Lotus E21 launch

[J-PaP]

Perhaps changing from gold to yellow would work better with the red. Gold black and red just isn't executed well but I think Lotus has done the best they could with it.

 

[prisonermonkeys]

This is a concept for a V8 Supercar livery that I saw on another forum that uses a black and gold design. I think something similar would translate very well for Lotus: keep the car predominantly black, with a bit of gold around the bottom of the car, as if to underline it.

 

[chrisjohnson93]

the car's livery makes it look like a mars bar in my opinion with the red bits added this season

 

[Wardez]

I do like the small tinges of red. Red always goes well on cars of any color as an accent, think of the taillights and things like the predominantly red tow hooks.

I just hate that huge splash of red on the E-21's sidepod, if that was black it'd be much much better in my eyes.

Here's some nice comparison shots between the E20 and 21:

Hardly a change at all really... different exhaust, slightly reprofiled everything else.

 

[prisonermonkeys]

Hardly a change at all really... different exhaust, slightly reprofiled everything else.

Which is why it is strange that so many people (not necessarily here) have been hailing the E21 as an absolute revolution, the kind of car that other teams will spend all year just trying to catch up to.

 

[Wardez]

Yeah, probably not. It's all just the optimum designs from 2012. Yeah the rules are the same pretty much, but it seemed like the teams were coming up with some radical design changes toward the last half of the season and there's none of that in the E21. I was expected a differently pinched rear end since Sauber started the trend last year, and especially after the whole RB "is it a hole or a slot?" fiasco. The only other change I see is the rear wing has those interesting looking vanes coming off it, no idea what that's for.

But they still have to reveal the front wing, if it's radically different then we'll know there's more going on in the rear than the eye can see.

Also, now it makes sense where the design inspiration came from for this year's Lotus.

Kimi's 2013 helmet:

 

[prisonermonkeys]

Yeah the rules are the same pretty much, but it seemed like the teams were coming up with some radical design changes toward the last half of the season and there's none of that in the E21.

I suspect it is people trying to convince themselves that Raikkonen has a realistic chance at the title. Just the other day I heard someone claim that because the Russian Grand Prix is scheduled for November 2014, the cooler-than-average temperatures will favour Hamilton and Vettel because of their aggressive driving styles, despite the fact that their aggression comes from their confidence in the car's ability to grip the road, and that the cooler-than-average temperatures will mean there is less grip available.

I suppose that is the benefit of launching first - Lotus get everyone talking about their car for three days before the next launch. People are getting quite carried away with it, but once McLaren, Ferrari and Red Bull (ie the teams that finished ahead of Lotus last year) have launched their cars, things will settle down a bit.

 

[Wardez]

Yeah, just a result of the "long" drought without F1. Specutainment at its best

I do still think he has a good chance as long as the team delivers just a tad more than last year. Easy to ask for, but I do think they have incredibly solid staff, their car just isn't always up to the job. But McLaren and RB have been on wizard status lately so it's hardly unimpressive that they're only so much off from them.

Yeah, me along with you and a lot of people think that they still have something interesting up their sleeves. Now I can't wait for testing, oh man.

Anyway, wanted to share this awesome Lotus wallpaper. I have to be honest, seeing it in motion (even if it's just simulated motion) I could grow to like this baby a lot more:

 

[Centura]

Holy ****. The lively keeps getting worse and worse for each year that goes by...

The red parts of the Lotus have always looked bad and they thought that they would solve that problem by adding even more red? No, just no.

 

[Robin]

I have always wished they would loose all the red bits and go totally black and gold but I guess if they have to keep the red adding more makes it looked reasonably balanced compared to just having red endplates.

Is it me or is the gold getting lighter and lighter with every year?, now it looks like custard Where is the nice rich gold gone? I don't know why but every year top teams liveries look more and more like bottom of the field ones.

 

[niky]

I think the livery is quite beautiful this year. If you can't go all black and gold, might as well balance the colors out.

 

[prisonermonkeys]

I'm hearing all sorts of rumours that the Honeywell deal has collapsed, and that the company will be joining another team, with McLaren and Williams (who originally approached Honeywell) named as two likely candidates.

On the other hand, I'm also hearing rumours that the Honeywell deal is already done and has been for some time.

 

[magpie1997]

I have mixed feelings with the extra red when I first saw I I thought it was horrible but the more I have seen it the more I've come to like it

 

[Pezzarinho17]

Found this on Twitter, certainly looks a bit radical!

 

[RTSolvalou]

the car's livery makes it look like a mars bar

Brilliant. 👍

 

[DaxCobra]

As there is no testing thread, this is probably the best place for this...

According to BBC, this is actually Kimi's new wheel.

 

[Bram Turismo]

It seems to be a feature among all the new cars to make a connection between the sideplate of the sidepod and the sidepod itself. Any articles on this yet?