EuropaSman

I thought the Emira, like the Evora before it, has coilovers all round already due to the double wishbone setup on all four corners. Do you mean adjustable coilovers?

I use normal unleaded in my NA and have no issues at all. So fill your boots, or should that be your tank? I will however be filling up the Evora's tank with super unleaded for its lay up over the winter, especially so as super is still E5, therefore slightly less hygroscopic I guess, and will do the same when I put my 2ZZ powered Elise S3 into winter hibernation as well. Hopefully by then I won't need to play petrol pump roulette anymore at the filling station!

@thebartman here's a link that might also help you: https://driver61.com/blog/what-are-the-best-track-day-helmets/

BTW these are the gloves I bought and they are really good (am breaking them in at the moment and they feel great). https://gsmperformance.co.uk/product/sparco-land-racing-gloves/

As Bibs said, try before you buy. I've just bought an Elise S3 to track and had researched several helmets, full and open face, on the Internet as possible options. I decided to go for FIA approved kit (which is also Snell approved) as there's a bit of fire protection (I have FIA approved gloves and boots too). I visited GSM Performance as that outlet is fairly close to where I live, but they didn't have one of the helmets I wanted to try and some of the ones I did want to try were not in the correct size. I also went to GP Racewear at Silverstone a few days ago and they had a better range of helmets and corresponding sizes. I ended up with an Arai GP-Jet 3 open-face helmet, which is likw what I think I wore at the Lotus Driving Academy in July just gone when I did my Bronze Licence. It was the ideal compromise because as I wear glasses I was having trouble finding a suitable full-face helmet (although the OMP GP-R helmet came close), plus I felt I didn’t need HANS posts as I have no plans to fit a four or five point harness to the Elise, negating the need for a HANS device. The only downside of going for an open-face helmet is the reduction in lower jaw protection. To try to partially negate this the Arai helmet I chose has more pronounced “jowls” than some of the other open-face helmets I was considering like the Bell Mag Titanium helmet. Here are links to the websites of the two outlets. Links: https://gsmperformance.co.uk/ https://www.gprdirect.com/

If the above doesn't work then the connector can be soldered back on but it necessitates removal of the tailgate. The first attempt to reattach one of the connectors on the rear window of my Evora using electrically conductive glue failed, so I had PJS Lotus take the tailgate off and resolder the connector back on, which has done the trick. It was about 2 hours labour from memory. The alternative would have been either leave it & do without rear window heating or replace the window glass, which would have been very expensive .

An alternative view on the flight data recorders comments though. Yes Alan, you are correct that flight data recorders do not make pilots safer. However, in very brief terms (I could write a whole book on the topic of flight data recording and use of the data but would bore everyone on this forum thread to death! ) the data from these recorders does help in reducing the risk of serious incidents and accidents in commercial aviation through routine analysis and feedback. This is part of a more holistic airline "safety management" approach, which is all about learning, looking at things from reactive, proactive and predictive stand points. As you mention, pilots are constantly monitored. Along with other components of the safety management system, one of the inputs is from "Flight Data Monitoring" (FDM for short). The way this is done is by using a parallel feed from the "black box" (which is orange - I love that fact). There are protocols etc. in place for protection of individuals and the data but this is not the appropriate forum to go into these aspects. I think there is a distinction to be drawn here between the mandatory EU Regs "Car Data Recorders" (I see "big data" as an influence here, but on an "autopsy approach" basis) and the insurance companies' telemetrics "black boxes" to assess the day to day risks with the policy holders by monitoring the way they drive. It will be interesting to see how things pan out with the EU regulation. The subject of monitoring has been and is an emotive topic. I cannot see continuous monitoring of all drivers being a thing right now. Setting out the EU regulations is one thing, but implementation when it comes to processes and procedures for where, when and how to acquire/process/analyse the car data recorder data will be another thing. Just my two pennies of thought there...

Sounds quite Orwellian, 1984 and all that, but I don't think that will happen in the UK & EU because there is a clause in the EU Regulation that says the data is "anonymised and protected against manipulation and misuse". It goes on to say that "an event recorder shall not be capable of recording and storing the last four digits of the vehicle identification section of the vehicle identification number or any other information which could allow the individual vehicle, its owner or holder, to be identified." When these recorders come in I am going to assume that for a major prang, i.e. life threatening injuries or fatalities involved, only then will the police download the information. According to EU 2019/2144 parameters recorded include vehicle speed, braking (manual/automatic application & force I assume), position and tilt of the vehicle on the road, state and rate of all safety system activations, 112 (999 in UK) based e-Call in vehicle system activation, brake activation and relevant input parameters of the on-board active safety and accident avoidance systems". I wouldn't be surprised if Aurstralia carbon copied the legislation (I believe that ANCAP is based on Euro NCAP so there is precedence). Recorders will be mandatory on all automated, which seems sensible to me.

I'm not sure, but quite a lot of the tech mentioned in the regulation already exists. It's just going to be more advanced for the most part. I've read that rear collision sensors will also be mandatory for instance. Good news (I think) regarding the data recorders; advice in the reg states "event data recorder’ means a system with the only purpose of recording and storing critical crash-related parameters and information shortly before, during and immediately after a collision". I've not yet found a definition for the amount of time "shortly before" means. My interpretation is that routine data monitoring (like what I do for a living with commercial jet airliners) is not going to happen. Also I don't think the recorder data will be accessed by the insurance company in the event of a claim. The regulation quotes that the recorders will collect de-identified data only. It goes on to say that "the data that they are capable of recording can be made available to national authorities, on the basis of Union or national law, only for the purpose of accident research and analysis, including for the purposes of type approval of systems and components".

As far as I understand, the new EU law regarding speed limiters will only be applied to new cars only. Here's a link to an Autotrader vid. https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&url=https://www.autotrader.co.uk/content/news/mandatory-speed-limiters-on-uk-cars-from-2022&ved=2ahUKEwiI5qW0pdjyAhURTsAKHVSLDSYQtwJ6BAgrEAE&usg=AOvVaw0GRHvFiOILjdGJmLC7s_vs And for any armchair legal eagles out there the EU Regulation itself. https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/reg/2019/2144/oj

I've ditched the idea of getting an Emira for now for similar reasons to what @C8RKH was saying. Instead I'm buying an early Elise S3 to do track days, with my Evora Launch Edition staying in my possession as she's a keeper.

Yes, as I understand it from PJS they put their last parts order in with Lotus on Thursday, so have secured an alternative source for genuine Lotus parts. A little perspective regarding the "whinging" quote earlier to add some balance. It's more a case of businesses that have worked hard to attain and maintain Lotus approval may feel very disappointed. I understand corporate business as I work for a multinational; the same elements such as engaged staff & high quality service leading to loyal customers and a profitable network apply however. PJS for one are very passionate about their business and they love the brand and won an award from Lotus for after sales service. I know they are extremely disappointed in having their approval terminated. I understand why Lotus has done what it has, however I believe there had been previous discussions about a "heritage" network being created, but apparently the plug was pulled on that around 8 weeks ago. I for one will be continuing to use PJS who are local to me; Paul, Louise and the team do a great job and are great ambassadors for the brand. It's a shame and I know that business is business, but I do feel really disappointed for the service centres losing approval not due to poor service quality. Those who are great at what they do servicing the legacy cars will survive if not flourish. My own feeling though is that there still is room for a "Heritage Lotus" network to support the pre-Emira vehicles.

Looks like there is another Launch Edition for sale on Pistonheads that isn't on the list; WX59CHL. Sister car WX59CHZ, which is already on the list has just been sold - the previous owner has posted a video on Facebook of the new owner driving it away.

The red Evora had been up for sale for ages last year at Stones Auto Sales in Mansfield, then for a short while dealers called Acorn Cars iirc, before it disappeared for a few months. Looks like it has had some work done to the front clam at some point because the side repeater indicators have been put on back to front!

I noticed this Evora S on Autotrader. Low mileage and looks fairly tidy save for the airbag cover that's had the clips go, but something doesn't look quite right with the rev counter 🤔. http://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202107215283588?atmobcid=soc3