New Lotus Emira 420 Sport review: great sports car just got even better

Verdict

The Lotus Emira 420 Sport with the Lightweight Handling Pack delivers enhanced performance for buyers who are eager to explore the limits of the Emira on a track day. The ride is a little harsher on the road, although it’s not enough to ruin the car’s everyday usability, while the tractable powertrain delivers great performance. The open-top option adds another dimension to the driving experience, too.

Adding a Sport moniker to a hatchback or SUV is usually a marketing exercise that frequently doesn’t get you much more than a racier look and bigger wheels. But at Lotus, the Sport badge is something a bit special. It was first used on the Esprit Sport 300, a car that had direct links to Lotus’s motorsports activities, and subsequent Sport versions of the Elise and Exige have also offered a more track-focused driving experience.

The latest model to wear the badge is the Emira 420 Sport. It expands the Lotus Emira line-up to five variants (alongside the Turbo, Turbo SE, V6 and V6 auto) and incorporates a raft of enhancements to boost the car’s track performance. 

As with the Emira Turbo, the 420 Sport features a 2.0-litre turbo petrol four-cylinder engine and an eight-speed dual-clutch gearbox that’s sourced from the Mercedes-AMG A 45 S. The transmission has been recalibrated to help deliver faster shifts, but the bigger change is an increase in power. As the car’s name reveals, the turbo four has been uprated to 420PS (it’s actually 421PS or 416bhp). That’s an increase of 56bhp over the standard Emira Turbo and 16bhp up on the Turbo SE, while torque increases from 430Nm (or 480Nm in the SE) at 3,000rpm to 500Nm at 5,000rpm. 

While that output is the same as that of the A 45 S, the Emira is lighter by 250kg, and the 420 Sport can lay claim to being the world’s fastest four-cylinder production car, with a 0-62mph time of 3.9 seconds and a top speed of 186mph.

But there’s a lot more to the Emira 420 Sport than simply a more powerful motor. As with previous Sport models, Lotus has gone over the car with a fine-tooth comb to boost its potential. 

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The ride height has been reduced by 5mm for starters, and at the front there’s a new splitter that’s part of a revised aerodynamic package, with enlarged air intakes to improve airflow to the brakes. While cooling has been boosted, the standard Emira’s brake system is carried over unchanged, because engineers felt the set-up was more than capable of coping with the 420’s added pace. However, tests in the wind tunnel revealed that the extra air building in the front wheelarches was creating lift, so Lotus has cut functioning air vents into the tops of the front wings to help trapped air escape. Further back, the side intakes have been enlarged to help channel air to the engine more effectively, while new side sills are exclusive to the 420 Sport. 

At the back, a lip spoiler on the edge of the engine cover completes an aerodynamic package that adds an extra 25kg of downforce when compared with the standard Emira. Amazingly, this has all been achieved without affecting the car’s emissions figures, which remain unchanged, at 209g/km.

One new feature that is available on both the Sport model and the standard car is an optional removable roof panel. For £5,000 this adds a glass section overhead, while two levers on the windscreen frame unlock so that it can be removed completely. It comes in a storage bag and can be stowed behind the seats, allowing you to reattach the top if you get caught out on your travels.

The 420 Sport’s cabin comes with new leather and Alcantara upholstery, plus fresh carbon fibre gearshift paddles that are designed to deliver improved responses. Tangelo Orange is the launch colour for the 420 Sport, and it looks bright and distinctive, while the car can be specified with the same colourway through the interior, too. 

If you’re serious about track performance, then the Lotus Emira 420 Sport can be upgraded with the Lightweight Handling Pack. This adds £12,900 to the list price, but takes away up to 25kg of weight to boost the car’s ability even further. Upgrades include a carbon fibre engine cover and more carbon trim inside and out.

But the mechanical enhancements are of more interest. There’s a titanium exhaust that reduces weight by 9kg at the rear, while race-derived adjustable dampers from suspension specialist Multimatic are added at each corner. These can adjust compression and rebound damping independently of each other, allowing the Emira to deliver even sharper handling without sacrificing ride quality.

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While the 420 Sport’s turbocharged four-cylinder isn’t as sonically appealing as the Toyota-sourced unit in the Emira V6, the addition of the titanium exhaust does give it a bit more of a bassy rumble, while the whoosh of the turbocharger tends to dominate proceedings at all speeds.

At lower speeds, the Multimatic dampers deliver a firmer ride than that of the standard car, so the 420 Sport isn’t the easiest to get along with around town, but increase your pace and it improves. One aspect of the Emira that is enhanced in the 420 Sport is the response of the eight-speed DCT gearbox, which offers quicker reactions to inputs when extra power is needed, although selecting between drive and reverse still needs slow and deliberate inputs.

On the open road, the Emira continues to deliver excellent performance. While Tour and Sport modes in the standard Emira offer a more relaxed delivery, you don’t need to select the Track setting in the 420 Sport to boost its responses. The quicker throttle delivers faster mid-range acceleration, while the bespoke Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2 tyres offer a near-unbreakable level of grip in dry conditions.

Perhaps the real highlight of the Emira is still its steering. Lotus has retained a hydraulic set-up for its sports car, and this in combination with the grippy tyres and hi-tech dampers delivers excellent feedback that tells you everything that’s going on with the nose of the car. Quick responses and a more agile feel allow you to press on without issues.

It’s on the track where the Emira 420 Sport can really strut its stuff. Activate Track mode (which can only be done when parked, mainly because you have to press OK on a number of confirmation screens), and the car feels sharp and alert. A few laps of Lotus’s Hethel test track demonstrated that the 420 Sport is a consistent performer, while the amount of grip on offer with the Cup 2 tyres and the agile steering set-up help to inspire confidence in the car’s abilities. 

Approach and pass the limits, and the Emira reacts progressively, while the electronic systems allow you to toy with these limits without them activating. The brakes deliver strong stopping power and didn’t show any signs of fading. A broad spread of torque means you don’t need to hunt through the gears to maintain your pace, either.

At £110,475 (or £123,375 with the Lightweight Handling Pack), the Emira 420 Sport is closing in on Porsche 911 territory. Having said that, a track-focused GT3 is nearly £50,000 more than that, and the Emira isn’t going to be too far behind in terms of performance. With models such as the Alpine A110 and Porsche Cayman no longer available new, it’s down to the Emira to cater for track-day enthusiasts who want a car that will get them there and back, while also putting a smile on their face when running hot laps.

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