The Lotus 35 was a multi-formula
racing car
Auto racing (also known as car racing, motor racing, or automobile racing) is a motorsport involving the racing of automobiles for competition.
Auto racing has existed since the invention of the automobile. Races of various sorts were organise ...
designed by
Colin Chapman and powered by a variety of engines. In the hands of
Jim Clark
James Clark Jr. OBE (4 March 1936 – 7 April 1968) was a British Formula One racing driver from Scotland, who won two World Championships, in 1963 and 1965. A versatile driver, he competed in sports cars, touring cars and in the Indianapol ...
it won five
Formula Two races in 1965 and enabled Clark to win the
1965 Trophées de France Championship and the 1965 British Formula Two Championship.
Development
The Lotus 35 had a monocoque chassis with a tubular spaceframe for the engine, inboard coil springs operated by rocker arms at the front and reversed wishbones with twin trailing and top links at the rear. It was designed to take a variety of engines in order to compete in different formulae, such as a Cosworth SCA or BRM P80 for Formula Two, or a Cosworth MAE for Formula Three.
Racing history
For 1965 the works team was run by Ron Harris, with
Jim Clark
James Clark Jr. OBE (4 March 1936 – 7 April 1968) was a British Formula One racing driver from Scotland, who won two World Championships, in 1963 and 1965. A versatile driver, he competed in sports cars, touring cars and in the Indianapol ...
and
Mike Spence
Michael Henderson Spence (30 December 1936 – 7 May 1968) was a British racing driver from England. He participated in 37 Formula One World Championship Grands Prix, debuting on 8 September 1963. He achieved one podium, and scored a total ...
as regular drivers and others such as
Peter Revson filling in on occasion. Clark won five out of the nine races in which he took part and set five fastest laps, despite strong opposition from the
Brabham BT16
The list below summarizes Brabham race cars built by Motor Racing Developments in the United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, o ...
s. Clark won both the
1965 Trophées de France Championship and the 1965 British Formula Two Championship.
Other privateers such as
Reg Parnell Racing and
Bernard Collomb
Bernard Marie François Alexandre Collomb-Clerc (7 October 1930 in Annecy, Haute-Savoie – 19 September 2011 in La Colle-sur-Loup, Alpes-Maritimes) was a Formula One driver from France. He participated in six World Championship Grands Prix, de ...
also raced the car but with less success.
In Formula Three the 35 was less successful.
Peter Revson won at Monaco in a Ron Harris car, and
Bob Bondurant won at Monza in a John Willment car.
In 1966 the Lotus 35 was outclassed from the start by the
Brabham-Hondas of
Jack Brabham and
Denny Hulme, and was soon replaced by the
Lotus 41
The Lotus 41 was a Lotus Formula 3 and Formula 2 racing car which ran between 1966 - 1968.
John Joyce, Bowin Cars
Bowin Cars was an Australia, Australian designer and manufacturer of motor racing cars from 1968 to 1976. The company was foun ...
.
References
Further reading
*
35
Formula Two cars
Formula Three cars
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