Here’s an idea: let’s rip a 4.7-liter Maserati V8 out of a Maserati and stick it into a motorcycle. Wouldn’t that be excellent?
Yes, yes it would, and we know this because French customizer Lazareth did it for the Geneva Motor Show. Technically it’s a leaning quad, because there’s two tires at each end, but it’s set very up very much like a motorcycle. It’s called the Lazareth LM 847 and it’s wonderful.
That motor, the one they used to use in the Quattroporte and Alfa Romeo 8C, is good here for 470 horsepower and 457 lb-ft of torque. The gearbox, if you can call it that, is a one-speed hydraulic coupling connected to the two rear chains, and it comes in pretty beefy at just under 900 pounds.
Great idea, or greatest idea?
Contact the author at patrick@jalopnik.com.