 |
The E-Type, but a lot purrrtier
|
WHEN I first
reported on the "Growler", now renamed the Lyonheart K in February, I pointed out that it was just “a
photo-realistic screensaver inspired by the Jaguar E-Type.
I said it was designed "for the sole
purpose of milking every possible cent from the cloud of pink nostalgia in which
the the 50-year-old Jaguar E-Type languishes".
I also pointed out the rather stringest parts of the contract, like Condition 2,4: “You
understand that this deposit does not give you the direct right to purchase a
Lyonheart K motor car.
It only gives you the opportunity to receive the purchase
agreement from the Classic Cars factory for purchasing such a car.”
Translated from legalise, this means that should the Swiss and Swedish designers behind the design of the "all-British" car decide NOT turn their fanstastic-looking screen into hard metal, they have all the legal leg room to tell their clients to fuck off, AND keep the non-refundable deposit of some R50 000...
And lo, this is exactly what the market wanted to hear.
For designers, Rob Palm, founder
of Swiss design firm Classic Factory; and Bo Zolland, boss of Swedish company
VizualTech, have announced they will now take orders for 250 of the Lyonheart K.
What's more, "upon customer insistence, a convertible version of
the Lyonheart K will also be built," stated the press release. |
| The rag top Lyonheart can be yours for under R4,2 mil. |
And even cynical old me have to say, I am excited at the mere idea that such a wondrous combination of curves should make it to tar at a time when the world is besieged by ridiculously looking electric vehicles. I would like to see on outside of a computer screen though...
The press statement tries to assuage my darkest suspicions by assuring the Lyonheart cars will be built in Coventry at
Envisage Manufacturing, "known for its expertise in building low-volume series
for renowned car makers".
Palm said: "Every part of the Lyonheart K is developed, engineered
and hand-built in England.
"The build quality will match and even surpass the best you can
find on the luxury car market.
“With partners such as Envisage and Cosworth, we are truly
confident that we will be able to put an extraordinary product in the hands of
true connoisseurs.”
The Cosworth refined 5,0 Litre Supercharged V8 delivers 575 PS and
700 Nm of torque.
The latest all-aluminium chassis, and a finely-tuned, multi-link
chassis, offers superb dynamics and agility.
The Lyonheart K
reaches 100 km/h in under four seconds and tops 300 km/h (electronically
limited).
Lyonheart’s design philosophy is simple: use only genuine materials
— leather, veneer, polished stainless steel, brushed aluminium and chromed
metal, nothing else.
Opening the traditional, front-hinged clam-shell bonnet will reveal
the high-tech Cosworth refined power train.
Seventy percent of the production will be sold in Europe, 10% in
the Middle East and 20% in China.
The production will be strictly limited to 250 cars, including
coupé and convertible.
The price will remain well under €400 000 (just over R4,2
million) before tax and deliveries start in early 2014.
Ja well no fine matey, can we have less talk and more hammering going on at Coventry then? If nothing else, such a gorgeous car on the world's road may even get me to go church again. But only to practice in the1000-man, swelling chorus that has to accompany every glimpse of these cars.
