OK, I know that the Toyota Camry engine is a fine one, but it lacks serious hp and charisma.
How about the Ford twin turbo Ecoboost (if it fits)? It seems to have more power potential.
OK, I know that the Toyota Camry engine is a fine one, but it lacks serious hp and charisma.
How about the Ford twin turbo Ecoboost (if it fits)? It seems to have more power potential.
Last edited by DanVB; 09-16-2009 at 01:25 PM.
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people said the same thing about the rover K engine... and a lotus isn't about serious HP.
not forgetting there is a factory supercharged version of the engine available from toyota.
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I think I would rather see an updated version of the 2.5L Ford V6 used in the Contour SVT/ Mondeo ST250. I had the SVT and that was a gem of a motor. It also sounded wonderful. Really I think Porsche has trouble making an engine sound as nice as that Ford motor. Then again, for a main stream company Ford does seem to know how to make a great sounding car.
Regardless, I'm sure the Toyota mill will be a fine motor by the time Lotus is done with it.
It was quite unreliable. When driven hard for any length of time the head gasket would go. However it was one of the most tunable engines of recent decades with many different applications. The engine was very powerful for it's size even with no adjustments. Even the 1.4 had 102bhp as standard which isn't really seen very often. I also like the sound it makes. Some 4cyl engines are extremely smooth at idle but I always thought the K series made a nice "burbley" sound where you could hear every cylinder firing.
A well made K is reliable. It's when it was made a tuned by people that didn't really understand that it got the head gasket problems. The engine was designed so the block could be made from plastic! The 1.8 VVC K was the engine of choice in the Libra way back when, lots of those saw a very hard life at the UK tracks and never went pop.
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It is understood that Lotus have a Toyota engine deal for all their Elise / Evora cars and most probably the upcoming Esprit replacement.
Many engines could be used but they won't be, unless this deal is altered.
As said above, the thing with Lotus is handling, not Horsepower. Many journalists have compared the driving dynamics of the Evora to far more expensive offerings, like the Ferrari 430. Now, I understand that those journalists are British and that they will always praise Lotus, but one cannot undermine the fact that the engine - chassis provides very good handling balance for the Evora!
Hence, the engine choice in this context has justified the choice of the mechanics. A bigger / heavier engine with turbos / piping / cooling restrictions would seriously alter the existing packaging of the car. Now, I am sure that Lotus mechanics would make it a stunner, but it would be a different car.
Last edited by lightweight; 09-16-2009 at 04:28 PM.
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I wouldn't be surprised to see a supercharged version, given the work has already been done on the engine.
Given that there's a 400hp version naturally apirated out there already (granted a race engine, but it is fielded by lotus) and the fact that they're not trying to keep it in the cheaper toyota price bracket, do you really think they're going to go supercharged, or just stick with a hotter NA version?
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Ford fiesta ecoboost 2.0 I-4. Yes plz.
If they're still planning on bringing the Fiesta to the U.S. they should have a sporty halo model right? Maybe AWD?
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The Evora's engine is perfect. Boosting does no good if it creates other handling and dynamic issues. For race purposes, especially if the car is light enough, NA is still king.
Boosting is a way to cheat once the car's weight starts to move towards the heavy side.
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