The first shipment of Lotus Emira sports cars has touched down in Australia ahead of customer deliveries commencing in January next year.
Richard Gibbs, CEO of local Lotus distributor Simply Sports Cars, told CarExpert this first shipment consists of 20 Emira V6 First Edition manual models.
He added these first models will be heading to every state in Australia and all six exterior paint colours are represented.
The first examples of the Lotus Emira V6 First Edition were originally supposed to arrive locally in the middle of this year, but due to global parts supply shortages they were delayed by six months.
Following these first manual-equipped Emira V6 First Edition models, Mr Gibbs said Australian-bound V6 First Edition automatic models will go into production in the first quarter of 2023 ahead of second quarter deliveries.
Australian-spec four-cylinder First Edition models will then go into production in the second quarter of 2023 ahead of third quarter deliveries.
Lastly, production of the entry-level Base Edition models will commence in the first quarter of 2024, with deliveries starting in the second quarter.
Mr Gibbs said Lotus has taken “a bit under 300” orders of the Emira thus far in Australia, which is a “big uptick” from the number of orders the company used to take annually for previous models.
All Australian-bound versions of the Emira V6 First Edition are sold out, according to Mr Gibbs, with only a few slots for the four-cylinder First Edition remaining.
Mr Gibbs added that Lotus Australia has taken around 20 holding deposits for the Emira Base Edition models, despite the configurator not going live on the website yet.
The company is also taking a “significant” amount of holding deposits for the Eletre electric SUV, which is currently set to arrive in Australia in 2024.
Pricing for the Lotus Emira starts at $155,990 before on-road costs for the Emira four-cylinder DCT, jumping to $169,990 before on-road costs for the base V6 manual, and $173,990 before on-roads for the V6 automatic.
The four-cylinder First Edition is priced at $177,990 before on-roads, and the sold-out Emira V6 First Edition starts at $184,990 before on-roads.
On paper, the base four-cylinder goes head-to-head with the Porsche 718 Cayman S ($154,580 before on-roads), while the higher-end V6 aligns more closely with the 718 Cayman GTS 4.0 ($191,590 before on-roads).
The standard, Toyota-sourced 3.5-litre supercharged V6 engine produces 298kW of power and 420Nm of torque with the six-speed manual, or 430Nm with the optional six-speed automatic.
Four-cylinder variants use a version of the Mercedes-AMG 2.0-litre M139 turbocharged four-cylinder petrol engine producing 268kW.
It’s shared with the Mercedes-AMG A45, and is exclusively mated to an eight-speed dual-clutch automatic transmission sending power to the rear wheels.
MORE: Everything Lotus Emira
