Lotus 51

The Lotus 51 was an open-wheel Formula Ford race car built in 1967 by the British motorsport team Lotus. It was powered by a 1.6 L (98 cu in) Ford Crossflow four-cylinder engine (the same type of engine used in the Ford Cortina), developing a respectable 110 hp (82 kW), which drove the rear wheels through either a Renault R-8 type 330 4-speed, or a Hewland 5-speed manual transmission.^[1][2]

The Lotus 51 became a bestseller for Colin Chapman and the Lotus team in 1967. 218 vehicles were built and sold (some sources speak of only 150 vehicles). The price for one vehicle was £955.^[3][4]

The car was derived from, and based on, the Lotus 31, a Formula 3 car from Lotus. The racing car was agile and fast, had a short wheelbase, and was extremely light with a curb weight of 900 lb (410 kg). In 1969 the car was replaced by the Lotus 61. In 1968 the 51R - a one-off - was built. The car had wider sidepods and was originally intended as a concept for a successor. The car was sold for £1095 to a US collector who never entered the 51R in racing competitions.^[5][6]

References

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Team Lotus

Personnel
Founder	Colin Chapman
Notable personnel	Frank Coppuck Frank Dernie Gérard Ducarouge Maurice Philippe Peter Warr Peter Wright Len Terry

Drivers
Notable drivers	Mario Andretti Elio de Angelis Jim Clark Martin Donnelly Emerson Fittipaldi Mika Häkkinen Johnny Herbert Graham Hill Jacky Ickx Nigel Mansell Satoru Nakajima Gunnar Nilsson Ronnie Peterson Nelson Piquet Carlos Reutemann Jochen Rindt Ayrton Senna John Surtees Derek Warwick Alex Zanardi
World Champions	Mario Andretti Jim Clark Emerson Fittipaldi Graham Hill Jochen Rindt

Cars
Formula One cars	12 16 18 21 24 25 33 43 49 56B 63 72 76 77 78 79 80 81 86 87 88 91 92 93T 94T 95T 97T 98T 99T 100T 101 102 107 109 112
Formula Two cars	12 16 18 32 35 41 44 48 59 69
Formula Three cars	22 31 35 41 55 59 69
Formula Junior cars	18 20 22 27
Formula Ford cars	51 59 61 69
Formula 5000 cars	68 70
Tasman Series cars	32 39 67
Indianapolis 500 cars	29 34 38 42 56 64 96T
Sports racing cars	15 17 19 23 30 40 47 53

Formula One titles
Drivers' titles	1963 1965 1968 1970 1972 1978
Constructors' titles	1963 1965 1968 1970 1972 1973 1978