Lotus Records

Colin Chapman is truly versatile! Apart from building sports cars, racing these and F. II cars, preparing the Lotus Elite coupé for production, getting cars ready for racing, acting in an advisory capacity to Vanwall and B.R.M., contemplating a 750-c.c. production Lotus, and now planning a team of F. I Lotus cars, he finds time to send a special Lotus to Monza to improve on his own records, A Lotus Eleven was fitted with streamlined canopy and blown 750-c.c. and 1,100-c.c single o.h.c. Climax engines were prepared. In Class G form the Lotus set up five new records, from 50 km. to 200 km., driven on December 3rd last year in difficult conditions by Allison. The 50-km. record was fastest, at 142.016 m.p.h. The attack on Class H records will be especially interesting, remembering the Austin-M.G. rivalry in this class years ago. — W. B.