• Campaign to find founder Colin Chapman’s first car
• Lotus Mark I built in London in 1948
• Whereabouts unknown for over 60 years
• The inception of Lotus’ performance-orientated approach
• Search marks 70 years since Chapman’s founding principles
Calling on enthusiasts, collectors and car hunters worldwide, Lotus needs your
help in tracking down the long-lost Lotus Mark I, the first car built by company
founder Colin Chapman.
As the British marque continues its 70th celebrations, it wants fans from
around the world to pick up the trail of the most elusive Lotus ever – the
competition car that the young engineer hand-built in a small London garage
owned by his then girlfriend’s parents. Overcoming the standard car’s limitation
Chapman applied innovative approaches to improve its performance in challenging
trials competitions.
Despite its existence being well documented, the current whereabouts of the Mark
I remain a mystery. Built by Chapman, with the help of friends and his
girlfriend (who later became his wife), Hazel, he entered a number of events in
1948 with immediate success. However, Colin was constantly innovating, and was
soon hard at work on the Mark II. The first car was sold in November 1950 but,
from there, the car’s trail goes cold. Despite much research over the years, its
whereabouts have never been established.
Joining Lotus in the hunt for the origin of its species is the son of the
company’s founder, and director of Classic Team Lotus, Clive Chapman. “The Mark
I is the holy grail of Lotus’ history,” explains Clive. “It’s the first time
that my father was able to put his theories for improved performance into
practice when designing and building a car. To locate this landmark Lotus, as we
celebrate the 70th anniversary, would be a monumental achievement. We want fans
to take this opportunity to look in every garage, shed, barn and lock up they’re
allowed to. It’s even possible that the Mark I was shipped from the UK, and we’d
love to know if it survives in another country.”
The birth of the Lotus legend
In 1948 Colin Chapman built his first competition car, following his own
theories for improved performance. Chapman’s way of thinking and his principles
remain as relevant today as they were 70 years ago and his ethos still allows
the company to optimise mass and aerodynamics in order to maximise performance
and handling.
Covering everything from suspension configuration and layout, making sure that
ground clearance was not compromised, improvements included reinforcing the
chassis, cladding the body in lightweight bespoke panels and ensuring that
components frequently damaged in competition could be quickly reattached.
Appling theories learnt from this formal training as an engineer, Colin was
already developing the principles that would go on to define Lotus cars of the
future. One notable decision was to extend the rear of the car, and include two
spare wheels. This allowed for the better allocation of ballast, distributing
weight within the car to maximise traction for each event.
In a lock-up borrowed from Hazel’s parents, Colin re-imagined and re-engineered
the Austin Seven to create the first Lotus. Built by hand, and with Hazel (his
then-girlfriend) helping where needed, he completed the car in the spring of
1948 and immediately entered it in competitive trials. With
Hazel in the passenger seat and Colin behind the wheel, they picked up two class
awards in the car’s first events.
Originally finished in bare, unpolished alloy, the car was then painted white,
before repainted in red. A restless engineer, Chapman was soon working on the
next car, the Mark II, designed using the lessons learned from his first and the
experience gain through the competitions he’d entered. As a result, an advert
placed in Motor Sport magazine, describing an Austin Seven Special fourseater
sports-cum-trials car saw the Mark I sold in November 1950. Chapman received
£135 for the car, but the only thing now known about the new owner was that they
were based in the north of England.
Over the years many enthusiasts have looked for the car, but to no avail. Lotus
has previously called on experts to help locate the lost vehicle but, as the
company gears up for the highpoint of its anniversary celebrations at the end of
September, it’s hoped that a renewed search, on a global scale, will help track
down the landmark car.
Images and text copyright Group Lotus PLC
|
