Watch: Lotus Emira makes its public debut at Laguna Seca with Jenson Button

As a part of the Monterey Car Week celebrations, English manufacturer Lotus and brand ambassador Jenson Button decided to head to Laguna Seca for the new sportscar's American debut.

Revealed last month, the Emira will be the final internal combustion engined sportscar from the famous British marque – featuring a choice of either an AMG-developed 2.0-litre turbocharged in-line four cylinder, mated to an eight-speed dual-clutch auto, or a 3.5-litre Toyota supercharged V6 engine, available as a six-speed manual or automatic.

While Button was unable to push the Emira to its limits, the Lotus crew were teased the Toyota-derived V6 engine's new exhaust note, sounding slightly different from the Evora which shared the same engine.

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Button dropping down Laguna Seca's famous Corkscrew

The 2009 Formula One champion recently joined Lotus as an ambassador and helped launch its Radford-built Type 62-2 restomod, based on the Lotus Evora, as a tribute to the original Type 62 racer from 1969.

Set to be shown alongside the Type 62-2 and the Evija hypercar, the Emira will be a part of Lotus's ‘The Quail: A Motorsports Gathering’ event at The Quail Lodge and Golf Club, one of many automotive events in the Monterey Car Week.

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