Manchester Hosts Lotus Emira on a UK Tour

Lotus has brought its exciting new Emira sports car to the north, as it tours the UK to show off the mid-engined machine to media and customers alike, stopping off in Manchester on the final phase of its trip.

The Emira is set to be the final petrol-engined sports car from a brand famous for its lightweight vehicles that are thrilling to drive, and it replaces the Elise/Exige and Evora as these older models are retired.

Following its unveiling in July, Lotus has been taking the Emira around showrooms across the country — including JCT600 Lotus in Bradford last month — before two final events here in Manchester and in London later in the month. These events have given prospective owners a chance to get up close with the car ahead of deliveries in 2022.

Lotus has chosen quite the venue for the event, which took place at the Concorde Conference Centre at Manchester Airport. As the name might suggest, this specially constructed hangar houses one of the British Airways Concorde aircraft, G-BOAC (or Alpha Charlie). Invited guests were also able to take a tour of the plane, famously the fastest passenger-carrying vehicle ever made.

Emira won’t be quite so rapid, but a 400hp version of the Lotus-enhanced, 3.5-litre, supercharged V6 Toyota engine will propel it to 60mph in around four seconds, with a top speed of around 180mph. Along with a standard six-speed manual it can also be specified with a six-speed auto with paddle shift.

It’ll be priced at £75,995 for the “First Edition”, which comes with special 20-inch forged alloy wheels and two-piece brake discs with Lotus-branded calipers. There’s also gloss black pieces on the lower bodywork — including the diffuser and splitter — and six exterior paint colours, as well as seven interior colours at no extra cost. A £59,995 standard specification will be introduced later.