Lotus Emira Will Be Powered By AMG.
This new petrol powered Lotus sports car is using a turbocharged 2.0-litre four-cylinder ‘i4’ engine from the performance division of Mercedes-Benz and it delivers around 400Nm of torque. Yes, it is an AMG built engine.
Why is AMG supplying the engine for this all new Lotus sports car and not Volvo? Lotus Cars is owned by Geely Autoand Geely owns Volvo Cars and they have an impressive 2.0-liter engine that is used in the new S60 sedan that delivers an amazing 320bhp from 5,700 rpm and from just 1,200rpm there is 400Nm of torque. In the large Volvo S60 sedan it delivers a 0-100km/h acceleration time of just 4.4 seconds (watch video below) whereas the AMG engine delivers a 0-100km/h acceleration time of only 4.5 seconds.
So, why is Lotus not using their Volvo 2.0-liter engine? It might deliver a 0-100km/h time of less than 4 seconds in this lightweight sports car. Possible?
Why use an AMG engine in the Lotus Emira? It will cost more, right? Does it sound better? Is the AMG engine more reliable for constant high speed abuse? Will it give the Lotus Emira the needed street cred to play with Porsche and BMW?
Well, in March 2020 there was a plan laid out for Mercedes-Benz to merge with Geely Auto. A financial report from Norddeutsche Landesbank stated: “In view of the corona virus crisis, but also with a view to the disruptive times, Daimler may have had time to think about a merger, especially since the valuations of companies are currently relatively low.”
The market capitalization of Daimler at the time was only around 25 billion euros, which brings the group within reach of financially strong investors from China. Geely owner Li Shufu has interest in Daimler.
PRESS RELEASE: Working with Lotus for the first time, AMG has come on board as technical partner on the Emira programme, with some fundamental changes made to the in-line four-cylinder set-up for its Lotus debut.
At Mercedes-AMG—the out-and-out performance side of the business—that urge often brings some remarkable results, the latest being a massive power output from its new 2.0-L 4-cyl. with an output of up to 310 kW (421 hp), the completely newly developed Mercedes-AMG 2.0-litre M 139 engine is the world’s most powerful turbocharged four-cylinder engine in series production.
With this engine, Mercedes-AMG has even exceeded the previously most powerful M 133 by 30 kW (41 hp). Maximum torque has also increased from 475 to up to 500 newton metres. With an output per litre of up to 155 kW (211 hp), the new Mercedes-AMG high-performance turbo engine even ranks ahead of many well-known super-sports car engines. The new, highly efficient powerpack is produced on an innovative production line in Affalterbach, on the “One Man, One Engine” principle.
The four-cylinder available in two output versions will ensure agile performance for the compact models of Mercedes-AMG: with 310 kW (421 hp) as the S-model and with 285 kW (387 hp) in the basic version. This product policy logic has already proved successful in the V8-powered AMG Performance models, and more closely meets customer wishes.
