Lotus E22 Render Released

Lotus fans were disappointed when their team stated that they would not be attending the first pre-season test in Jerez and consequently delaying the launch of their 2014 challenger. The team who were the first to unveil their 2013 car were looking to spend more time developing the package at Enstone. However, in conjunction with the corporate launch season, Lotus have released three renderings of their new car and it has certainly sparked some discussion.

The images released are merely a concept, but the Lotus E22's odd design is certainly sparking debate
(c) Lotus F1 Team

Nose Out Of Joint

Seems like all I have been talking about over the past 48 hours are noses, but designs have been radical and outrageous so far, with the design depicted on the E22 being no exception. Lotus have adopted the opposite ideology to McLaren, with the middle section of the nose cut away to leave two 'tusks.' It is the middle ground between the MP4-29 and the FW26, (which featured the 'walrus nose'.) 

To add to the irregular nature of the design, the right hand 'tusk' is around 50mm longer than the left hand one. This is in compliance with the FIA's regulations stating that the tip of the front wing has to be 185mm in front of the reference plane; the additional 50mm means that the nose as a whole conforms to these regulations. However, with such a minor aerodynamic advantage gained from this slight difference, I would not be surprised if the E22 features two 'tusks' of the same length when it is finally seen in the flesh at the second test.

For a more in-depth look at these technical features, check out somersf1.blogspot.co.uk

PDVSA Appears...

Following Maldonado's money driven appointment as Romain Grosjean's teammate for 2014, PDVSA became immediately affiliated with Lotus. With the Venezuelan state oil company taking many of the sponsors placements on the car, it was questionable as to how French oil company Total, (who sponsor Romain Grosjean) would accept this. However, since PDVSA and Total work closely together, it seems that PDVSA has taken the spoils in terms of sponsor logos, with Total not appearing on the new livery. This makes sense as it would be a frosty dynamic to have two oil companies featuring on one car.
The overriding opinion of the new livery is positive, especially considering the amount of sponsorship logos featured on this year's car - hopefully this is a sign that Lotus' money concerns are behind them.

It is very difficult to look into the images with any depth at the moment. They are merely concept renders and will probably differ from the final product. However, it is certainly a nice touch for Lotus to release these photos, especially considering that they coincided with their popular team boss turning his back on the team.