Lazareth creates a 500-horsepower E85-powered quad (w/VIDEO)
Lazareth Wazuma Bio V12 - Click above for an image gallery
French automobile and motorcycle builder Lazareth has managed to shoehorn an entire BMW V12 engine into one of its crazy Wazuma quads. While there isn't much that's environmentally friendly about a 500-horsepower supercharged V12 from BMW that's powering a rather large and impractical quad platform, Lazareth has decided to attempt to give the machine a bit of eco-cred by running the engine on E85.
Why use ethanol in a decidedly performance-minded machine? We'd guess Lazareth's decision to run E85 as a fuel is due to its superior octane rating, which allows the engine to run a higher compression ratio than with gasoline. If you're interested in adding an ethanol-burning, V12-powered road rocket to your own personal stable of vehicles, all you need to do is write Lazareth a check for €200,000 ($283,000) and await your delivery. Click past the break for a video of the Wazuma Bio V12 in action.
Gallery: Lazareth Wazuma Bio V12
[Source: MotoRevue via Faster and Faster]
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
RSVDon 3:14PM (8/11/2009)
This thing looks like instant death....I WANT ONE!!!
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ack154 3:05PM (8/11/2009)
I wouldn't really say that video shows much "action." It's just the thing following a car most of the time. I was hoping to see someone open it up and show what it can do. That video was pretty lame.
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Joe 4:35PM (8/11/2009)
Hey look it's the next Bat-cycle
MemphisNET 3:08PM (8/11/2009)
...what...
hahahahahaha
I'll take two please.
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MikeofLA 3:11PM (8/11/2009)
I always thought this would be a fun idea, but I think this is a little over kill.
It just makes me think of the acronym, K.I.S.S.
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BrokenMonkey 11:29PM (8/11/2009)
When you think about it, it really is as simple as you can get. Four wheels attached to an engine and not much else.
nrb 3:13PM (8/11/2009)
That's one cool looking and completely pointless vehicle.
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Alex 3:22PM (8/11/2009)
agreed, reminds me of the Dodge Tomahawk.
Matt (that likes ford) 3:15PM (8/11/2009)
Will it drift?
LOL awesome.....
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Sofa King Fast! 3:20PM (8/11/2009)
ahh...I think I'll buy a GSX-R, save myself a bucket of money and kick this thing's ass
I don't get it.
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Alex 3:27PM (8/11/2009)
You will certainly save a bucket of money but i'm not so sure about the ass kicking. An unrestrained BMW V12 putting out over 445hp on the ground is going to hard to keep up with.
bbourgeois87 3:36PM (8/11/2009)
I doubt a gixxer will kick its ass... It has 500 hp to the gixxer's 180 (litrebike) but likely weighs less than 1000 lbs. Gixxer is 380 lbs dry and more like 425 with all oils, gas, etc in it. As long as the Lazareth weighs less than 1,200 lbs., it has a better power to weight ratio than the gixxer... Considering the non-V12 version weighs less than 850 lbs, that is likely.
A gixxer would be more fun though. Leaning into corners is just a lot more exciting than 4 wheels can match.
willyolio 3:37PM (8/11/2009)
you won't be able to beat it. this thing is an engine and wheels. you still have a less engine and more chassis to move with a gixxer.
Farris 3:42PM (8/11/2009)
Not only that, but the Gixxer only has one driven wheel (with a round cross section) to this thing's two driven wheels (with 315 mm wide flat cross sections).
I wish we could use quads legally on the streets here in the states. I'd love to be able to strap some street tires on our Polaris 700 and drive it to work, but I'll never be able to. :(
Sofa King Fast! 4:08PM (8/11/2009)
Quadzuma = nearly 900lbs with a 1L yamaha engine
THe v-12 probably adds 500lbs to that weight = 1400lbs
Gixxer: 36% of the power of lazereth + 27% of the weight of lazereth = faster.
Plus the gixxer would destroy this on anything with a turn.
Gixxer all the way!
Farris 4:17PM (8/11/2009)
Sofa: As I said before, there's more to it than power and weight. You need traction, too.
As much as I love motorcycles, I would give either testicle to have a street legal quad bike here in WA state.
Toy Yoda 6:08PM (8/11/2009)
Why would the Gixxer destroy it on the turns? I don't know bikes that well.
Anyways, didn't the Ariel Atom destroy a bike around a turn in that Top Gear video? The bike was different, but wouldn't you get similar results here too?
Just wondering.
BoxerFanatic 11:23PM (8/11/2009)
A motorcycle wins in turns because of leaning turns, and using centrifugal force for traction.
This thing has square tires. It doesn't lean.
Think of it as a giant V12 killer go-cart that you sit on, instead of in. Lateral traction is just a matter of having enough rubber on the road to avoid lateral slip.
A bike uses it's own weight and gyroscopic forces to load the round section tire to the ground, instead of trying not to slide the tires, or trying TO slide the tires.
Imag 1:29AM (8/12/2009)
Boxer - all due respect (thanks for your last comment on the VVEL), but - motorcycles distinctly do not win in turns. That's actually where they lose to fast cars on road circuits. They just don't have enough rubber to put to the ground (as long as no one starts the contact patch discussion, we're all good).
Googling "motorcycle vs. car turns" will turn up a few examples.
And centripetal force is different from centrifugal (which is not actually a force), which is different from gyroscopic forces. And none really make a motorcycle grip better than a car.
Vincenzo 3:29PM (8/11/2009)
Totaly Stupid
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