Lotus 91

Lotus 91
Race Car
Category	Formula One
Constructor	Lotus
Designer	Colin Chapman Martin Ogilvie Tony Rudd
Predecessor	Lotus 87
Successor	Lotus 92
Chassis	Carbon fibre and Kevlar monocoque
Suspension (front)
Suspension (rear)
Engine	Cosworth DFV 2,993 cc (182.6 cu in), 90° V8, NA, mid-engine, longitudinally-mounted
Electric_motor	{{{Electric motor}}}
Battery	{{{Battery}}}
Power	480 hp (357.9 kW) @ 11,000 rpm
Transmission	Lotus / Hewland 5-speed manual
Weight	{{{Weight}}}
Fuel	Valvoline
Brakes	{{{Brakes}}}
Tyres	Pirelli Goodyear
Notable entrants	Team Lotus
Notable drivers	11. Elio de Angelis 12. Nigel Mansell 12. Roberto Moreno 12. Geoff Lees
Debut	1982 Brazilian Grand Prix
Races competed	14
Race victories	1
Podiums	2
Constructors' Championships	0
Drivers' Championships	0
Pole positions	0
Fastest laps	0

The Lotus 91 was a car used by the English team Lotus in the 1982 Formula One season, designed by Colin Chapman, Martin Ogilvie and Tony Rudd.

Design

After several uncompetitive seasons with experimental or uncompetitive cars, Colin Chapman went back to basics and designed the Lotus 91, based in part on the Williams FW07 and Lotus' own 88 design. Powered by the Ford Cosworth DFV and using a standard Hewland gearbox, the 91 was uncomplicated and easy to maintain. Following Brabham's lead, the new car was the first Lotus chassis to use carbon brakes, improving braking performance considerably.

After a design study by Chapman into new composite materials, the decision was taken to build the car in carbon fibre and kevlar, making it after the McLaren MP4/1 the second F1 car to race to be built from the material - the Lotus 86/88 not having raced because it was banned.

Under the direction of Peter Warr, the team worked hard to make the car as competitive as possible. The lightweight chassis gave the 91 a fighting chance against the far more powerful turbo engined cars and Cosworth worked on a short stroke version of the DFV purely for Lotus' use. The sidepods full length units, extending to the very back of the car to take full advantage of the ground effect aerodynamics. However the 91 was quite pitch sensitive, making it tricky to drive. The Lotus 91 was the basis for the Lotus 92 - which pioneered active suspension in Formula 1. This suspension was revolutionary, using an on-board system to control the ride height and behaviour of the suspension, thus the Lotus 92 was the first car to be fitted with active suspension. The system was partially controlled by computers but at this early stage was mostly operated by hydro-pneumatic valves.

Racing history

Elio de Angelis used the car well but found the 91 was mostly competitive on ultra fast tracks like Hockenheim, Monza and the Österreichring. The latter track provided a thrilling final lap win for De Angelis against Keke Rosberg in the Williams. That as well as several other podium places helped the team to fifth in the final standings in 1982, before ground effects were banned for the 1983 Formula One season and the 91 was replaced by the first Lotus turbo car.

The 91 was the last Lotus F1 car to win a race under Colin Chapman's rule before he died of a heart attack on 16 December 1982.

Gallery

Complete Racing Results

(key)

Year	Team	Engine	Tyres	Drivers	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	Points	WCC
1982	Team Lotus	Ford Cosworth DFV	G		RSA	BRA	USW	SMR	BEL	MON	DET	CAN	NED	GBR	FRA	GER	AUT	SUI	ITA	CPL	30	5th
				Nigel Mansell		3	7		Ret	4	Ret	Ret		Ret		9	Ret	8	7	Ret
				Elio de Angelis		Ret	5		4	5	Ret	4	Ret	4	Ret	Ret	1	6	Ret	Ret
				Roberto Moreno									DNQ
				Geoff Lees											12

References

This page uses some content from Wikipedia. The original article was at Lotus 91. The list of authors can be seen in the page history. As with Autopedia, the text of Wikipedia is available under the GNU Free Documentation License.