The Lotus 88 F1 is one of the most famous and legendary cars in the F1 world. In 1981, when it was debuted, the Lotus 88 was one of the most advanced cars on the grid, with cutting edge technology and mechanical updates that were not thought of by most teams. Racing teams are always looking at ways to gain more speed through creative interpretation of the rules. By staying in the grey area of what is allowed and what is not (just think of Redbull and their aerodynamics), speed-obsessed engineers come up with the most ingenious of ways to get every millisecond worth of speed from their cars.
In this candid interview with Colin Chapman’s son, Clive Chapman, you will take a journey through motorsport history and the fascinating story of the Lotus 88 F1 car and why it was banned. Have you ever heard of a car being so good that it had to get banned? Well, this is one of those scenarios. Clive Chapman gives us a fascinating account of the innovations on the Lotus 88 F1 car and the reasons as to why it was ultimately banned by the organizers.
Lotus’ innovation with the 88 was the novel twin-chassis layout. The inner chassis held the driver, the engine and the transmission. The outer chassis held the aerodynamic elements and the body. The outer chassis would create a seal with the track at speeds and thus preserve the ground effect downforce. This ingenious solution made the car handle like no other on the grid and sadly, the organizers decided that it was against the rules of side skirts. It was banned. The inner chassis was Formula 1‘s first carbon fiber monocoque, a cutting edge innovation back in 1981.
Get the full story on the Lotus 88 F1 car by Clive Chapman in this video below.