Analogue Automotive’s VHPK turns the original Lotus Elise into a radical single-seat roadster with 247 horsepower and a $470,000 price tag.

The Lotus Elise restomod has been taken to an extreme.

Analogue Automotive’s VHPK transforms the lightweight first-generation Elise into a radically focused roadster that weighs just 1,320 pounds and costs around $470,000.

One Seat and Lots of Carbon Fiber

The VHPK takes inspiration from the Colin Chapman philosophy of reducing weight wherever possible.

There is only one seat, positioned in the center of the cabin, while extensive use of carbon fiber helps bring the weight down even further.

The Analogue Automotive VHPK features a central driving position and extensive lightweight construction.

Only 35 examples will be built to order, making the Elise-based machine extremely exclusive.

Analogue Automotive says the project draws inspiration from a short-lived single-make racing series featuring the S1 Elise.

247 HP From a Rover V8? No, a Four-Cylinder

Power comes from a heavily modified 1.9-liter Rover K-Series four-cylinder.

It produces 247 horsepower and sends power to the rear wheels through a five-speed sequential gearbox.

The VHPK uses a reworked 1.9-liter Rover K-Series producing 247 horsepower.

Given the car’s extremely low weight, the combination should deliver an exceptionally high power-to-weight ratio without requiring enormous horsepower.

Analogue Automotive also offers options including fully active suspension and carbon-fiber wheels.

Nearly Half a Million Dollars for Less

The carbon wheels alone can reduce weight by another 20 pounds, underscoring just how seriously the VHPK approaches the lightweight philosophy.

Optional carbon-fiber wheels can cut another 20 pounds from the VHPK’s already tiny curb weight.

At around $470,000, the VHPK costs more than many far more powerful sports cars.

But that misses the point.

The VHPK isn’t intended to be the most powerful car in someone’s garage. It’s designed to deliver something increasingly rare: an extremely lightweight, mechanically focused driving experience.

With only 35 cars planned, a central driving position, 247 hp, and a 1,320-pound curb weight, the Lotus Elise restomod takes Colin Chapman’s famous lightweight philosophy to its logical extreme.

Fred Vasseur says Ferrari’s second engine upgrade has not closed the gap to Mercedes, with outright power still the Scuderia’s biggest weakness.

Ferrari’s latest engine upgrade has improved its performance, but it has not been enough to close the gap to Mercedes.

Team principal Fred Vasseur admits the Scuderia still lacks outright engine power, particularly at circuits such as Monza where straight-line performance is crucial.

Ferrari Could Not Match Mercedes Power

Ferrari introduced its second ADUO power-unit upgrade at Monza after the first update debuted in Austria.

However, Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton qualified only fourth and fifth, while Ferrari-powered Haas driver Oliver Bearman was around 5.6 km/h slower in top speed than the Mercedes benchmark.

Ferrari introduced its second ADUO engine upgrade at Monza but remained behind Mercedes on straight-line performance.

Vasseur said Ferrari never expected the upgrades to completely eliminate the deficit.

The goal was instead to make smaller gains, with even a few additional horsepower potentially making a difference in an extremely competitive midfield.

Energy Deployment Is Not the Main Problem

Ferrari has experimented with electrical energy deployment to compensate for its lack of combustion power.

But Vasseur insists that this is not the fundamental issue.

Ferrari has used energy deployment strategies to offset some of its engine deficit, but Vasseur says the underlying issue is outright power.

According to Vasseur, moving energy around the lap only creates a trade-off elsewhere.

The real problem, he says, is simply not having enough pure power.

That deficit becomes even more visible at Monza because of the circuit’s long straights.

Budget Cap Makes Engine Development Difficult

Vasseur also highlighted the difficulty of developing a Formula 1 engine under the cost cap.

Engine components require long lead times, meaning a manufacturer cannot simply make a rapid technical change and immediately produce new power units.

Ferrari says the F1 cost cap and long component lead times make rapid engine development particularly difficult.

Ferrari therefore chose to make smaller improvements with its ADUO opportunities rather than expecting either upgrade to transform its position against Mercedes.

The team is now looking ahead to 2027, when Ferrari will have another opportunity to improve its power unit.

For Ferrari engine power, the conclusion from Monza is clear: the Scuderia has made progress, but Mercedes remains ahead where it matters most.

Ferrari’s constructors’ championship deficit has also grown from 87 to 122 points, while Hamilton now trails in the drivers’ standings by 76 points.

The Italian Grand Prix delivered the most extreme example yet of F1’s 2026 “yo-yo” racing, with drivers trapped in groups by slipstream and battery management.

The Monza F1 2026 race may be remembered as the clearest example yet of how the new regulations are changing the way Grand Prix races unfold.

The combination of huge slipstream effects and limited electrical energy created a race where drivers could overtake easily, but then struggled to pull away.

Cars Became Trapped in Groups

The phenomenon has been dubbed “yo-yo racing.”

A driver can use extra battery power to make an overtaking move, only to lose that position again on the next straight after running out of energy.

Drivers repeatedly exchanged positions at Monza because battery deployment and the slipstream made it difficult to escape.

Max Verstappen experienced the problem directly.

Despite lacking the engine performance to seriously challenge Mercedes, the Red Bull driver was able to remain close to George Russell because the powerful tow reduced the advantage of the Mercedes.

Verstappen said defending became extremely difficult once another driver had access to the overtaking boost.

Even Faster Cars Struggled to Escape

The same pattern affected several other groups.

Oscar Piastri and Lewis Hamilton formed one battle, while Lando Norris and Pierre Gasly found themselves locked together.

McLaren team principal Andrea Stella noted that the regulations make it particularly difficult for a faster car to complete an overtake and then immediately pull away.

McLaren and Ferrari both struggled to create gaps because the slipstream and battery deployment neutralized some pace differences.

Ferrari team principal Fred Vasseur described the main problem as straight-line speed and overtaking.

His drivers could use their battery to attack another car, but doing so left them vulnerable on the following straight.

The Slipstream Could Be Worth Half a Second

According to Stella, the combined effect of the slipstream and battery deployment could create a difference of up to half a second per lap.

A car behind could force the driver ahead to spend additional electrical energy defending, which then affected the next section of the lap.

Battery deployment became one of the most important strategic factors at the Italian Grand Prix.

That made energy management the dominant issue for drivers and engineers throughout the weekend.

Stella described Monza as one of the busiest races of the year from a strategic perspective because teams had to constantly optimize both setup and energy usage.

Antonelli Was the Exception

There was one major exception to the group-racing pattern.

Andrea Kimi Antonelli started from 19th and eventually won the race, breaking away from the traffic after an impressive early recovery.

He reached sixth after the lap-six restart before the later strategy allowed him to fight for the victory.

For the Monza F1 2026 weekend, that combination of slipstream, battery management, and overtaking could make the Italian Grand Prix one of the defining races of the new technical era.