Lotus Emeya review: Trading lightness for luxury

LOTUS describes the Emeya S as a “Hyper GT”, which sounds like something one ampersand short of an amazing cocktail. It has no less potential to make your head spin, too, because when you flex your right ankle to unleash a flood of electrons, this grand tourer’s motors instantly send 605 horsepower to the wheels, enough to hurl you to 100 kmh in just 4.15 seconds.

That’s the kind of acceleration that does things to your insides, so one can only wonder what the Emeya R, which packs a 905-horsepower punch, must feel like. A bit like when you’ve had several cocktails too many, possibly.

The second pure electric car from Lotus for Singapore, the Emeya is another petal on the brand’s plan to bloom in the post-combustion era. You won’t be surprised how fast it is, because it looks like something straight out of a Marvel superhero movie, with its wide, purposeful stance and chiselled lines.

The front end sports distinctive hockey stick LEDs and offers plenty for the eye to linger over, including aerodynamic grilles that open like, well, a lotus blossom when the car’s internals need extra cooling. 

Inside, it’s a breath of fresh air compared to the austere German interiors we’ve grown accustomed to. The cabin is a tasteful blend of muted colours and posh textures, with ambient lighting that’s more configurable than JD Vance’s stance on Donald Trump. I wonder what either man would make of the politically correct upholstery, which has a recycled textile option, allowing your conscience to come along for the ride, even if it means sitting on someone’s old underpants.

The tech is properly contemporary, with a slender driver display, a massive 15.1-inch central touchscreen, and even a little screen for the passenger whose purpose is a mystery to me. The user interface is a hodgepodge of menus, but the built-in voice assistant is clever enough to understand commands such as, “Hi Lotus, take me to McDonald’s”, let alone simpler instructions such as changing the radio station or turning up the air-con.

But it’s not all roses in this electric garden. At 509 litres, the boot sounds big, but it’s disappointingly shallow, though the frunk is a respectable 31 litres. The back of the cabin offers enough space to rival a Mercedes S-Class, which must be where all the space went in this 5.1 metre-long car.

I know where I’d rather be sitting, though. On the road, the Emeya S is a remarkably adaptable car, with the ability to soothe or thrill in equal measure. In Tour mode, it’s as serene as a day at the spa, floating along on its air suspension while the seat’s massage bladders give your back a gentle biffing. Flick it into Sport, and the steering gets more weighty and the suspension tightens up while the powertrain lashes at your driving licence with foam-flecked teeth. 

While the handling is sharp enough, you’re always aware of the car’s heft. In truth, the Lotus feels less of a driver’s car and more of a technological tour de force, with active aero bits that would have made the brand’s genius engineer founder, Colin Chapman, applaud. That massive pop-up rear wing doesn’t just look cool – it provides 215 kg of downforce and doubles up as an air brake.

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Yet, Chapman steered Lotus with a singular obsession to “simplify, then add lightness”. At over 2.5 tonnes, the Emeya is about as far from a lithe Lotus Elise as Sharon Stone (whom I only mention because her character drove a sleek Elan Turbo in Basic Instinct) is from a nunnery.

But perhaps the chaps who run Lotus now have replaced the memo containing Chapman’s motto, rather than misplaced it, for what did sticking to lightweight sports cars ultimately do for the company? Lotus has been passed around more times than a microphone at a KTV joint full of shy people.

Following Chapman’s death, Lotus went from receivership to General Motors (who gave us the blasphemous front-wheel drive Elan), then to an Italian businessman who had made his fortune selling Suzukis, on to Proton, then Geely and finally a Nasdaq listing. Chinese ownership might well have provided the stability Lotus needed to stay alive in the electric age.

Perhaps the Emeya S reveals how Lotus itself has been retooled for an electric future – big, bold, and unapologetically high-tech. It might not simplify, and it certainly doesn’t add lightness, but it’s roomy, refined and looks like something Tony Stark would drive, besides being wickedly fast. Sounds like a tantalising cocktail to me.

Lotus Emeya S  Motor Power/Torque 603 hp/710 Nm Battery Type/Net Capacity Lithium-ion/102 kWh Charging Time/Type 14 mins 10 - 80 per cent (400 kW DC), 5.5 hours 0-100 per cent (22 kW AC wallbox) Range 610 km (WLTP)    0-100 kmh 4.15 seconds  Top speed 250 kmh  Efficiency 16.4 kWh/100 km  Agent Lotus Cars Singapore Price S$448,000 without COE Available Now