Ariel powered Lotus

[WorkingOnIt]

Happened across the Lotus 23B Rotorvic.
Powered by 6 Ariel Arrow motorcycle engines, forming a V-12 two stroke engine!

From a 1965 Autosport:
New Sound on the Circuits

Obviously, the current Ariel is thinking too small for the Atom 500.  How about a 4-Hayabusa V-16?

[Heywood-Yablowme]

Damn..I'm on my Mac and those links won't connect.

[WorkingOnIt]

I can't either now - apparently the website is having problems.

Here's the homepage if you want to try it later.
www.utahlotusmuseum.com

[Heywood-Yablowme]

I just figured it was another Mac thing...

Thanks.

[WorkingOnIt]

Here's a quote from the 1965 article.

"Seen in action at Snetterton, the Rotovic travelled at a good speed and made a splendid sound. Apart from the fierce note of the 12 two-stroke cylinders, there is little mechanical noise, in spite of all those pinions. It is difficult to tell if one or two cylinders are "out," but an ingenious system of thermocouples will indicate by lamps on the instrument panel if any of the exhaust branches are not maintaining working temperature.  Listen for a new sound on the circuits!"

[Heywood-Yablowme]

John Deere could sponsor that car...    

[DFext37 Fielding]

was that the car James Dean was waiting for before he god bored of waiting bought a Porsche and died.

[WorkingOnIt]

James Dean was waiting for a Lotus 10.  (I just double checked - he died in '55, I had forgotten it was that  early.)



The 23 has quite the story too.  The French were so afraid of it embarrassing them in the small displacement classes at the 1962 24 Hours of Le Mans that they came up with a few b.s. technical objections.  Team Lotus worked through the night, even machining and shipping in new rear hubs, to meet all the trumped up requirements, at which point it was banned anyway for not being "in the spirit of the race."  An exasperated Colin Chapman vowed never to come back to Le Mans and Team Lotus never entered another car there.

PS. I recommend "Colin Chapman, the Man and His Cars" by Gerard Crombac to every Atom fan.  (Forward by Enzo Ferrari).

[Heywood-Yablowme]

"PS. I recommend "Colin Chapman, the Man and His Cars" by Gerard Crombac to every Atom fan.  (Forward by Enzo Ferrari)."

Put it on my short list.

[bolus]

I know you guys were drooling over those chicks hanging on Calscot's car but this is my idea of sexy even though I could only see her eyes
[img width=800 height=600]http://bolus.shackspace.com/lotus.jpg[/img]

[DFext37 Fielding]

[quote="bolus"]
I know you guys were drooling over those chicks hanging on Calscot's car but this is my idea of sexy even though I could only see her eyes
[img width=800 height=600]http://bolus.shackspace.com/lotus.jpg[/img]


[/quote]

WOW! (Puts down porn mag and stares at pic lustfully)