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Lotus Motorcycles C-01 now 'ready for the road'

When we first laid eyes on leaked images of the Lotus Motorcycles C-01, we wondered if its laid-back, sport cruiser shape was really appropriate for a motorcycle bearing any connection with Colin Chapman and the company's famous "add lightness" mantra. We've now seen official pictures of the bike in multiple color schemes, including classic black and gold, British racing green and even a variant that resembles Martini livery, and while we think it looks pretty cool, our opinion hasn't really changed.
Perhaps we shouldn't be surprised that the C-01 isn't an embodiment of the Lotus ethos, as the company that intends to build it isn't really Lotus at all, its builders - German racing firm Kodewa and tuner Holzer Group - merely having licensed the name of the British sportscar maker. It was designed by Daniel Simon, who once worked for Volkswagen and consulted for Bugatti and is the man credited with creating the reborn Tron Light Cycles. Still, looking past its questionable heritage, the C-01 looks pretty darn awesome, and there are some interesting bits that have us looking forward to the production version that's reportedly due within the next two months.
As expected, power comes in at 200 horsepower, courtesy of a modified version of KTM's 1,195-cc V-twin engine. The chassis is made up of steel, titanium and carbon fiber, with a seat height of about 28 inches. Its wheelbase, at about 65 inches, is a full 10 inches longer than a real street-legal superbike, and its front end is raked way out in front with a 19-inch wheel. Those dimensions mean we shouldn't expect much racetrack prowess, unless its rider is only planning on going in a straight line. Indeed, with a claimed dry weight of under 400 pounds, the Lotus Motorcycles C-01 ought to be mighty quick down the quarter mile.

Recap: 2013 Spanish Grand Prix is Catalan for 'Lottery' and 'More pit stops'

This year's Formula One season might qualify as being just as crazy as last year's, only it's a different kind of crazy. Instead of a new winner every Sunday, how the winner actually manages to take the victory is the mystery, and just when we thought the season might have settled into a groove regarding team performance, here comes the Spanish Grand Prix to remind us that we don't know anything until the race has been run.
There were many similarities to past weekends to being this one: Mercedes-AMG Petronas showed awesome one-lap pace, Fernando Alonso did well enough in qualifying to get fifth on the grid but talked up the race pace of the Ferrari, Kimi Räikkönen was the equivalent of a racing photobomber, never saying much but always showing up in the picture, Felipe Massa wasn't really big on the tires and McLaren might want to consider starting a blues band they spend so much time singing them.
Then the lights went green and things went nuts...

2017 Renault Alpine still looks like a Lotus

Two years ago, an oddly modified Lotus Exige was photographed speeding around the Nurburgring. While that car looked British, at the time Renault's engineers were reportedly developing the suspension for the future Alpine sports coupe underneath with some help from the folks at Ohlins. Now, our spies have spotted this weird Lotus-bodied mule out testing, and it might be a major hint that development for the reborn French brand is getting serious again. Unfortunately, it's hard to pull many details about the future Alpine just from this mule. Up front the air extractors are noticeably covered, and at the rear there's now a panel hiding the engine with just some small vents near the very back. The roof-mounted scoop appears to be the major means of sending cool air to the powertrain. Alpine has been back in the news as of late. At the 24 Hours of Le Mans, the brand's Celebration Concept was unveiled but without many real details. Then, at the Goodwood Festival of Speed, the car was filmed actually moving under its own power. Earlier reports suggest that a production version, possibly called the AS1, might come in 2017 with around 250 horsepower on tap from an engine mounted behind the driver. Engineers would keep weight as low as possible to make the most from that power. While no version in the US is likely, prices in Europe might be about the equivalent of $34,000 to $40,000.