French bike maker Lazareth is best known for its outrageous motorcycles that somehow always have more than two wheels like a motorcycle should. The last we saw here was the monstrous LM 847, a 4-wheel beast that has a heart of a Maserati. Is that even a bike still? Well, it god damn is, which why LM 847 is as outrageous as it is cool. The name Lazareth is as mythical as the vehicles the marque have rolled out. The company’s latest endeavor, the Lazareth LMV 496, is even more mythical. Except that this unicorn is about to become very real.
The LMV 496 is almost the LM 847, but with one exception: it flies too. You heard that right. Flying motorcycle is real. And mind you, though, when we said “flying bike” it really is a flying bike, i.e. it can roll as a regular bike (a 4-wheeled one, that is) and at a flip of a switch, take to the skies. In other words, it is part bike, part flying machine. It is a contraption that Doc Emmett Brown would approve of. It is literally the kind of transformation from road-going vehicle into an air vehicle as depicted in so many sci-fi series and movies.
During transition, the LMV 496 wheels rotate to horizontal position – just like it has been envisioned in sci-fi movies – to reveal four downward-facing turbines, one on each wheel. All told, the four turbines put out 1,300 HP and generate 630 pounds of thrust. As a road-going vehicle, it has an all-electric range of 62 miles and as an air vehicle, it has a modest 10-minute flight time. Man, this is like Back to the Future II DeLorean Time Machine come true, except this is the motorcycle version and also, the transition is not as quick.
In fact, the transformation is snail pace, but it does do it like in the sci-fi movies. Most importantly for sci-fi nuts, it is as real as you and me. Lazareth LMV 496 was officially launched in January 2019 with just 5 units to go around. It is available to order, but the thing is, it is likely restricted to customers living in France. For pricing, you will have to get in touch with Lazareth to find out more. Undoubtedly, this is going to be really, really expensive.
Images: Lazareth.
Source: Autoblog.
