Colin Chapman

<body topmargin=0 leftmargin=0 marginheight=0 marginwidth=0> <table cellpadding=0 cellspacing=0 border=0><tr> <td valign="top" colspan=2 height=50 BGCOLOR="#339933" TEXT="#080000"> <div> <B>Colin Chapman</B></div> <div> </div> </td> </tr><tr> <td valign="top" width=175 BGCOLOR="#336600" TEXT="#F7F7FF"> <div> <B>Colin Chapman</B></div> <div> <B>1928-1982</B></div> <bR> <div> <A HREF="index.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="UTAH LOTUS MUSEUM "><U><B>Home</B></U></A></div> <bR> <div> <A HREF="id91_m.htm#introduction" TARGET="TRLX_Middle" TITLE="Colin Chapman"><U><B>Introduction</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="id91_m.htm#awakens" TARGET="TRLX_Middle" TITLE="Colin Chapman"><U><B>Interest in Racing</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="id91_m.htm#spaceframecars" TARGET="TRLX_Middle" TITLE="Colin Chapman"><U><B>SpaceFrame Cars</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="id91_m.htm#elite" TARGET="TRLX_Middle" TITLE="Colin Chapman"><U><B>Fiberglass Elite</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="id91_m.htm#spaceframef1cars" TARGET="TRLX_Middle" TITLE="Colin Chapman"><U><B>SpaceFrame F-1</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="id91_m.htm#mid_enginedsportsracers" TARGET="TRLX_Middle" TITLE="Colin Chapman"><U><B>Sports Racers</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="id91_m.htm#elan" TARGET="TRLX_Middle" TITLE="Colin Chapman"><U><B>Lotus Elan</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="id91_m.htm#monocoquef1cars" TARGET="TRLX_Middle" TITLE="Colin Chapman"><U><B>Monocoque F-1</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="id91_m.htm#groundeffect" TARGET="TRLX_Middle" TITLE="Colin Chapman"><U><B>Ground Effect</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="id91_m.htm#elise" TARGET="TRLX_Middle" TITLE="Colin Chapman"><U><B>Lotus Elise</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="id91_m.htm#epilogue" TARGET="TRLX_Middle" TITLE="Colin Chapman"><U><B>Epilogue</B></U></A></div> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> </td> <td valign="top" height=430 BGCOLOR="#339966" TEXT="#080000"> <bR> <div> <TABLE BORDER="0" CELLPADDING="2" CELLSPACING="1" WIDTH="783" BORDERCOLORLIGHT="#C0C0C0" BORDERCOLORDARK="#808080" FRAME="BOX" RULES="ALL" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" > <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP HEIGHT= 324 WIDTH="519"><div> Colin Chapman <A NAME="introduction"><IMG BORDER="0" SRC="1x1.gif" HEIGHT="1" ALIGN="bottom" WIDTH="1" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" ></A></div> <div> <B>Reflections on his Works</B></div> <bR> <div> "The most innovative genius in the design of racing cars in the history of motor racing"</div> <div> Jackie<FONT SIZE="4" COLOR="#000000" FACE="Arial" > </FONT>Stewart   <FONT SIZE="4" COLOR="#000000" FACE="Arial" >World Driving Champion: 1969,1971,1973</FONT></div> <bR> <div> <B>"</B>I have always admired him and remember him as a subtle visionary, a wise interpreter of technical regulations, and as being especially gifted in his ability to produce ideas ahead of their time"  </div> <div> Enzo Ferrari   <FONT SIZE="4" COLOR="#000000" FACE="Arial" >Founder of Ferrari Automobiles</FONT></div> </tD> <tD VALIGN=TOP><NOBR><div> <IMG SRC="42e003e0.jpg" border=0 width="256" height="318" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></div> </NOBR></tD> </tR> </TABLE></div> <bR> <div> <FONT SIZE="5" COLOR="#000000" FACE="Arial" >C</FONT>olin Chapman was a particularly adaptable mechanical genius. Instead of re-inventing the wheel, he tapped existing but underdeveloped ideas. He then applied his own innovative inventions and twists. What information Chapman didn't know, he absorbed thoroughly and quickly from textbooks and engineering journals of the day. Such acquired technology he interfaced with his core structural engineering background to create a personal knowledge base of considerable breadth and depth. All this resulted in a significant advance in the whole concept and his final product was a new machine that went faster than anybody else's. </div> <bR> <div> At university Chapman had a considerable amount of free time, as he completed his course studies with acceptable grades with much less time consumed than most students. He liked to tinker with "things that moved " and by 1948, when he graduated, he had worked on modifying several cars including an Austin 7, which became the Lotus Mark I - a trials car.   </div> <bR> <div> <B>Chapman's Interest in Racing Awakens</B><B> <A NAME="awakens"><IMG BORDER="0" SRC="1x1.gif" HEIGHT="1" ALIGN="bottom" WIDTH="1" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" ></A></B></div> <bR> <div> Chapman didn't start out as a motor racing enthusiast, but when one, with enthusiasm, modifies cars to improve performance, the race track is a logical conclusion to these efforts. Having never watched a motor race, in June of 1950 he entered one at Silverstone with his second car, the Lotus Mark II, which he had again modified from an Austin 7. His design improvements to the car and natural driving ability enabled him to win, beating a GP Bugatti. This event proved to be a turning point in his life. He had found racing to be a very exciting endeavor, and one where he could use his scientific interests to good advantage. </div> <bR> <div> <TABLE BORDER="0" CELLPADDING="2" CELLSPACING="1" WIDTH="745" BORDERCOLORLIGHT="#C0C0C0" BORDERCOLORDARK="#808080" FRAME="BOX" RULES="ALL" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" > <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP ROWSPAN=2 HEIGHT= 41 WIDTH="321"><div> In another modified Austin 7, the Mark III, for which he had triangulated part of the notoriously flimsy frame and added power to the engine by an ingenious modification of the intake system, he was unbeatable. Although he was a more-than-capable driver and found much satisfaction in racing, his real passion was innovation, now directed towards building race cars. His approach was notably different than most race car builders who used conventional practice and refined it. Chapman went back to fundamental scientific principles as the basis of his designs.</div> </tD> <tD VALIGN=TOP><NOBR><div> <B>Chapman and Lotus Mark III at 750 Formula Race</B></div> <div> <B> in 1951. He ran away with the Championship.</B></div> </NOBR></tD> </tR> <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP><NOBR><div> <IMG SRC="4109c4b0.jpg" border=0 width="412" height="331" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></div> </NOBR></tD> </tR> </TABLE></div> <bR> <bR> <div> <B>Chapman's Early Space Frame Cars</B><B> <A NAME="spaceframecars"><IMG BORDER="0" SRC="1x1.gif" HEIGHT="1" ALIGN="bottom" WIDTH="1" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" ></A></B></div> <bR> <div> <TABLE BORDER="0" CELLPADDING="2" CELLSPACING="1" WIDTH="789" BORDERCOLORLIGHT="#C0C0C0" BORDERCOLORDARK="#808080" FRAME="BOX" RULES="ALL" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" > <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP HEIGHT= 164 ><NOBR><div> <IMG SRC="592619e0.jpg" border=0 width="353" height="158" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></div> </NOBR></tD> <tD VALIGN=TOP WIDTH="421"><div> Chapman decided that race car manufacturing and competition were to be his life's work. He incorporated his enterprise, the Lotus Engineering Company Ltd, on January 1st, 1952. He didn't, however, quit his daytime job at British Aluminium until the end of 1954, working nights and weekends on his Lotuses.</div> </tD> </tR> </TABLE></div> <bR> <div> He chose the space frame as the chassis for his first true Lotus - the Mark VI. From the beginning this car was very successful on the track and soon he had more orders than he could handle.  About 100 Mark VI's were sold in 2-1/2  years of production. Chapman had auspiciously begun his career by introducing a new chassis technology in race cars.</div> <bR> <div> In 1954 thru 1958 Chapman and aerodynamicist Frank Costin came up with the design of the ultra-aerodynamic, if strangely sleek-looking, Mark VIII, IX, X and Lotus 11 space frame cars. These cars were uncommonly fast and by the time the 11 came out, Lotus was so successful on the track that, to win a race in a sports racer, it was necessary to purchase a Lotus.</div> <bR> <DIV ALIGN="LEFT"></DIV> <div> <TABLE BORDER="0" CELLPADDING="2" CELLSPACING="1" WIDTH="519" BORDERCOLORLIGHT="#C0C0C0" BORDERCOLORDARK="#808080" FRAME="BOX" RULES="ALL" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" > <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP HEIGHT= 20 ><NOBR><div> <B>The Lotus Mark VIII in the paddock at Goodwood, 1954</B></div> </NOBR></tD> </tR> <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP HEIGHT= 318 ><NOBR><div> <IMG SRC="60100380.jpg" border=0 width="512" height="312" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></div> </NOBR></tD> </tR> </TABLE></div> <bR> <bR> <div> <B>The Fiberglass Elite</B><B> <A NAME="elite"><IMG BORDER="0" SRC="1x1.gif" HEIGHT="1" ALIGN="bottom" WIDTH="1" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" ></A></B></div> <bR> <div> Chapman had started his company on the proverbial shoestring and his successes as a race car manufacturer were encouraging. However, this market was obviously limited, and since 1955 he had his eye on producing an advanced sports or GT road car for the enthusiast - a much larger market. With this in mind, throughout 1956 Chapman and his collegues feverishly worked on an automobile that would stun the world - an all-fiberglass, monocoque, aerodynamic, aluminum-engined GT coupe for the road - the Elite.</div> <bR> <div> <TABLE BORDER="0" CELLPADDING="2" CELLSPACING="1" WIDTH="797" BORDERCOLORLIGHT="#C0C0C0" BORDERCOLORDARK="#808080" FRAME="BOX" RULES="ALL" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" > <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP HEIGHT= 20 ><NOBR><div> <B>Ian Walker's Prototype Elite, 1958</B></div> </NOBR></tD> <tD VALIGN=TOP ROWSPAN=2 WIDTH="471"><div>  In what may very well be most beautiful GT car ever built, the Elite premiered at the Earls Court Motor Show in 1957 to a highly impressed motoring world.  The year 1958 saw the Elite prototypes also impress at the race track, justifying Chapman's design. A Scottish farmer, Ian Scott-Watson ordered an Elite for Jim Clark to drive. At Brands Hatch on Boxing Day 1958, Clark nearly beat Chapman and Mike Costin, all in Elites, thus sparking Chapman's interest.</div> </tD> </tR> <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP HEIGHT= 193 ><NOBR><div> <IMG SRC="4143abb0.jpg" border=0 width="314" height="187" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></div> </NOBR></tD> </tR> </TABLE></div> <bR> <div> The production models started to be delivered in 1959. The Elites were a technological, if imperfectly put together, marvel. Being costly to produce and Lotus having only a very weak dealer infrastructure, they were not a financial success. Some 1000+ cars were sold in 6 years of production. Like many unappreciated works of art in the artist's lifetime, the Elite is now a coveted prize for the car enthusiast who understands and appreciates chassis design.</div> <bR> <bR> <div> <B>Space Frame Formula I Cars</B><B> <A NAME="spaceframef1cars"><IMG BORDER="0" SRC="1x1.gif" HEIGHT="1" ALIGN="bottom" WIDTH="1" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" ></A></B></div> <bR> <div> By the mid '50s Chapman considered himself ready to enter that consumate theatre of racing - Formula I.  The front-engined, space frame Lotus 12 single seater came out in 1957 for Formula II and was used in 1958 with a larger engine in Formula I. A second car, the Lotus 16, with better aerodynamics was run in the 1958/59 season. These cars had little success due to reliability problems and limited development time compared to the established teams. Chapman considered the Lotus 12 and 16 as Formula II cars. He was yet to purpose build a Formula I.</div> <bR> <div> For the 1959/60 season Chapman, taking a cue from the Cooper Formula I, changed for good to a mid-engined Formula I car, the Lotus 18, which had noteworthy successes in the hands of Innes Ireland and Stirling Moss, the latter driving a privately entered 18 and scoring a Lotus car's first Grand Prix victory at Monaco in 1960. The 18 was followed by the 21 in 1961 and the 24 in early 1962. Up to this point Chapman was so sure of his innovative powers that he would sell his cars to the other competitors during the cars' inaugural season. Some 150 Lotus 18s were manufactured and sold to customers.</div> <bR> <div> <B>Mid-Engined Sports Racers</B><B> <A NAME="mid_enginedsportsracers"><IMG BORDER="0" SRC="1x1.gif" HEIGHT="1" ALIGN="bottom" WIDTH="1" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" ></A></B></div> <bR> <div> In 1961-62 Chapman introduced two mid-engined sports racers - the large-displacement Lotus 19 and the 23 for small-displacement engines. Both cars were based on the chassis of the formula cars immediately preceding them, the 18 and the 22 F-Jr respectively. </div> <bR> <DIV ALIGN="LEFT"></DIV> <div> <TABLE BORDER="0" CELLPADDING="2" CELLSPACING="1" WIDTH="769" BORDERCOLORLIGHT="#C0C0C0" BORDERCOLORDARK="#808080" FRAME="BOX" RULES="ALL" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" > <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP HEIGHT= 20 ><NOBR><div> <B>Lotus 19B in 1995 Monterey Historics</B></div> </NOBR></tD> <tD VALIGN=TOP><NOBR><div> <B>Graham Hill and Lotus 23 at Laguna Seca 1963</B></div> </NOBR></tD> </tR> <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP HEIGHT= 192 ><NOBR><div> <IMG SRC="5a16db80.jpg" border=0 width="365" height="184" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></div> </NOBR></tD> <tD VALIGN=TOP><NOBR><div> <IMG SRC="59f88ba0.jpg" border=0 width="392" height="186" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></div> </NOBR></tD> </tR> </TABLE></div> <bR> <div> Most of the 17 Lotus 19s made were shipped to the U.S. for larger-engined racing that was just emerging and Dan Gurney had a Ford V-8 fitted to his car, re-named the 19B. The Lotus 23 made a startling debut at the 1962 Nurburgring 1000-Kms with a prototype Ford-based engine, the 1500cc Lotus Twincam, and a relatively-unknown Jim Clark driving. Although not able to keep up with the large-engined cars on the straight, still Clark and the 100-hp Lotus proved themselves 20 - 30 seconds a lap faster than all the other cars including 4-litre Ferraris, Aston-Martins and prototype Porsches. Possibly due to this surprising performance the 23 was banned at the 24 Hours of LeMans the next month as not being in the "spirit of the race!"</div> <bR> <div> <B>The Backbone Elan</B><B> <A NAME="elan"><IMG BORDER="0" SRC="1x1.gif" HEIGHT="1" ALIGN="bottom" WIDTH="1" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" ></A></B></div> <bR> <div> Taking lessons from the Elite experience, Chapman had a less complicated road car designed, the Elan, which was based on a steel backbone frame weighing less than 100-lbs but providing 4500 ft-lb/deg.of twist. The Elan was an engineering and commercial success, with some 9,000 units sold between 1963-1973. A succession of road cars followed, all based on the backbone chassis: the Europa (1967), the Esprit(1976), 3 upscale sedans: the Elite(1974), the Eclat(1975), the Excel(1982) and the front-wheel drive sports car, the Elan M-100(1989).</div> <bR> <div> <B>Monocoque Formula I Cars</B><B> <A NAME="monocoquef1cars"><IMG BORDER="0" SRC="1x1.gif" HEIGHT="1" ALIGN="bottom" WIDTH="1" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" ></A></B></div> <bR> <div> The monocoque revolution in Formula I started with the 1962 Chapman-designed Lotus 25 and its successor the 33. Jim Clark easily won the World Championship in 1963 and 1965 with these cars. Bad luck kept him from also winning the 1962 and 1964 Championships, losing in 1962 at the last race of the season due to mechanical problems. </div> <bR> <div> <TABLE BORDER="0" CELLPADDING="2" CELLSPACING="1" WIDTH="773" BORDERCOLORLIGHT="#C0C0C0" BORDERCOLORDARK="#808080" FRAME="BOX" RULES="ALL" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" > <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP HEIGHT= 20 ><NOBR><div> <B>Chapman celebrating a Clark-Lotus victory </B></div> </NOBR></tD> <tD VALIGN=TOP><NOBR><div> <B>Clark in Lotus 25 at Monaco 1963</B></div> </NOBR></tD> </tR> <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP HEIGHT= 256 ><NOBR><div> <IMG SRC="416b5f90.jpg" border=0 width="437" height="249" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></div> </NOBR></tD> <tD VALIGN=TOP><NOBR><div> <IMG SRC="41944fa0.jpg" border=0 width="324" height="250" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></div> </NOBR></tD> </tR> </TABLE></div> <bR> <div> When the new 3-litre Formula became effective in 1966 the British teams were left without a competitive engine, the previous Formula having been 1.5 litres. Chapman met with Ford Motor Company and an agreement was struck to provide funding for a new 3-litre V-8 to be built by Cosworth Engineering. </div> <bR> <div> <TABLE BORDER="0" CELLPADDING="2" CELLSPACING="1" WIDTH="801" BORDERCOLORLIGHT="#C0C0C0" BORDERCOLORDARK="#808080" FRAME="BOX" RULES="ALL" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" > <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP HEIGHT= 275 WIDTH="371"><div> The Lotus 49 was designed for the Ford engine which acted as a stressed member so that there was no chassis in the engine bay. The initial outing for the Ford-engined Lotus 49 was the Dutch Grand Prix in 1967, which was won by Clark (shown at right). Lotus won the World Championship with this engine in 1968 (Graham Hill), 1970 (Jochen Rindt) and 1973 (World Constructors' Championship) powering the Lotus 49 and venerable 72, which was competitive for 6 years! </div> </tD> <tD VALIGN=TOP><NOBR><div> <IMG SRC="41ea30d0.jpg" border=0 width="419" height="269" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></div> </NOBR></tD> </tR> </TABLE></div> <bR> <div> <B>Ground Effect</B><B> <A NAME="groundeffect"><IMG BORDER="0" SRC="1x1.gif" HEIGHT="1" ALIGN="bottom" WIDTH="1" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" ></A></B></div> <bR> <div> In the middle '70s Chapman introduced another innovation - the ground effect, in which the underside of the car is shaped so that a tremendous downforce is generated at high speed without producing much drag. This allows for significantly increased cornering speeds. Mario Andretti, driving the Lotus 79, won 9 out of 16 races and the World Championship in 1978. </div> <bR> <DIV ALIGN="LEFT"></DIV> <div> <TABLE BORDER="0" CELLPADDING="2" CELLSPACING="1" WIDTH="569" BORDERCOLORLIGHT="#C0C0C0" BORDERCOLORDARK="#808080" FRAME="BOX" RULES="ALL" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" > <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP HEIGHT= 20 WIDTH="563"><div> <B>Mario Andretti in the Lotus 79 at U.S. GP West 1978</B></div> </tD> </tR> <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP HEIGHT= 247 ><NOBR><div> <IMG SRC="5cc55f10.jpg" border=0 width="597" height="241" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></div> </NOBR></tD> </tR> </TABLE></div> <bR> <div> In 1980 Chapman started development on a new idea: the double chassis. Although the other Formula-I teams didn't understand this new concept, they were dismayed with the prospect of having to play catch up with Chapman once again. To Chapman's disgust, the other teams protested and the governing body itself FISA banned the double chassis Type 88. After Chapman's untimely death in 1982 at the age of 54, Team Lotus had their up and down seasons, but the overall trend was to slowly flounder. Team Lotus withdrew from Formula I after the 1994 season.</div> <bR> <div> <B>The Lotus Elise</B><B> <A NAME="elise"><IMG BORDER="0" SRC="1x1.gif" HEIGHT="1" ALIGN="bottom" WIDTH="1" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" ></A></B></div> <bR> <div> Since 1994 Lotus has concentrated on engineering services and producing advanced sports cars. The Elise, launched in 1996, is a car in the Chapman mode: beautiful, advanced, light weight, aerodynamic, and based around a chassis technologically decades ahead of the other manufactuers. The Chapman spirit is still at Lotus, it seems.</div> <bR> <DIV ALIGN="LEFT"></DIV> <div> <TABLE BORDER="0" CELLPADDING="2" CELLSPACING="1" WIDTH="477" BORDERCOLORLIGHT="#C0C0C0" BORDERCOLORDARK="#808080" FRAME="BOX" RULES="ALL" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" > <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP HEIGHT= 20 WIDTH="471"><div> <B>A Series 2 Lotus Elise</B></div> </tD> </tR> <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP HEIGHT= 284 ><NOBR><div> <IMG SRC="425d8160.jpg" border=0 width="472" height="278" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></div> </NOBR></tD> </tR> </TABLE></div> <bR> <bR> <bR> <div> <B><U>Epilogue</U></B><B><U> <A NAME="epilogue"><IMG BORDER="0" SRC="1x1.gif" HEIGHT="1" ALIGN="bottom" WIDTH="1" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" ></A></U></B></div> <bR> <div> Chapman and Lotus won the World Constructors' Championship seven times, each Championship associated with an innovative technological breakthrough incorporated into the design of the cars. When the other teams had copied the technology and refined it for several seasons, they started beating Lotus.  Then Chapman would come up with a new concept and, for the other teams, it would be back to the drawing board. </div> <bR> <div> Thus, Chapman was competing in Formula I racing, not single-mindedly to win the Championship per se, but to use Formula I to test and vindicate his tecnological ideas. Once one idea was proven, he was on to the next. He had a strong internal driving force to invent, to produce something new - he was motor racing's Edison and Einstein all stuffed into one person. </div> <bR> <div> It will most certainly be a long time before another Colin Chapman comes along to advance the racing car by leaps and bounds. Nevertheless, all true enthusiasts, who understand what Chapman has accomplished for the sport of motor racing over the last 50 years, must stand back, contemplate the achievements of this giant, and feel tremendous admiration and gratitude. </div> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> </td> </tr></table></body>