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Lotus Evija's wild aero setup is detailed by chief aerodynamicist

The Lotus Evija is a car of firsts for Lotus. To that end, the company has spent a lot of time talking over the details. Today, we get to learn about the wild shape’s aerodynamics and what Lotus engineers were trying to accomplish. Richard Hill, chief aerodynamicist for Lotus takes a dive into all the details, and the video at the top of this post offers a great visual. “Most cars have to punch a hole in the air, to get through using brute force, but the Evija is unique because of its porosity,” Hill says. “The car literally ‘breathesÂ’ the air. The front acts like a mouth; it ingests the air, sucks every kilogram of value from it – in this case, the downforce – then exhales it through that dramatic rear end.” We can see what Hill means as we look at the Evija in photos. Instead of a regular front bumper, this one has pass-throughs that direct the air back into the side of the car. Lotus hasnÂ’t released the all-important coefficient of drag figure yet, but we have to imagine itÂ’s very low. The front splitter (below, left) is responsible for a few different things. The opening in the center takes in air to cool the battery pack that is mounted behind the seats. Then, the outer section of the splitter channels the air to the “e-axle” for cooling of the electrical components. And finally, it also produces downforce.  There are a couple more tunnels for air to pass through in the rear. These “holes” are likely the most distinctive design feature, especially when accentuated with the LED taillights. Hill says that these are also fully functional and help to reduce drag. “They feed the wake rearward to help cut drag,” Hill says. “Think of it this way; without them the Evija would be like a parachute but with them itÂ’s a butterfly net, and they make the car unique in the hypercar world.” On top of all these porous body structures, there are pieces that move. The rear wing can elevate upward from its flush body position and deploy into clean air above, creating more downforce. And then thereÂ’s an F1-style drag reduction system. This uses a horizontal plane that deploys from the car to make it slipperier through air. The final big piece of this puzzle is the underbody sculpting that directs air into the massive rear diffuser. This causes an upwash of air, in turn creating a massive amount of downforce. Hill sums it up quite nicely.

Renault bailing out Lotus F1 Team to pay $4M tax bill

The road ahead looks to be clear for Renault to reacquire the Formula One team that once bore its name. The latest reports have it that the French automaker is prepared to pay a multi-million-dollar tax bill to the British government to keep the Lotus team from entering bankruptcy proceedings. According to the report from Autosport, the Lotus F1 Team owes a massive GBP2.7 million – equivalent to over $4 million at current exchange rates – to the Her Majesty's Revenue & Customs authority for income tax and national insurance (Brit-speak for social security). The team was supposed to have withheld and submitted the funds on behalf of its 400 employees dating back to June, but since it has yet to pay up, it's being taken to court by the UK government. Apparently unable to foot the bill, the cash-strapped team looked poised to enter bankruptcy just as the Caterham and Manor/Marussia teams did last year. But Renault is now poised to step in to the team's rescue. Those with a longer memory for F1 history will point out that the Lotus team – which has little to do with the sports car manufacturer of the same name – dates back to 1981, and has changed title and ownership several times over the years. What was founded as Toleman was then taken over by Benetton. Renault acquired the team in 2000, but sold it to its current owners Genii Capital in 2009. The team based in Enstone, UK, won back-to-back world championships with Michael Schumacher in 1994-95 and again with Fernando Alonso in 2005-06, but has struggled both competitively and financially over recent years. Consigned to an engine-supply role since divesting itself of majority interest in the Lotus team, Renault has been rumored to be preparing to reacquire the outfit from Genii – and in all likelihood switch it back from Mercedes power to its own. Paying the outstanding tax bill will likely emerge as the first step in that reacquisition. Once it takes over full ownership again, Renault is expected to rebrand the team in its own image, and will then have to decide on driver and other personnel contracts for next season. Related Video:

Lotus Type 135 electric sports car mixes the Emira with some Esprit

Over the next four years, English sports car maker will make its oft-attempted transformations real by unveiling three "lifestyle vehicles" on its new Premium Architecture. The first is the Type 132 electric crossover, expected to debut in the next few months. After that will come the Type 133 four-door coupe, then the Type 134 crossover that's smaller than the Type 132. In that fourth year, we'll get the Type 135, an electric sports car that will recall the Lotus of old. This electric coupe, sitting on the firm's E-Sports architecture, is being called "a spiritual successor of the Elise," which would be a good thing. The teaser sketch Lotus released to hype up the car also makes us think Esprit, which, as far as we're concerned, is an even better thing. True, there's Elise and Exige and Emira in those exaggerated fenders, but the pointy ends are vintage early Esprit. But the looks aren't the point right now. The reason for the hubbub is Lotus signing a Memorandum of Understanding with British battery firm Britishvolt "to collaborate on research and development of advanced EV technology." The cooperation would put Lotus in charge of "electric propulsion technologies" like motors and control systems, while Britishvolt oversees a "new battery cell package." Goals for the pack are energy density, fast charging and weight reduction. Novel placement is on the menu, too, the E-Sports architecture laid out so that it can also accept batteries in the traditional style under the floor, or behind the cockpit a la a mid-engined sports car. The MOU could give the battery company two clients in one, as the Type 135 will be shared with Alpine across the Channel as well. By the time the Type 135 shows, Britishvolt's $5.1 billion battery factory in Northumberland should have been up and running for two years, ready to supply cells to the Type 135 that will be built at Lotus' historic Hethel, England headquarters (the other Types will be built in Wuhan, China at a manufacturing facility being developed by Lotus parent company Geely). The sports car will come in single- and dual-motor versions powering RWD and AWD trims, those motors expected produce anywhere between 469 and 872 horsepower providing a range of up to 450 miles on the WLTP cycle. The electronics will run on 800-volt architectures, the batteries ranging from 66.4-kWh to 99.6-kWh capacities.  Related Video: This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences.