Details
LOTUS HONDA 99T REPLICA
Registration No. Not Applicable
Chassis No. Not Applicable
Engine No. Not Applicable
Yellow.
The Lotus 99T was the car with the Honda Type GEV6 turbo engine and active suspension that Senna and Nakajima both drove under the bright yellow and blue Camel livery. The very sophisticated active suspension had been under development for six years at Lotus, whilst the Williams too had their ride height system in place, operating by a mixture of liquid and gas. Honda dominated 1987, their V6 turbo winning a total of eleven Grands Prix and fitted into both the Lotus 99T and Williams' FW11B. At the end of the 1987 Grand Prix season, R.J. Reynolds (the manufacturers of Camel cigarettes) wanted to make a worldwide cinema commercial to highlight the signing of Nelson Piquet, World F1 Champion, to the Camel-sponsored Lotus team. As Piquet's contractual obligations to the Williams team did not allow him to drive any other car until 31st December 1987, also coupled with the fact that a turbo-charged Lotus Honda would be completely impractical for the stop/start requirements of filming, a suitable alternative operation had to be formed. As a result a car was built with Team Lotus supplying the bodywork, floor pan, rear wing and turbo scoops from Ayrton Senna's Australian Grand Prix car. Senna had finished second to Gerhard Berger in the race but was later disqualified for an oversized brake duct infringement.
The Lotus components were carefully adapted to fit a Ralt RT22 F3000 car which, when completed, bore a striking resemblence to the real thing. With a combination of four days in Nice at some film studios for close-ups, and a further four days at Paul Ricard for action shots, the commercial was finished and shown in South America prior to the Brazilian Grand Prix. The components were then bought from Lotus and stored until recently when, as a project, it was decided to build a show car.
The car on offer has a tubular steel spaceframe chassis, aluminium clad with carbon fibre vinyl to the inside and full Camel yellow paint and livery to the outside. It does not have an engine fitted at all and has a moulded gearbox to give the impression of a running car. Although in some areas it has not been possible to create absolute authenticity, all parts used are genuine Formula 1 components and the car has instruments, gearshift, seat and Momo steering wheel. It is, in fact, fully steerable although there are no pedals fitted. The result is visually very impressive and the car would make an ideal museum exhibit, showroom centrepiece or perhaps addition to the family garage as it certainly creates interest and attention. Naturally the car does not have the need for any supporting paperwork.
Registration No. Not Applicable
Chassis No. Not Applicable
Engine No. Not Applicable
Yellow.
The Lotus 99T was the car with the Honda Type GEV6 turbo engine and active suspension that Senna and Nakajima both drove under the bright yellow and blue Camel livery. The very sophisticated active suspension had been under development for six years at Lotus, whilst the Williams too had their ride height system in place, operating by a mixture of liquid and gas. Honda dominated 1987, their V6 turbo winning a total of eleven Grands Prix and fitted into both the Lotus 99T and Williams' FW11B. At the end of the 1987 Grand Prix season, R.J. Reynolds (the manufacturers of Camel cigarettes) wanted to make a worldwide cinema commercial to highlight the signing of Nelson Piquet, World F1 Champion, to the Camel-sponsored Lotus team. As Piquet's contractual obligations to the Williams team did not allow him to drive any other car until 31st December 1987, also coupled with the fact that a turbo-charged Lotus Honda would be completely impractical for the stop/start requirements of filming, a suitable alternative operation had to be formed. As a result a car was built with Team Lotus supplying the bodywork, floor pan, rear wing and turbo scoops from Ayrton Senna's Australian Grand Prix car. Senna had finished second to Gerhard Berger in the race but was later disqualified for an oversized brake duct infringement.
The Lotus components were carefully adapted to fit a Ralt RT22 F3000 car which, when completed, bore a striking resemblence to the real thing. With a combination of four days in Nice at some film studios for close-ups, and a further four days at Paul Ricard for action shots, the commercial was finished and shown in South America prior to the Brazilian Grand Prix. The components were then bought from Lotus and stored until recently when, as a project, it was decided to build a show car.
The car on offer has a tubular steel spaceframe chassis, aluminium clad with carbon fibre vinyl to the inside and full Camel yellow paint and livery to the outside. It does not have an engine fitted at all and has a moulded gearbox to give the impression of a running car. Although in some areas it has not been possible to create absolute authenticity, all parts used are genuine Formula 1 components and the car has instruments, gearshift, seat and Momo steering wheel. It is, in fact, fully steerable although there are no pedals fitted. The result is visually very impressive and the car would make an ideal museum exhibit, showroom centrepiece or perhaps addition to the family garage as it certainly creates interest and attention. Naturally the car does not have the need for any supporting paperwork.