Resembling a rally car on track in the flamboyant Stuck’s hands, it pointed to Audi’s future as a sportscar racing heavyweight after its circuit racing successes the previous year in Trans-Am. The Audi 90 Quattro was defeated by the Roush Racing Mercury Cougar XR-7 largely because it didn’t contest either the Daytona 24 Hours or Sebring 12 Hours.īut unquestionably Audi changed the game, thanks to its four-wheel-drive technology that helped Hans-Joachim Stuck to claim seven victories on his way to third in the points. The inclusion of a car that didn’t win the IMSA GTO title in its single season of competition in 1989 is perhaps controversial. Photo by: David Hutson / Motorsport Images The nimble 23 series, which included B and wider-wheeled C versions, proved successful giant-killers, with 131 being built originally and others being constructed in later years for historic competition.Īudi's IMSA effort wasn't a title-winner but it changed the game as the car to beat It had already made a big impact when Clark led the early stages of May’s Nurburgring 1000Km in his 1500cc 100bhp version against more-powerful opposition before being overcome by exhaust fumes. The lightweight Lotus 23 went on to compete with a variety of engines, ranging from 750cc Coventry Climax power to 1500cc Lotus-Ford Twin Cam and 1600cc Cosworth, and even a Ferrari V6. That may have fuelled the scrutineers’ determination to object to the 23.”Ī Lotus Elite did win the Index of Thermal Efficiency and the organisers admitted their error with the 23s, but Chapman vowed not to return to the 24 Hours and never did. “Ferrari had similar issues with their entries for the larger capacity classes not meeting the ‘spirit’ of the regulations, but used their greater political clout to get the scrutineers overruled by the organisers. “This was a point of controversy even before the event, so the scrutineers took every opportunity to make things difficult when Lotus gave them the chance. “The cars were entered in the Voiturette class and were therefore being presented as lightly modified small-capacity road cars,” says Nick Adams, Lotus 23 registrar of the Historic Lotus Register. French cars duly finished first and second in the IoP… It was hard not to see a conspiracy given that the Lotus entries were arguably the strongest non-French contenders for the coveted Index of Performance prize, which Lotus had taken in 1957. Despite Chapman’s protestations the organisers did not budge.
Lotus boss Colin Chapman made changes, including having the rear wheels modified to the four-stud set-up, only for the officials to refuse again on the basis that, if the rears had been designed for six, they were now unsafe. Insufficient ground clearance, excessive turning circle and non-compliant fuel tank capacity were also highlighted by the scrutineers.
“It was alleged that the spare wheel could replace only one pair of wheels.” Two mid-engined Lotus 23s had been entered, for Jim Clark/Trevor Taylor (1000cc) and Les Leston/Tony Shelly (750cc), but were turned down at scrutineering because “the front wheels had four-stud fixing, and the rears six-stud,” explained Autosport founding editor Gregor Grant. “Even French newspapermen reckoned that the Automobile Club de l’Ouest had dealt unnecessarily harshly with Lotus.” That’s how Autosport magazine’s editorial began the 29 June 1962 issue, covering the Le Mans 24 Hours. The Lotus 23 fell foul of the Le Mans 24 Hours scrutineering team The first LMS ultra evolution of the R8 that claimed outright spoils in the Nurburgring and Spa 24 Hours in 20 would be our pick of the GT3 crop, although the ABS-equipped machines will get their chance to race at Le Mans next year when GTE Am is phased out.īesides, Audi and Nissan – whose GT-R Nismo GT500 we also considered for winning the Super GT title in its first season in 2008 and tallied a further four with various engine/aerodynamic upgrades – have other cars we deemed worthy of making the list… We have attempted to rank cars based on their impact on motorsport and their on-track success, with outright winners given priority over class winners.Īrguments could be made for several cars that miss out, including the Audi R8 GT3. But over the years there have been many successful machines that never raced in the world’s most prestigious sportscar event, either due to incompatible regulations, poor timing or in some cases a lack of will on behalf of the entrants or organisers.
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