When Chapman went too far
The Lotus 88, here-above with Elio de Angelis at the wheel, is an innovative Formula One car designed by Colin Chapman, Peter Wright, Tony Rudd and Martin Ogilvie of Lotus in an effort to maximise the downforce produced by ground effect.
The Lotus 88 made its debut at the first practice session of the 1981 season opener, the US Grand Prix West at Long Beach, but was ultimately not allowed to race. It still was the first Formula One car to use a carbon fibre monocoque chassis to debut at a Grand Prix event.
The 88 used an ingenious system of having a twin chassis, one inside the other. The inner chassis would hold the cockpit and would be independently sprung from the outer one, which was designed to take the pressures of the ground effects. The outer chassis did not have discernible wings, and was in effect one huge ground effect system, beginning just behind the nose of the car and extending all the way inside the rear wheels, thereby producing massive amounts of downforce.
The car was powered by the Ford Cosworth DFV engine. Lotus drivers Nigel Mansell and Elio de Angelis reported the car was pleasing to drive and responsive.To make the aerodynamic loads as manageable as possible, the car was constructed extensively in carbon fibre, making it the first Formula One car to use the material in large quantity, followed very shortly after by the McLaren MP4/1.
Other teams were outraged at this exploitation of the regulations and protests were lodged with the FIA, on the grounds that the twin chassis tub breached the rules in terms of moveable aerodynamic devices. The FIA upheld the protests and consequently banned the car from competing.
Chapman was adamant the car was legal and challenged the other teams and the FIA at every turn, but the decision stood. It reached the point where if the Lotus 88 were entered in the British Grand Prix at Silverstone, the team would lose its championship points and the race itself would lose its place as a championship round of the season.
Chapman was thus forced to update two of his Lotus 87 chassis as replacements for his thwarted brainchild. The Lotus 88 remains a curiosity from a bygone age of F1. Some of the 88’s aerodynamics and layout were worked into the successful Lotus 91 which followed in 1982.
