British, Racing and Very Green The Lotus Exige 265E – the most powerful road version of the Lotus Exige ever – and it runs on environmentally friendly Bio Fuel!

Lotus Engineering, the engineering consultancy division of Group Lotus Plc has developed a bio-ethanol E85 / gasoline flex fuel version of the Lotus Exige.

The research vehicle is a true Lotus (it weighs just 930 kg unladen) and is called the Lotus Exige 265E. 265 indicates the approximate horsepower and is consistent with the naming strategy of other one-off and limited run Lotus variants such as the Lotus Sport Exige 240R; the E indicates the environmentally favourable bio-ethanol E85 fuel (85% ethanol alcohol and 15% petrol / gasoline) that powers this extremely high performing sportscar.

Key to this performance is a slightly modified version of the 2ZZ VVTL-i supercharged and intercooled high revving 4-cylinder engine from the standard Lotus Exige S. This now gives an estimated set of performance figures that would thrash the majority of “Super-Unleaded” performance cars: 0-60mph in 3.88 seconds, 0-100mph in 9.2 seconds and a top speed of 158mph!

Key changes have been made to the fuel system, the engine calibration and the four fuel injectors mounted on the inlet manifold have been enlarged. Two additional fuel injectors have been fitted at the supercharger inlet to increase the amount of fuel being injected in to the engine under higher engine loads and to further cool the charge air prior to combustion.

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Thanks for your patience regarding the posting of the Goodwood pictures. As the "real" job has occupied nearly all of my time over the past two weeks, I’m horribly behind in sorting, cataloging and retouching the Festival of Speed Photos.

As you may notice this year, I’m spending more time cataloging the various cars both into their respective groups, which are then subdivided into subalbums of the cars themselves. Some had more in focus and asthetical appeal than others, so some subalbums are bigger than others - you get the picture. (No pun intended.)

It should only take me another week or so if my professional schedule calms down a bit, but you’ll notice I’ve managed to get through Class 23, the Endurance Racers this afternoon. I’ll try and add a class or two during the week as well.

Thanks again for your patience.

Cars International, the supplier of high-performance road and racing cars, has entered an exclusive relationship with famed engine producer Cosworth to supply and service V10 Formula 1 engines to customers.

Cars International’s workshop, near Membury in Berkshire, will supply and install the TJ-series 3.0-litre Cosworth V10 that raced in Formula 1 from 2003 to 2006, and most recently with Toro Rosso.

The engine will be particularly appropriate for the pan-European series EuroBOSS as well as for demonstrations and track days in F1 cars. Cars International founder Paul Osborn said: “There are many late-model F1 cars out there that people find extremely difficult to adapt because they can’t get the existing available engines in them, not just because they are too big but because of the crank height. The Cosworth V10 will be the only modern, compact F1 engine that is available.”

The V10, which would also be suitable for use in a modern Le Mans Prototype car, will be supplied in two formats: 900bhp, which will run for 1200 kilometres between rebuilds; and 750bhp, which will run for up to 1500 kilometres.

Cars International Service director Tim Preston, a former race engineer for the Williams F1 team, added: “Our intention is to enable a car owner to have the Cosworth (V10) engine installed and use our own gearbox and chassis controller unit.”

Bernard Ferguson, director of motorsport of Northampton-based Cosworth, said: “We’re delighted with this arrangement. We are very impressed with Paul Osborn and Cars International - it’s very important that the end user gets a decent service and we want to work with organisations that can enhance what Cosworth can provide.

“There is a need in the marketplace for a contemporary, lightweight, narrow V-angle engine. It just required someone to break the mould.”

The new chassis-controller unit, consisting of an ECU to control the chassis and gearbox and a steering wheel, is scheduled to take its first public outing at the Goodwood Festival of Speed on June 22-24. “We will be running a Jordan EJ13 at Goodwood,” said Preston. “This will have the chassis controller and a Cosworth LK engine. Then we hope to run the Cosworth TJ for the first time in July.”

Stuttgart. Presenting the new 911 GT2 at the Frankfurt Motor Show, Dr. Ing. h.c. F. Porsche AG, Stuttgart, is proudly launching the most powerful 911 so far homologated for road use. Through its striking design with large air intakes at the front and the rear wing so characteristic of this very special model, the new 911 GT2 expresses the power and performance potential of the fastest-ever 911 right from the start even at a standstill. Available exclusively with rear-wheel drive and a manual six-speed gearbox, this high-performance athlete accelerates to 100 km/h in just 3.7 seconds and reaches a top speed of 329 km/h (204 mph) on average fuel consumption of just 12.5 litres/100 km (equal to 22.6 mpg imp) in the New European Driving Cycle (NEDC), thus offering a level of fuel economy regarded as quite impossible in this performance class just a few years ago.

The power unit of the new 911 GT2 is based on the six-cylinder boxer engine of the 911 Turbo, with air supply by two exhaust gas turbochargers featuring variable turbine geometry (VTG). The 3.6-litre boxer engine achieves its maximum output of 530 bhp (390 kW) at 6500 rpm, with maximum torque of 680 Newton-metres maintained consistently between 2,200 and 4,500 rpm. With its unladen weight of 1,440 kg or 3,175 lb, finally, the 911 GT2 offers a power-to-weight ratio of just 2.72 kg/6.00 lb per horsepower.

The increase in engine power by 50 bhp over the ”regular“ power unit is provided in the new 911 GT2 by two turbochargers with a larger compressor wheel and a flow-optimised turbine housing raising turbocharger pressure to an even higher level. And for the first time Porsche’s engineers have combined the turbocharged engine with an expansion-type intake manifold – a genuine revolution on turbocharged power units.

The expansion intake manifold uses the principle of oscillating air in the intake manifold during the cooler expansion phase, keeping the temperature of the fuel/air mixture lower than in the 911 Turbo. This, in turn, means a significant increase in all-round efficiency, with fuel consumption down by up to 15 per cent under full load despite the increase in engine output.

The 911 GT2 offers new achievements also in terms of emission management and control: This is the first Porsche homologated for the road to feature a rear silencer and tailpipes made of titanium as standard equipment. This expensive material reduces weight by approximately 50 per cent versus a comparable component made of stainless steel to just 9 kg.

The new 911 GT2 comes as standard with PCCB brakes featuring brake discs made of a composite carbon fibre/ceramic compound ensuring maximum stopping power maintained with an extremely high level of consistency. A further advantage is that PCCB brakes reduce the weight of the unsprung masses versus comparable grey cast-iron discs by approximately 20 kg or 44 lb.

Yet another feature fitted as standard is the electronically controlled PASM Porsche Active Suspension Management. (PASM). The GT2 comes on 19-inch light-alloy wheels running at the front on 235/35 ZR 19, at the rear on 325/30 ZR 19 sports tyres.

The new 911 GT2 will be at dealerships in November 2007. The base price of the car in Germany is Euro 159,100.-, the market price including 19 per cent value-added tax Euro 189,496.-.

Oli, Dan, Frank and myself have all recovered (finally) from the 2007 Goodwood Festival of Speed. What a fabulous event!

Each year, I leave the event wondering how Lord March will top the event next year. Astoundingly, he always manages to pull it off. Last year’s central display wasn’t as impressive as it had been in previous years, but this year’s suspended historic Toyota racers was truly an incredible sight to behold. Five historic Toyota race cars, from Formula One to Rallying were suspended between twenty and seventy feet off the ground. Spectators were able to walk completely underneath the cars dangling above their heads.

The weather was mixed, to put it mildly, but that didn’t deter the throngs of people who came out to see their four wheeled heroes and the amazing men who piloted them. There were a few shunts into the bales over the course of the weekend, but fortunately there were no serious injuries either to drivers or spectators.

We’ve been sorting through the more than three thousand images we captured over the three day event, and are pleased to report we have a stack of excellent images to share with you. In fact, we’ve got so many, it’s taking quite a lot of time to pare down the quantity, label and catalog each image before posting them online. It will likely be another week or two before all the photos are online. Please bear with us - in the meantime, enjoy the twenty images we’ve posted in the “Taster” gallery.

Below is an excerpt from the official Goodwood release:

The 2007 Goodwood Festival of Speed is now over for another year. Despite changeable weather conditions throughout the weekend, including near-Biblical rain all day Sunday, nothing could dampen the enthusiasm of the sell-out 145,000+ event spectators.

The reception received by Lewis Hamilton, Britain’s Formula 1 superstar, was immense, and Lewis loved every minute of it as he entertained a wildly partisan crowd behind the wheel of a Vodaphone McLaren Mercedes F1 car for the very first time on British soil, two weeks ahead of the UK Grand Prix debut at Silverstone. Many of his huge fan base were also able to get up close as he signed autographs and spoke with the crowd.

Other F1 stars, past and present, including Sir Stirling Moss, Sir Jackie Stewart, Emerson Fitttipaldi, Jenson Button and David Coulthard also took to the Goodwood Hill in a variety of racing machinery. Stewart was reunited with the same Lola that he drove in the Indy 500 40-years ago, while Coulthard starred in an ex-Ecurie Ecosse Jaguar D-type. Marc Gené was on scintillating form in the Ferrari F2006 F1 car while Ralf Schumacher and Franck Montagny were hugely entertaining in the Toyota TF106 GP car.

Somewhat slower, but also hugely entertaining, was the spectacle of motor sport drivers and riders like Damon Hill, Troy Bayliss, Chris Atkinson, Mark Webber and Jenson Button pedalling up the 1.16-mile hillclimb to massive cheers in the inaugural Goodwood Organic Milk Race. A big cheer also went out too to The Red Arrows, who were truly awe-inspiring, despite the damp weather conditions

American Rod Millen recorded the fastest time of the Festival weekend up the Hill, recording a staggering time of 47.18-seconds in his wild Pikes Peak Toyota Takoma. The antics of the many motorcycle racers were also hugely appreciated by the spectators, but nothing compared with jaw-dropping exploits of European Stunt-Riding Champion Chris Pfeiffer who wowed spectators and hardened motorcyclists alike with his signature stunt moves on a BMW F8000S ’bike. No handed wheelies, 360-degree spins and outrageous ‘stoppies’ stunned the crowd.

Rally fans were treated to a wealth of iconic rally cars, plus many current WRC machines, being driven as their makers intended on the Goodwood Forest Rally Stage. Star drivers, including Petter Solberg, Paddy Hopkirk, Chris Atkinson and renowned ace Stig Blomqvist showed their best sideways style. Rally deity Carlos Sainz visited the Festival of Speed for the first time this year and proved that he hasn’t lost any of his natural flair aboard the Toyota Celica GT-Four ST165 in which Bjorn Waldegard won the 1990 Safari rally.

It was Toyota that took centre stage at the Festival, celebrating its 70th anniversary and also 50 years involvement in motor sport. It was impossible to miss the spectacular 38-metre high structure in front of Goodwood House, showcasing an array of Toyota racing and rallying classics from disciplines including Formula 1, Indycars and Group C sports-prototypes. Toshio Suzuki and Frank Montagny will also be giving the dramatic TS020-GT One Le Mans car an airing on Goodwood Hill.