Lotus Seven
(1957 - 1973)
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United Kingdom
Lotus Seven: All models
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The Lotus Seven was launched in 1957 and continued to be built in many stages throughout its life. Today, Caterham still produces the sports car known as the Super Seven, which can still demonstrate its advantages of light weight combined with sufficient power at club races, on Alpine passes and country roads. This report tells the story of a 1957 Series 1 model and shows it in current and historical pictures and original sales brochures.
The Lotus Super Seven was a car that probably only the English could invent. In principle, the design was based on a formula car, except that two seats and some weather protection were provided. Lightweight and equipped with the handling characteristics of a racing car, the small sports car was particularly suitable "for racing in club races and ruffling his girlfriend's hair". John Aley tested the lightweight British car with a Ford engine and 85 hp in 1985. This report reproduces the original text including the development history and supplements it with archive photos and four (!) original brochures.
Did Colin Chapman build the Lotus Super Seven simply for the sheer joy of it? In any case, the rough-legged fun roadster looked somewhat out of place next to the relatively distinguished Elite and Elan production cars. However, far from being suitable for everyday use, the roadster weighing less than 500 kg showed unexpected talents ... even in city traffic, if the driver was able to adapt to the dimensions of the car. This historical test report is dedicated to the 100 hp Super Seven with Cosworth engine.
The English sports car manufacturer produced not quite 3000 Lotus Seven and Super Seven cars between 1957 and 1973. They were aimed at sports drivers who needed a vehicle suitable for everyday use during the week and for club racing at the weekend. The simply built Seven, which could be assembled by reasonably talented DIY enthusiasts in their own garage, offered just that. The fact that it continues to be built in various versions to this day proves how right Colin Chapman was with this concept. This driving report describes the history of the Lotus Seven and shows it in current and historical photos, as well as in the sales literature of the time.
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