.
So easy to drop 50lbs........oversized 20s up front ...hmmmmm another 10lbs..........2 piece rotors another 10-15lbs...........~75lbs are easy pickins v a stock 400. So much for heavy and slow

 

[brgelise]

I think you can make the case that with the right tweaks any vintage of Evora can be made to equal or exceed the performance of the later cars. I am also prepared to believe that Recaros are better than the sparcos but I find the Sparcos very comfortable and more than capable of doing the job on road. Not everything they changed under the Gales regime was for the better but for me just the ingress/egress improvement was worth the price of admission. I believe the factory materials cost of the S1 interior was actually higher than the later models but I also think other improvements in process generally favor the 400 and even more so, GT. I don’t think there’s any doubt the S1 interior cost them more to fabricate. And finally, the Emira is gorgeous.
All of this is debatable although, as taught in Humanities 101, in matters of taste there can be no argument!

You can still see my S1 love!!!

 

[Exira]

Ah, reverse psychology!
Sadly for you, my GT is never leaving my hands now that I have had the opportunity to compare. I made the mistake of selling my Elise years ago, and will never do something dumb like that again.

I too make the mistake of selling my Elise back in 2010. To compensate for that mistake, I now own 4 Lotus. Evora will be the only 2+2 mid-engine Lotus. That +2 is very useful for extra luggage, small kids, and large pets. If I can only have one Lotus, I will prob keep the Evora.

 

[NC25T]

Put an Emira and any Evora side by said in a high volume foot traffic area. My gut tells me the compliments of one v the other will be 80:20 in favor of the Emira.
How it feels slower is probably just more refined suspension tuninng. Same 400HP, same tranny, cars within 50+/- lbs. Its all in your head son. A SIMPLE LITHIUM BATTERY SWAP WILL REMOVE MOST OF THE WEIGHT DIFFERENCE. Hopefully our Euro friends will tell us the weight of the stock exhaust. I know my 2011S was like 44lbs v 18.5 = 25.5lbs.
So easy to drop 50lbs........oversized 20s up front ...hmmmmm another 10lbs..........2 piece rotors another 10-15lbs...........~75lbs are easy pickins v a stock 400. So much for heavy and slow

owning a GT, I do agree that the majority will prefer the Emira, I wouldn’t be surprised if it was more then 80/20 that prefer the Emira, it is a great looking car!

that being said, last I checked the GT’s have 416 HP while other parts of the world the Evora developed 430 HP at its peak. Both numbers are a bit more vs the 400 HP Emira

its more like 100+ LBS difference & correct, a new battery can be swapped in the Emira just like a Ti muffler, Ohlins, rotors,, wheels, seats etc to drop 100-150 lbs. That being said the same can be done to the Evora. I was at 3,160 lbs with a full tank of gas, I can’t recall whose video I watched where the Emira was approx 90 lbs more then my evora with a 1/4 tank of fuel. Subtract 8 gallons of fuel from my car and the weight difference is over 100 lbs.

That being said, with all the modern day electronics in the Emira, the added computers, creature comforts etc well done to Lotus for keeping the cars weight down. I think I saw the c8 ZO6 is around 3,650 lbs….

 

[brgelise]

Evora GT > 400
comparison between the Lotus Evora 400 and the Evora GT

Track Times:

Track	Lotus Evora 400	Lotus Evora GT
Hockenheimring GP (Germany)	1:07.7	1:06.9
Anglesey Coastal (UK)	1:11.0	1:09.9
Bedfordshire (UK)	1:30.4	1:29.3

And the tires were. Try to remember 235/285 v 245/295.............also went to PS2s v SS's I believe. Tires alone make that difference and then some.

So you were at 3160 and I am at 3060- in same spec (full gas) A pair of Technocrafts or Tillets would get me below 3000lbs but I love my recaros too much. And I'm not going to win any trophies..................

 

[lotsa777]

owning a GT, I do agree that the majority will prefer the Emira, I wouldn’t be surprised if it was more then 80/20 that prefer the Emira, it is a great looking car!

that being said, last I checked the GT’s have 416 HP while other parts of the world the Evora developed 430 HP at its peak. Both numbers are a bit more vs the 400 HP Emira

its more like 100+ LBS difference & correct, a new battery can be swapped in the Emira just like a Ti muffler, Ohlins, rotors,, wheels, seats etc to drop 100-150 lbs. That being said the same can be done to the Evora. I was at 3,160 lbs with a full tank of gas, I can’t recall whose video I watched where the Emira was approx 90 lbs more then my evora with a 1/4 tank of fuel. Subtract 8 gallons of fuel from my car and the weight difference is over 100 lbs.

That being said, with all the modern day electronics in the Emira, the added computers, creature comforts etc well done to Lotus for keeping the cars weight down. I think I saw the c8 ZO6 is around 3,650 lbs….

Well it is no surprise that most people, including your "80%", love the look of a Ferarri, which kind of makes my point that the Emira strays from the Lotus aesthetic into Italian supercar design, and thus does not scream Lotus.

 

[jmn444]

I've not sat in the S1 evora recaros, so they may be amazing, but IMO the gt sparcos are totally on par with the recaros that were in my gt350. I wouldn't have bought the evora if the seats weren't of that caliber to me. I had a deposit on the emira but stumbled into the evora gt and am 100% happy with how it all turned out. Agree I'd consider a more raw track oriented emira in the future, but I'm not holding my breath.

 

[Road Aviator]

owning a GT, I do agree that the majority will prefer the Emira, I wouldn’t be surprised if it was more then 80/20 that prefer the Emira, it is a great looking car!

that being said, last I checked the GT’s have 416 HP while other parts of the world the Evora developed 430 HP at its peak. Both numbers are a bit more vs the 400 HP Emira

its more like 100+ LBS difference & correct, a new battery can be swapped in the Emira just like a Ti muffler, Ohlins, rotors,, wheels, seats etc to drop 100-150 lbs. That being said the same can be done to the Evora. I was at 3,160 lbs with a full tank of gas, I can’t recall whose video I watched where the Emira was approx 90 lbs more then my evora with a 1/4 tank of fuel. Subtract 8 gallons of fuel from my car and the weight difference is over 100 lbs.

That being said, with all the modern day electronics in the Emira, the added computers, creature comforts etc well done to Lotus for keeping the cars weight down. I think I saw the c8 ZO6 is around 3,650 lbs….

3650 dry weight for the Z06.

 

[SirSoysauce]

3650 dry weight for the Z06.

Honestly, the added weight doesn't feel so bad given how amazing that exotic exhaust note is. If only the interior quality/design was a bit more exotic and not so Chevrolet.

 

[Glamrock]

I test drove one while at Gator getting my rear toes replaced and re-alignment on my 06 Elise (which is the only Lotus I’ve driven. So that’s my comparison point).

Thoughts?

1) You could DEFINITELY feel the weight difference. But it was still pretty damn nimble on the roundabouts surrounding Gator. Definitely felt like the Lotus I know.

2) Compared to the Elise….its a car. Not the street legal go-cart I’m used to. Very nice and very comfortable interior. Much easier to get in and out of.

3) Didn’t SEEM to be much faster in the first gear than the Elise. Although, I will admit, could have been driver error on takeoff from stop.

4) Seemed overly refined. I could barely hear the engine/exhaust with the radio off. Isn’t that kinda the point? For me anyway, hearing that growl is a good chunk of why I love my Blue Meanie!

5) Definitely didn’t feel the driver/car mind meld I have with the Elise. Nowhere near as communicative at the hands and feet. Although, it was just a one off test drive. I could be mistaken. Had I had it for a day or two, maybe I’d be saying something else.

6) It is gorgeous! Without a doubt, one of the prettiest cars on the market at that price point.

7) For the updated price point, seems like there are other, possibly, better options on the market. If I won the lottery that I rarely play, I’d have one. Just for its looks. But if I was going to spend 6 figures on a car as a working dude….not sure this would be it. Don’t get me wrong. It is a fantastic car. But at 80k it’d be awesome! At 105k? Like I said, other stuff on the market.

Compared to the Evora? Dunno. Ain’t had the pleasure of driving one yet…

 

[brgelise]

"Sparco seats suck"..........until you use them as intended.

Trust me , I have over 100 times