Lotus 43 Grand Prix Car
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Constructor: |
Lotus |
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Class |
Race Car |
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Years: |
1966 |
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Designer: |
Colin Chapman |
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Suspension: |
independent; front, lower wishbones, upper arms, coil springs; rear, |
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Engine: |
H16 2996 cc dohc |
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Bore and stroke: |
69.8 x 48.9 mm. |
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Gearbox |
six-speed manual gearbox. |
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Wheelbase: |
96 in (244 cm) |
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Max speed: |
180 mph/ 290 kmh |
The Lotus 43 was a Formula One Grand Prix racing car, built by the British Formula One team Lotus in the 1960s.
History
The Lotus 43 was A stop-gap Grand Prix car for the 1966 season, with the BRM H-16 engine and gearbox. After a number of unsuccessful appearances, Clark scored an unexpected win in the United States Grand Prix. In 1966, the 3-liter formula was introduced in Formula 1 and Lotus had no more suitable car. The 33 was outdated even for the valid until 1965 2-liter formula, the 39 a misconstruction and the deal with Cosworth, who was the basis for the Lotus 49, only in the process of development.
Lotus had already used at the 33 partial engines of BRM. For the 43, therefore, the H-16 engines that BRM had developed for their own vehicles should be used. Already when unloading the first engines in the factory the difficulties were programmed. It took four men to get one engine from the truck at a time. The engine was too heavy and never reached the performance promised by BRM. The engine was mounted as a supporting part on a frame behind the cockpit and carried the rear suspension. The monocoque was extremely short for a Formula 1 car, Colin Chapman oriented himself on the Lotus 38, which came in Indianapolis used.
Jim Clark, Peter Arundell and Graham Hill, who returned home from BRM, struggled with the preponderance of the car throughout the year. Hill and Arundell therefore drove the 33 in most World Cup runs, the Lotus had converted to the new regulations. By the end of the season, the car seemed to be developing into a complete flop, as not a single goal finish succeeded. Only Jim Clark rescued the team from a total failure when he surprisingly won the US Grand Prix at Watkins Glen. In 1967 the car came in South Africa was used and then replaced by the highly successful Model 49. The two 43 chassis were sold and came later for some time in the Formula 5000 used.
