 | This articleneeds additional citations forverification. Please helpimprove this article byadding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. Find sources: "Lotus 81" – news ·newspapers ·books ·scholar ·JSTOR(October 2025) (Learn how and when to remove this message) |
.jpg) Lotus 81 during the2017 FIA Masters Historic Formula One Championship at theCircuit of the Americas | |||||||||||
| Category | Formula One | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Constructor | Lotus | ||||||||||
| Designers | Colin Chapman (Technical Director) Martin Ogilvie (Chief Designer) Peter Wright (Head of Aerodynamics) | ||||||||||
| Predecessor | 80 | ||||||||||
| Successor | 86 /87 /88 | ||||||||||
| Technical specifications | |||||||||||
| Chassis | Aluminiummonocoque | ||||||||||
| Suspension (front) | Double wishbones, coil springs over dampers, anti-roll bar | ||||||||||
| Suspension (rear) | Double wishbones, coil springs over dampers, anti-roll bar | ||||||||||
| Length | 4,623 mm (182.0 in) | ||||||||||
| Width | 2,134 mm (84.0 in) | ||||||||||
| Height | 965 mm (38.0 in) | ||||||||||
| Axle track | Front: 1,700 mm (67 in) Rear: 1,638 mm (64.5 in) | ||||||||||
| Wheelbase | 2,789 mm (109.8 in) | ||||||||||
| Engine | FordCosworth DFV, 2,993 cc (182.6 cu in), 90°V8,NA,mid-engine,longitudinally mounted | ||||||||||
| Transmission | Hewland FGA 400 5-speedmanual | ||||||||||
| Weight | 580 kg (1,280 lb) | ||||||||||
| Fuel | Essex | ||||||||||
| Tyres | Goodyear (1980) Michelin (1981) | ||||||||||
| Competition history | |||||||||||
| Notable entrants | Team Essex Lotus | ||||||||||
| Notable drivers | 11. Mario Andretti12.  Elio de Angelis12./11.  Nigel Mansell | ||||||||||
| Debut | 1980 Argentine Grand Prix | ||||||||||
| Last event | 1981 Belgian Grand Prix | ||||||||||
| |||||||||||
| Constructors' Championships | 0 | ||||||||||
| Drivers' Championships | 0 | ||||||||||
Unless otherwise stated, all data refer to Formula One World Championship Grands Prix only. | |||||||||||
TheLotus 81 was aFormula One racing car built byColin Chapman'sLotus team for the1980 Formula One season.[1] Unlike many of forebears the 81 was not a terribly innovative or competitive car, coming as it did at a time when Chapman's interest in his racing activities was waning.[citation needed]
Instead it was a very standard ground effect design with sliding skirts and the ubiquitousCosworth DFV 3.0 litre V8 powerplant. The car was said to generate a great deal of downforce but have excessive pitch sensitivity problems, ultimately leading Chapman to develop the innovative twin-chassisLotus 88.
Mario Andretti andElio de Angelis used the 81 in all 14 rounds of the 1980 Formula One world championship, and the car also gaveNigel Mansell his Formula One debut, with the British driver lining up in a total of three races that season. The best result for the car was Elio de Angelis's 2nd place in Brazil.
Chapman had intended to use the Lotus 88 for the1981 season,[2] but a massive furore over the legality of the new car meant that the 81 was kept on as a stop gap for the first four races Lotus competed in, as they boycotted the1981 San Marino Grand Prix,[3] with Mansell taking 3rd place in the Belgian Grand Prix and de Angelis claiming three points finishes. The car was replaced by theLotus 87.
(key)
| Year | Entrant | Chassis | Engine | Tyres | Drivers | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | Points | WCC |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980 | Team Essex Lotus | 81 | FordCosworth DFV | G | ARG | BRA | RSA | USW | BEL | MON | FRA | GBR | GER | AUT | NED | ITA | CAN | USA | 14 | 5th | ||
| Mario Andretti | Ret | Ret | 12 | Ret | Ret | 7 | Ret | Ret | 7 | Ret | 8 | Ret | Ret | 6 | ||||||||
| Elio de Angelis | Ret | 2 | Ret | Ret | 10 | 9 | Ret | Ret | 16 | 6 | Ret | 4 | 10 | 4 | ||||||||
| 81B | Nigel Mansell | Ret | Ret | DNQ | ||||||||||||||||||
| 1981 | Team Essex Lotus | 81B | FordCosworth DFV | M | USW | BRA | ARG | SMR | BEL | MON | ESP | FRA | GBR | GER | AUT | NED | ITA | CAN | CPL | 22* | 7th | |
| Nigel Mansell | Ret | 11 | Ret | 3 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Elio de Angelis | Ret | 5 | 6 | 5 |
* Of those, 9 points were scored with the 81 model.
| |||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||
