Lotus should have a Toyota engine, unless they did the right thing and switched to K series.
B18A1 is okay, but upgrading to a B1 or even a B20B/Z should be looked into
If the age of said friend is around 18-20, just ignore them. Everyone becomes infatuated with their current car at that age. Someone told me that was that age that his car was faster than mine, typical reply is "i don't give a fuck"
They've been on since about mid September. Ride isn't bad at all, most of the time it feels stock but lower than it was. That's with Tein Street Advance.