THE LOFTY BRAVERY LEVELS OF '70S RACING drivers are not generally disputed. But some things add extra context. I'm trying the Lotus Type 56B's lay-down cockpit for size: next to my left elbow, hidden within the monocoque, is a propshaft that would be spinning at goodness-knows-how-many rpm; just behind my shoulders, a gas turbine engine limited to a casual 37,000rpm; and, back in the 56B's short racing life, there would have been 350 litres of kerosene and petrol swimming around in side tanks to fuel it. I had to point my toes like a gymnast to post my feet under the front axle to the pedals. It's tight in here, precisely packaged to the point of claustrophobia.
We're stationary inside Classic Team Lotus HQ and the turbine is silent, sleeping, but a shiver still runs down my spine. Man, did they have some bottle. And weren't they part of something remarkable too - what a unique, boundary-pushing creation to drive, and what a boundary pushing, creative era to have been at the heart of.
Few teams pushed the creative boundaries like Team Lotus, of course. The 56B is the only gas turbine car to have competed in Formula 1, and the only one that ever will unless there's a particularly radical rule change. In 2021 it ran again for the first time after an intensive restoration by Classic Team Lotus - pressing play on a moment frozen in time since it crossed the line in its last race, at Hockenheim in 1971, with Emerson Fittipaldi at the wheel.
Here on the upper floor of Classic Team Lotus's purposebuilt HQ, a stone's throw from the Lotus Cars site at Hethel, we're surrounded by a remarkable assemblage of cars, many of which are still run by the team for their owners in historic motorsport. It's almost too much to take in. Here Senna's maiden Grand Prix-winning 97T; over there the outlawed twin-chassis Type 88; multiple Type 72s in glorious JPS livery; but none quite as singular as the 56B.
Denne historien er fra June 2023-utgaven av Evo UK.
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Denne historien er fra June 2023-utgaven av Evo UK.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
Allerede abonnent? Logg på
BEST BUYS BMW M CARS
THE PERFORMANCE CAR LANDSCAPE WOULD HAVE looked very different over the last five decades without BMW. Its M division, founded in 1972, has produced some of the best driver’s cars ever to hit the road, and in the process has provided a stream of benchmark models for its rivals to chase. In recent years, stricter emissions regulations, downsizing and electrification have seen some of those rival cars falter, yet by and large BMW’s M machines have remained strong. In fact, some rank among the greatest the department has made think of the eCoty-winning M2 CS and M5 CS while others are the only options worth recommending in their respective segments. Price tags have risen with performance, however, putting those latest offerings out of reach for many, but the marque’s popularity means there are numerous earlier M models available on the second-hand market for far more attainable figures. Here are four of our favourites.
TYRE 2024 TEST
Want to fit the very best tyres to your performance car? The annual evo Tyre Test identifies the cream of the current crop
HONDA ACCORD TYPE R
A liberal sprinkling of Honda Type R fairy dust on the late-'90s Accord produced an unlikely evo icon and a genuine performance bargain
TOY STORY
Where best to store some of Toyota’s most prized and valuable racing superstars? Under the wind tunnel at its Cologne HO, of course...
POWER PLAY
It develops 819bhp. It has no turbochargers, no hybrid assistance. Ferrari describes it as the most complete GT it's ever made. And it’s so proud of its mighty V12 engine it’s named the whole car after it. This is the 12 Cilindri
THE FIRST SAMURAIS
Japan has been responsible for many of our favourite driver's cars of recent decades, but their ancestors are often much less well known. We take a look at where the big manufacturers began their performance car journeys
DEFINITELY. NO MAYBE
Three Japanese performance icons - Lexus LFA, Subaru Impreza 22B and Nissan GT-R. Over three days on some of our favourite roads we explore what makes each uniquely thrilling, but also the car culture that unites them
1V3.0
F1, P1... and now W1. The next chapter in McLaren's Ultimate Series is the British firm's challenger to the forthcoming new Ferrari hypercar and a £2million, 1257bhp, hybrid-powered, technical tour de force
Thornley Kelham European RS
One man’s dream to build the perfect Porsche 911 has resulted inthis aaticMously restored and enhanced classic. We delve into the details and take it for a drive
Bentley Continental GT Speed
The new Continental GT is the most powerful Bentley ever, and the beginning of anew plug-in hybrid era for Crewe. But is it still a benchmark grand tourer?
