Lotus took the wraps off an incredible new F1-inspired track-day special at Pebble Beach last weekend. Its latest £650,000 “halo model" is to sit at the top of a new range of road and race cars to help Lotus recapture its past glories.
The Lotus T125 is aimed at wealthy private buyers who want to the live the F1 dream; power comes from a 640bhp Cosworth V8 racing engine offering near-GP2 levels of performance, thanks to a dry weight of just 560kg. Only 25 examples will ever be built, with each buyer gaining access to a club – the Exos – that will allow them to sample the F1 lifestyle.
The T125 is part of Lotus’s future under new CEO Dany Bahar who will reveal ambitious plans to move Lotus road cars upmarket at the Paris motor show. He believes Lotus was at its strongest when it was firmly involved in multiple forms of motorsport and there were strong connections between road and track. The Lotus T125 is how the Norfolk firm plans to restore that connection; it also references the Lotus 25, F1's first-ever monocoque racer.
The T125 is a radical departure for the company best known for making the Elise and its derivatives in recent years. It will sit at the top of the company's new range, representing the best of Lotus's technologies in the same mould as the Ferrari 599XX.
It is powered by a detuned 640bhp, 332lb ft 3.5-litre Cosworth V8 racing engine. The redline is 10,300rpm but a ‘push to pass’ button ups this by 500rpm. The rear wheels are driven through an F1-style six-speed semi-automatic sequential gearbox with steering wheel-mounted paddle shifters. The T125 is 4910mm long, 1890mm wide and 1011mm high. Its dry weight is just 650kg thanks to a carbonfibre monocoque, carbonfibre suspension and carbon ceramic brakes.
Lotus USA marketing and PR executive Kevin Smith said the T125 was “not only a halo car for Lotus motorsport, but for Lotus overall”.
“It’s an outrageous track car and a complete, comprehensive package for someone who’s ever dreamed of being an F1 driver,” said Smith. “This is as close as you can get to the F1 experience."
The Exos club gives T125 buyers access to experiences equivalent to being an F1 driver. Special events will be held at circuits across Europe where buyers will receive training from top drivers, including Jarno Trulli, as well as advice from mechanics, engineers, nutritionists and fitness experts.
The car has been designed in-house at Lotus’s Hethel HQ without involvement from the Lotus Racing F1 team. Buyers will be able to paint it in any colour or livery they want, including Lotus's iconic JPS, Camel and green and gold liveries.
Lotus claims the car will not require an army of mechanics and engineers to run and maintain and is able to be operated by just one person. This is also seen in the service intervals; it can run for 4500km before it needs a trip back to Hethel.
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Re: Lotus's radical £650k F1 track special
After further research, I now believe that the Lotus T125 is based on the Panoz DP09 Superleague car, manufactured by Elan Technologies in the US. It shares its unusual (for a high power single seater) 15 inch wheels and Michelin tyres and this would also help to explain why Lotus launched it in the US first when few customers are likely to be US based.
Re: Lotus's radical £650k F1 track special
Saw T125 at Hethel yesterday as they were setting it up in the entrance foyer. Looks like a rebodied A1GP car to me, rather than an all new car
Re: Lotus's radical £650k F1 track special