Lotus 15 - The strange breakdown winner

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Lotus 15 - The strange breakdown winner

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Created on November 7, 2025

Text:

Martin Sigrist

Photos:

Daniel Reinhard

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Balz Schreier

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John Ross Motor Racing Archives

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Bruno von Rotz

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Motor Magazine

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Archiv Lotus Cars

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The Motor

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Crostwaithe & Gardiner

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Christoph Hug

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Goodwood Revival

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Stuart Adams

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Archiv

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Lotus 15 (1959) - in Plateau 3 (1957-1961) at the Le Mans Classic 2012

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Lotus 15 (1958) - 75 Years of Lotus - Goodwood Revival 2023

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Lotus 15 (1958) - at the night race of the two-seater racing cars and GTs up to 1960/61 at the AvD OGP 2014

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Lotus 15 (1959) with Emanuele Pirro - overall winner in Plateau 3 (1957-1961) at the 2012 Le Mans Classic

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Lotus 15 (1958) - Woodcote Trophy & Stirling Moss Trophy - Spa Six Hours 2016

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Lotus 15 (1958) - functional cockpit - Rétromobile Paris 2018

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Lotus 15 (1959) - in Plateau 3 (1957-1961) at the Le Mans Classic 2012

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Lotus 15 Climax (1958) - Sussex Trophy - Birch/Stevens

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Lotus 15 (1959) - Salvadori Cup - Goodwood Members' Meeting 2025

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Lotus 15 (1958) - Chassis in the garden of the Railway Hotel in Hornsey in January 1959

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Lotus Type 12 (1957) - The Lotus 15 shared much of its technology with the first Lotus monoposto

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Lotus 17 (1958) - Same concept as the 15, Colin Chapman - Mike Costin - Alan Stacey - Innes Ireland and Graham Hill at Hornsey in January 1959 behind the successor to the Eleven

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Lotus 15 (1958) - The 1.5 liter Coventry Climax FPF engine was first installed in the 15 at an angle of 28 degrees, in the series 2 and 3 still at an angle of 17 degrees

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Lotus 15 (1958) - Crostwaithe and Gardiner Coventry Climax FPF replica engine as in the Lotus 15

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Lotus 11 (1958) - the powerful version has a DeDion rear axle - Geneva Motor Show 1958

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Lotus 11 (1958) - a BMC rigid axle is sufficient for the weaker versions - Geneva Motor Show 1958

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Lotus 15 (1958) - The gearbox on the rear axle is clearly visible, the DOHC engine was installed at a less steep angle in a second series

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Lotus 15 (1959) - A single 15 - starting number 30 - with a 2.5-liter engine raced at Le Mans in 1959, the others are 17 of the 750 class, the slot of the sequential gearshift can be guessed at

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Lotus Eleven (1956) - Colin Chapman with his 1100 sports car

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Summary

Better, faster and - it was hoped - even more successful, Lotus wanted to give the successful Lotus Eleven an even more powerful brother. The new Coventry Climax 1.5-liter FPF engine, which was originally intended for Formula 2, was the reason for this. The result was a car that had excellent beginnings and, as so often in typical Lotus style, really only knew two extremes: Victory or total failure.

This article contains the following chapters

Potential not fully exploited
Costin's legacy
Technical data Lotus 15 Climax 1500

Estimated reading time: 7min

Preview (beginning of the article)

The idea was actually a good one. The successful Lotus Eleven was to be followed by a larger, even more powerful model. The prerequisites were in place. After the Coventry Climax FWA, the first car application of the OHC (Feather Weight Automotive) fire pump drive designed by Harry Mundy and Walter Hassan as in the Lotus Eleven, the new Coventry Climax FPF engine promised more of everything: more displacement and more power. This DOHC engine was basically half a Climax V8, a project by the two designers for a Formula 1 engine from the first half of the 1950s that was driven forward without the knowledge of the management. Initially, the V8 project came to nothing and its use in the Kieft racing car was withdrawn. However, the engine was eventually built as a four-cylinder DOHC design with a displacement of 1.5 liters, and later a two and a half liter version was added - until finally the Coventry Climax V8 was also built.

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