The sporty Lotus Emira is currently available with either a supercharged 3.5-litre V6 or a turbocharged 2.0-litre, but according to a new report, we might just see the Geely-owned company introduce a V8 option.
CEO Feng Qingfeng confirmed during a recent earnings call that they are “currently investigating the feasibility of the V8”.
Lotus had originally planned to retire the V6 in favour of the Mercedes-AMG-sourced four-cylinder engine, but strong demand (mainly from the US) has prompted a deeper look into the possibility of slotting in a larger V8.
The Emira is built at Lotus’s Hethel facility in the UK, and the model achieved a record 5,272 deliveries last year.
“The US is an incredibly important market for us for the car. It always has been. So we’re looking at the market demand for the product going forward,” Hethel boss and new CEO of Lotus Cars in Europe Matt Windle told Autocar.
While Windle stopped short of confirming a V8, he acknowledged that the team is exploring different powertrain options. “It’s a very, very competent product that we probably haven’t exploited to its full already, so we are looking at all the options,” he said.
Mercedes-AMG, the current engine supplier, could be the source of the V8. “There are some opportunities with the current supplier of engines, so we’re looking at it,” Windle added, without naming the division specifically.
If greenlit, the V8 Emira would mark the first V8-powered Lotus since the Esprit V8 was phased out in 2004 after an eight-year run.
While Lotus had planned to replace the combustion-powered Emira with a fully electric sports car, that strategy is still under review. “Is the market ready for an electric sports car? I don’t really know the answer to that yet,” Windle admitted.