Lotus Elise

Lotus Elise is a good looking and high performance sports car developed by the Lotus Company. When the first Lotus Elise was released, it received a lot of attention for its remarkably low weight and striking design.

The first Lotus Elise hit the marked in September 1995. Today, there are two main types Lotus Elise available for the car enthusiast: Lotus Elise Series 1 cars and Lotus Elise series 2 cars.

The creator of the first Lotus Elise was named Max David and worked from London. The founder of the Lotus Company, Colin Chapman, had always dreamed about a car that combined extremely light weight with superb performance, and Max David took these dreams to heart. The remarkably low weight of the Lotus Elise is what makes fantastic performance possible even with a modest engine. The shape of the Lotus Elise has been created with dynamics and driving purity in focus.

The first Lotus Elise weighed no more than 1500 lb (680 kg). Driving this car is amazing, due to its remarkable ability to accelerate, brake and corner. The weight of the first Lotus Elise can be compared to the Porsche Boxter, which is considered a low-weight sports car and still weigh almost as much as two Lotus Elise cars - 2756 lb (1250 kg). This means that while the 1997 Porsche Boxter requires and engine output of 201 bhp (149 kW), the Lotus Elise works brilliant with only 120 bhp (89 kW).

As mentioned above, the first Lotus Elise was released in September 1995. The year after the Lotus Company released an even lighter Lotus Elise that weighed an astonishingly low 1488 lb (675 kg). This car was followed by the Lotus Elise 111S three years later. The Lotus Elise 111S is faster than the preceding Lotus Elise cars and is fitted with a Variable Valve Control (VVC) engine. This engine has been developed from the Rover K series and equipped with Variable valve timing (VVT). You will also find more comfortable seats in the Lotus Elise 111S, since some customers found the first two Elise versions uncomfortable. The new seats are filled with more padding.

The next step for the Lotus Elise developers was the roofless Lotus Elise 340R. This cabriolet version of the Elise car was released in a limited edition in 2000 and was equipped with a 177 bhp (131 kW) engine. The name 340R was derived from the first prototype; it had a 340 bhp/ton power to weight ratio. The prototype had a 170 bhp engine, and weighed no more than 500 kg. In accordance with this, the limited edition consisted of exactly 340 cars. Later in the year 2000, the Lotus Company released the Exige. The Exige was similar to the Lotus Elise 340R, but had a hardtop. The engine was exactly the same; 177 bhp (131 kW).

The next step for the Lotus Company was to embark on the construction of the Series 2 Lotus Elise car. The first of the Series 2 Lotus Elise cars was actually announced the same year as the Lotus Elise 340R and the Exige was released. The car from the Series 2 was designed directly on the computer, which was a totally new way of working for the Lotus Company.
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Monaco for The Fast and The Furious

Of all the sporting events in the world, none can match the glamour and excitement of the Monaco Formula 1 Grand Prix.

More than just a car race, it transcends sport to become Europe’s premier sporting and social event. Even just the name conjures up images of sun-soaked celebrities, expensive yachts and even more expensive living. But this image is somewhat misleading. Monaco is far more accessible and affordable than it appears.

F1 Grand Prix weekend is definitely the best time to visit Monaco. This may go against all the advice you’ve ever heard about travelling in the off-season to avoid crowds. But it is the crowds – the spectators – who lend this event the carnival atmosphere it’s so famous for. Everyone from self-made millionaires to budget backpackers is there for the pivotal race on the Formula 1 calendar.

Even if you have no interest in motor sports, you can’t help but get swept up in the atmosphere.

The Monaco F1 Grand Prix has been held on the first Sunday after Ascension Day since its modern inception in 1950. It determines the staging of the races for the entire Grands Prix season.

There are three real options for viewing the race. You can watch it from the grandstands; this offers the best views of the race, the yachts and the giant screen televising those parts of the track you can’t see. The stands situated opposite the harbour, which run from Tabac Corner to the Swimming Pool, offer the most encompassing view. While the stands at the chicane, facing towards Tabac Corner, provide a different picture altogether and give a clearer view of how hard the drivers really work. Depending on the Grandstand, tickets can be expensive, so you may care for the next option.

You can buy a General Admission ticket offering access to Old Monaco, which is situated on The Rock and provides a bird’s eye view of the track. Your best bet is to wedge yourself firmly against the parapet and stay there for the rest of the day. It helps to be part of a larger group, because if you move from your spot for any reason, it will soon be occupied.

It also helps if you get there early as all the best spots are snapped up quickly.

An easier option with General Admission tickets is to find a shady tree on The Rock hillside, just below the parapets of Old Monaco, and enjoy the race among the Tifosi. These Italian fanatics follow Ferrari to all the European Grands Prix and are as remarkable to watch as the race itself. You can always tell how well or badly Ferrari is doing by the expression on their faces.

Watching the race from the leafy hillside requires the surefootedness of a mountain goat. However, it does offer some of the best views of the race. Just remember, no matter how strenuous it may seem climbing up, it’s getting back down that’s the challenge.
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Ferrari Drawings

Ferrari, just the name gets me excited! Drawing Ferraris is something I have done since many years back and I never get tired of it. For me drawing a Ferrari is like physically experiencing the car as if it was right there in front of me. I learn more about the lines of the car and see lines that I would normally not notice when just seeing a picture of a Ferrari.

My favorite Ferrari to draw is probably the Enzo or the 250 GTO, both very different cars from different eras. Doing a Ferrari Enzo drawing is always exciting, because this car is so extreme and looks like no other. And because of the sharp edges it makes it a very challenging car to draw. While a Ferrari 250 GTO drawing is very hard to draw correctly because of the beautiful curves this car has.

Then again the reward of pulling it off is totally worth the frustrating hours getting those lines right! A Ferrari F40 drawing is also very special to do, this car is so raw and its always a challenge to get that rawness to come alive in the drawing. My best advise on how to improve your car drawings is simply to spend more time on them. For example if you are not fully satisfied with the front lights, don’t just continue with the drawing and hoping that the lights will get better by some magical touch! No, look at the lights and don’t give up on them until you are fully satisfied with them, then move on to the next part of the car drawing.

If you love Ferrari you should get your favorite pencil and sit down with a clean sheet of paper and just relax and start sketching your favorite Ferrari. Don’t give up to quickly, just focus on the general shape of the outward lines of the car and you will soon see how the sketch is becoming better. Remember patience is the key to success when drawing a Ferrari.

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Car Repair Prices: The Dim Underworld Of Automotive Service

Most know the most glaring auto repair pricing abuses: Service centers overcharging $100’s even $1000’s for repairs, or charging for repairs that were never done at all. To be sure, this still happens every day. However, there are many other techniques which involve flying just low enough to avoid detection. The savvy service centers increase the price so as not to set off any alarms. It has become so common that it’s not just an accepted industry practice, but even service customers have accepted paying higher prices.

Knowing how ingrained price-gouging is within the automotive service industry, it’s shocking (although understandable) that even service customers have succumbed to excessive car repair prices. I frequently hear service customers’ state: “Yeah, I know I was ripped off, but my car’s fixed now.” Or, “I know they charge too much, but they’re convenient.” This is insane! To accept auto repair price-gouging is to allow its continuation.

The difficult part, of course, is how to stop it. Given that the automotive service industry is so big and powerful (and so frightfully necessary) how does one battle such a force? Perhaps the first thing to understand is the degree to which this type of stealth-like price-gouging occurs. A two-decade undercover investigation has revealed that 98% of all repair shops (dealerships, local shops, and franchises) are price-gouging their customers in one form or another. The following exchange, between a service manager and service advisor, provides an idea of the “scope of scamming” below the radar.

A service advisor asked his manager how to bill more hours per month, which is another way of asking how the advisor can make more money. The service manager casually stated: “Simply add an additional two tenths to every ticket you write.” In other words, every customer this service advisor “helps,” he was instructed by a superior to add a “little” extra. So if the labor rate is $100 per hour two tenths would equal $20. Rather than pay $100 per hour, the service customer would actually pay $120. $20 doesn’t sound like much compared to the gross injustices we all know.

However, whether it’s an overcharge of two cents or $20, it’s too much. If you visit a shop practicing this strategy alone (there are hundreds of strategies, many applied simultaneously), you may end up paying over a $100 or more by year’s end. What’s really shocking is that being ripped off $100 over a year’s time is actually minor! Try $500-$5000 Read More..

Yokohama A048 Tires - OE Tires For The Lotus Exige

The ongoing partnership between Lotus and Yokohama Tires continues as the Lotus chose to have Yokohama ADVAN A048 tires for the high performance Lotus Exige. Yokohama tires are already the official tires on the Lotus Elise. The Lotus Exige is engineered specifically for the racetrack, where maximum grip and immediate steering response are extremely crucial. As a result, Lotus has picked Yokohama’s ultra-high-performance ADVAN A048s as the tires of choice for the lightweight Lotus Exige. “We’re pleased to be working again with Lotus and thrilled they chose Yokohama as OE on the Exige,” said Jeff Carpenter, Yokohama manager. “The ADVAN A048 is designed specifically for the Exige’s racetrack-like performance. It’s a super lightweight sports car that has 190 horsepower and can go 150 miles per hour.

The ADVAN A048 is the ideal tire for the vehicle’s exceptional handling and response and brings out the best in the Exige, which has its own racing series in the United Kingdom. ” In addition to being the OE tires for the Lotus Exige, Yokohama Tires’ flagship ADVAN line is now original equipment on many other world’s fastest and most prestigious vehicles, such as the Bentley Continental GT, Bentley’s Continental Flying Spur, the Lotus Elise, 2006 Porsche 911 Carrera 4, and Lexus GS300 and GS430.

The ADVAN A048 is Yokohama's Street-Legal Competition tire engineered for the drivers of vehicles racing in autocross competition, track schools, lapping days and circuit-type club racing. The Yokohama A048 was developed from Yokohama racing technology for a variety of vehicles that include the 18-inch rim diameter fitments used on the Porsche 911, Porsche 911 Turbo, Porsche Boxster and others.

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Pictures of Sports Cars: See Yourself in the Driver’s Seat and the Car Becomes Yours

They say a picture is worth a thousand words. So imagine this… A beautifully framed picture of a sports car: you’re in the passenger seat, enjoying the ride.

No. That’s too limited. Let’s go for broke. Visualize yourself as the driver in this sports car picture. You are definitely behind the wheels, confidently cruising down the highway. Can you see it? Do you have in your mind’s eye an exotic sports car picture? Moreover, to be even more specific, make it the picture of a fast sports car speeding down the highway.

And while you’re having this vision, why not extend your imagination a little further. Close your eyes. There you are. You can see the sports car picture. So you’re looking at the picture of a Ferrari. Let’s say Ferrari F430 Spider. Take a look. No? Well, what sports car picture do you want to visualize yourself driving? What photo do you want to put in this picture of the sports car? Lamborghini picture? Not to your taste? How about the Jaguar XK8 Convertible? Or why not a picture of the Chevrolet Corvette Convertible? Perhaps you’d like something more classic, like the Austin or the Lotus.

But for the moment, let’s just settle and agree on the picture of the Ferrari. You can change your mind later, at any time you want. After all, this is your visualization. Put any picture of fast sports car you want in your dream. Now, moving on to selecting the color in the picture of the sports car. We’ll make it red. Of course, with your imagination you can make it any color you want—perhaps your favorite color.

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