Asian Tech Press -- Lotus Cars CEO Feng Qingfeng allegedly targeted Italy's Ferrari by defying the large-displacement engine.
As a sports car maker that was once on par with Ferrari and Germany's Porsche, Lotus has seen a frequent rise in exposure since it was acquired by Zhejiang Geely Holding Group.
Lotus unveiled on July 9 its last gas-burning sports car, the Emira, which the manufacturer has positioned as a comfortable and practical "everyday" sports car. It will continue to be equipped with either the tried-and-tested supercharged 3.5-liter V6 of Toyota or a turbocharged 2.0-liter 4-cylinder from AMG.
According to Victor Yang Xueliang, spokesman for Geely Group, who replied to netizens on China's Twitter-like platform Weibo, the two versions of Lotus Emira will be introduced to the Chinese market and will be unveiled and priced at the 2021 Guangzhou Auto Show.
More than this petrol sports car, Lotus CEO's speech sparked a hot debate.
According to media reports, at the event of the Emira launch, Lotus Cars CEO Feng Qingfeng said, "Only people who don't understand aerodynamics miss the large displacement engine."
Feng's speech caused a hot debate among netizens, who questioned that his remarks were aimed at Ferrari founder Enzo Ferrari, who had said, "Aerodynamics are for people who can't build engines."
Some netizens also said that electric sports cars rely on high horsepower motors as well, and it is not contradictory to people's nostalgia for high-power engines.
It is understood that the Emira is the last petrol sports car under the Lotus. The new car will be equipped with a 3.5T upercharged V6 engine from Toyota, with a maximum power of 405 hp.
In addition, the new car equipped with a 2.0T turbocharged four-cylinder engine provided by AMG, can reach a maximum power of 365 hp.
The company officially said that the Emira offers a claimed 0-100km/h time of 4.5 seconds and a top speed of 290km/h.
On May 24, 2017, Geely Group acquired a 49.9% stake in DRB Hicom's Proton Cars and a 51% stake in the luxury car brand Lotus.
