>>Lotus 100T

Lotus 100T

Lotus 100T

Category	Formula One
Constructor	Team Lotus
Designer(s)	Gérard Ducarouge Martin Ogilvie
Predecessor	Lotus 99T
Successor	Lotus 101
Technical specifications
Chassis	Carbon fibre and Kevlar monocoque
Suspension (front)	double wishbones, coil springs
Suspension (rear)	double wishbones, coil springs
Axle track	Front: 1,798 mm (71 in) Rear: 1,651 mm (65 in)
Wheelbase	2,776 mm (109 in)
Engine	Honda RA168-E, 1,494 cc (91.2 cu in), 80° V6, turbo (2.5 bar limited), mid-engine, longitudinally mounted
Transmission	Lotus-Hewland 6-Speed manual
Weight	540 kg (1,190.5 lb)
Fuel	Elf
Tyres	Goodyear
Competition history
Notable entrants	Camel Team Lotus Honda
Notable drivers	1.  Nelson Piquet 2.  Satoru Nakajima
Debut	1988 Brazilian Grand Prix
Races Wins Podiums Poles F.Laps 16 0 3 0 0
Constructors' Championships	0
Drivers' Championships	0

The Lotus 100T was a Formula One car designed by Gérard Ducarouge and Martin Ogilvie for Team Lotus, and used during the 1988 Formula One season. The 100T was an update of the previous Lotus 99T model; technically the car was virtually unchanged, except for redesigned nose and rear bodywork. The car was powered by the same, 640 bhp (477 kW; 649 PS), 1.5L turbocharged Honda V6 engine that powered the McLaren team to 15 wins in 16 races in 1988. The car was driven by reigning World Champion Nelson Piquet, and Japanese driver Satoru Nakajima.

History

Unlike its predecessor, the 100T wasn't fitted with electronic active suspension, still an advanced system despite having been introduced on the 99T at the insistence of 1987 lead driver Ayrton Senna who was looking for an advantage. Lotus felt that the weight of the system (approx 25kg or 55lb), along with the Honda having lost around 300 bhp (224 kW; 304 PS) from 1987's figures thanks to the FIA's lowering of the turbo boost limit from 4.0 bar to 2.5 bar, the further loss of approximately 5% of engine power to run the active system was not worth it and reverted to a conventional suspension setup with dampers supplied by Bilstein. However, with the loss of Senna to McLaren, and despite signing triple and reigning World Champion Nelson Piquet as his replacement, Lotus were very much an also-ran team during much of 1988. Piquet picked up a number of points, including three third-placed finishes, during the season, but the car's lack of ultimate speed resulted in Lotus's first season without a win or pole position since 1981. Indeed, when Nakajima failed to qualify the car at Monaco, it became the first (and only) F1 car powered by a Honda turbo engine which failed to qualify for a race. Nakajima actually failed to qualify twice in 1988, also failing to make the grid in Detroit.

Many felt that with Honda power, Piquet should have been able to match the McLarens, or at least be the "best of the rest", though more often than not he wasn't even that, and at times was even shown up by his team mate Satoru Nakajima who many believed would not even have been in F1 had it not been for Honda. Piquet's lackluster season in defence of his championship confirmed the general view that the Brazilian would race to win in nothing less than a top notch car (though he confirmed in a 2012 interview on Brazilian TV that he was "never right" after his qualifying crash at the 1987 San Marino Grand Prix, and only drove from 1988 until his retirement after 1991 "for the money"). The 100T proved it was not a top notch car despite team boss Peter Warr stating in Monaco that "If McLaren can build a fast car then we must be able to as well". After Senna had won for Lotus at Monaco in 1987, Monaco 1988 proved a disaster for Lotus. Nakajima failed to qualify while Piquet, who had qualified in 11th place some 4.4 seconds slower than Senna's pole winning McLaren Honda, lasted one lap before retiring with collision damage.

At the end of the 1988 season turbocharged engines were outlawed, rendering the 100T chassis obsolete. It was replaced by the conventionally aspirated Lotus 101 for the 1989 Formula One season.

Late in the 1988 season, former three-time World Champion Jackie Stewart test drove the 100T at the Snetterton Circuit in Norfolk, England, which was Lotus's test track at the time. Within a few short laps he identified the car's basic problems. He said that the car lacked rigidity despite its carbon fibre and kevlar monocoque, and that the chassis couldn't handle the abrupt power delivery of the turbocharged Honda engine which made the car difficult to drive, a common complaint of Piquet and Nakajima, as well as the team's test driver Martin Donnelly. He also noted how cramped the driving position was and that the steering wheel and instrument panel were so close together that it made the panel almost unreadable. Stewart managed to spin and stall the car on one lap at the "Bomb Hole" corner when his driving glove was caught in the small space between the steering wheel and the top of the cowling and had to turn off the engine in order to be able to take his glove off to untangle it. He also said that "It was not a car that Nelson Piquet would have wanted to drive too many more times" and rated the car as "Perhaps one of the more disappointing cars I drove". When questioned about Stewart's findings during practice for the season ending Australian Grand Prix, Peter Warr refused to say what the Scot had reported, only stating that he had correctly identified problems on which the team was already trying to fix.

Nelson Piquet finished the season in sixth place with 22 points in defense of his title, picking up third places in Brazil, San Marino and Australia. Nakajima finished 16th in the Drivers' Championship with one point from his sixth place at the opening race in Brazil. Lotus finished fourth in the Constructors' Championship with 23 points, a massive 176 behind McLaren.

Satoru Nakajima's Lotus 100T on display at the Honda Collection Hall in Japan.

>>Lotus 99T

Lotus 99T

Lotus 99T

Category	Formula One
Constructor	Team Lotus
Designer(s)	Gérard Ducarouge Martin Ogilvie
Predecessor	98T
Successor	100T
Technical specifications
Chassis	Carbon fibre and Kevlar monocoque
Suspension (front)	Lotus Active, double wishbones, coil springs
Suspension (rear)	Lotus Active, double wishbones, coil springs
Axle track	Front: 1,791 mm (70.5 in) Rear: 1,641 mm (64.6 in)
Wheelbase	2,730 mm (107 in)
Engine	Honda RA166-E, 1,494 cc (91.2 cu in), 80° V6, turbo (4.0 bar limited), mid-engine, longitudinally mounted
Transmission	Lotus-Hewland 6-Speed manual
Weight	540 kg (1,190 lb)
Fuel	Elf
Tyres	Goodyear
Competition history
Notable entrants	Camel Team Lotus Honda
Notable drivers	11.  Satoru Nakajima 12.  Ayrton Senna
Debut	1987 Brazilian Grand Prix
Races Wins Podiums Poles F.Laps 16 2 8 1 3
Constructors' Championships	0
Drivers' Championships	0

The Lotus 99T was a Formula One car designed by Gérard Ducarouge for use by Lotus in the 1987 season.

After Renault pulled out of F1 at the end of 1986, Lotus signed a deal with Honda for use of their turbocharged 1.5-litre engine. Due to Honda's existing deal with Williams which allowed that team exclusive use of the 1987-spec RA167-E unit, Lotus instead used the previous season's RA166-E. As part of the deal, Lotus agreed to sign Honda's test driver Satoru Nakajima as teammate to Ayrton Senna.

Lotus also had a new title sponsor and livery, with the black and gold of John Player Special being replaced by the bright yellow and blue of Camel.

The 99T was the second Lotus chassis to be fitted with electronic active suspension after the team had experimented with the system on the Lotus 92 used in the first part of the 1983 season. The system's benefits of a consistent ride height with no pitch or roll in the chassis came at a cost, as the system added significant weight to the car (approx 25 kg or 55 lb), and also robbed the Honda turbo of approximately 5% of its power (the RA166-E was rated at approximately 900 bhp (671 kW; 912 PS) with 1987s 4.0 Bar turbo boost restriction). Ducarouge clawed as much performance back by spending many hours in the wind tunnel to compensate, although by the end of the season Senna was describing the car as nothing more than the previous year's 98T with a Honda engine instead of the Renault. The 99T was generally regarded as the more bulky of the cars that won a Grand Prix in 1987 with the Williams FW11B, McLaren MP4/3 and Ferrari F1/87 all regarded as better aerodynamically than the Lotus. Despite this, the 99T (especially in Senna's hands) was often among the fastest cars in a straight line.

Cockpit of Lotus 99T Formula One car of Ayrton Senna.

After pre-season testing at the Jacarepaguá Circuit in Rio, Senna had insisted on the team using the active suspension throughout the season, feeling that due to having the previous year's engine the computer controlled system and its benefits would help keep Lotus at the front of the field (one of those benefits was that due to less tyre wear, the 99Ts were able to run less wing thus giving greater top speed). However, while the Brazilian was able to take wins on bumpy street circuits at both Monaco and Detroit, the car proved difficult to set up for other circuits.

The 99T proved to be competitive in Senna's hands; the Brazilian won twice and scored six other podium finishes during the season, helping him and the team to third in the drivers' and constructors' championships. Senna's win at the Detroit Grand Prix was the final ever Grand Prix win for the team. Senna would move to McLaren (who had secured the use of the Honda engines to replace the TAG engines used from 1983) for 1988 and would win his first World Drivers' Championship. The season was also Senna's second worst in terms of pole positions, scoring only one in Round 2 at San Marino, his worst season being his rookie year in 1984 with Toleman.

Nakajima, who for his part very much overshadowed by his teammate, proved to be a steady, if unspectacular driver. He openly admitted that he favored the faster circuits such as Silverstone, Hockenheim, Österreichring and Monzaas well as his home track of Suzuka, but was ill at ease on the tighter circuits. He qualified 17th in Monaco and finished 10th, 24th in Detroit before crashing out on lap 1, and 17th in Hungary before suffering a broken drive shaft on the first lap. Nakajima's best finish in his first season was a 4th at Silverstone for the British Grand Prix. He finished the season in 12th place with 7 points scored. Nakajima's best qualifying performance came in Round 15 in Japan for what was the first Japanese Grand Prix since 1977. At the Honda owned Suzuka circuit, Nakajima qualified in 11th place, only four places and 0.962 seconds behind Senna. It was the closest he would qualify to his teammate all season (as it was his home track, Nakajima had actually completed more laps at Suzuka than the entire F1 grid combined). During the season, television viewers were able to get an up close view of the Japanese rookie's driving as his car usually carried an onboard camera.

The 99T was updated for 1988 to 100T specification; the car technically was virtually unchanged, except for a redesigned nose section, longer wheelbase and tighter rear bodywork (helped by the reduction of fuel tank capacity from 1987s 195 litres to 150 litres), and the dumping of the active suspension for a more conventional setup. New team leader, 1987 World Champion Nelson Piquet (switching from Williams) used the car to score consistently but was unable to add any further wins to Lotus' score sheet however, with three 3rd placings his best finishes.

Senna's 99T was included in the Japanese and American versions of the 2001 video game Gran Turismo 3 under the alias "F687/S". The F687/S was the second most powerful Formula One car in the game (next to the F686/M) producing 900 PS (888 hp). The 99T also makes appearances in Rad Racer from Square and Continental Circus from Taito, both released in 1987.

>>Lotus 98T

Lotus 98T

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Lotus 98T

Category	Formula One
Constructor	Lotus
Designer(s)	Gérard Ducarouge Martin Ogilvie
Predecessor	97T
Successor	99T
Technical specifications
Chassis	Carbon fibre and Kevlar Aluminium honeycomb monocoque
Suspension (front)	Double wishbones, pull-rod actuated coil springs over dampers, anti-roll bar
Suspension (rear)	Double wishbones, pull-rod actuated coil springs over dampers, anti-roll bar
Axle track	Front: 1,816 mm (71.5 in) Rear: 1,620 mm (64 in)
Wheelbase	2,720 mm (107 in)
Engine	Renault Gordini EF15B, 1,492 cc (91.0 cu in), 90° V6, turbo, mid-engine, longitudinally mounted
Transmission	Lotus / Hewland 6-speed manual
Weight	540 kg (1,190 lb)
Fuel	Elf
Tyres	Goodyear
Competition history
Notable entrants	John Player Team Lotus
Notable drivers	11.  Johnny Dumfries 12.  Ayrton Senna
Debut	1986 Brazilian Grand Prix
Races Wins Podiums Poles F.Laps 16 2 8 8 0
Constructors' Championships	0
Drivers' Championships	0

The Lotus 98T was a Formula One racecar designed by Gérard Ducarouge & Martin Ogilvie, and built by Team Lotus. It was made to compete during the 1986 Formula One season, and was a development of the Lotus 97T of 1985. Of the four chassis built, three were assigned to lead driver Ayrton Senna, now in his second year with Team Lotus, and one to team mate Johnny Dumfries.

The chassis featured a lower monocoque than the 97T as a result of a regulation change stipulating a reduction in fuel capacity to 195 litres. The powertrain consisted of the new Renault EF15B turbocharged V6 engine, driving through a six-speed, manual sequential Hewland gearbox.

The EF15B was to appear in two forms, the standard engine and the "D.P." engine which featured pneumatic valve springs for the first time. At the end of the season Renault introduced the revised EF15C which in addition to the D.P. valve gear also boasted common rail fuel injection and much revised water cooling through the cylinder head reducing the likelihood of pre-ignition (detonation). Power figures for this period of F1 history are largely speculative as most engine manufactures freely admitted that their test beds would not have a sufficient power rating to measure the 1.5 litre turbos output at above 4 bar boost. It is claimed that the Renault EF15B in its pinnacle increment was claimed to produce in excess of 1000 HP at unrestricted boost pressure, thus making it one of the most powerful engines ever used in Formula 1 history. 

This was however during qualifying, where teams used unrestricted boost pressures for maximum power output, and for very quick lap times. These unrestricted engines were very unreliable, and would only last about a couple clean laps. Therefore, the 98T produced around 900 HP in race trim. The 98T was also the final Lotus powered by a Renault engine, as Lotus switched to Honda for the following year/season.

The gearbox came in two variants, a conventional five speed and a new six speed. The six speed was very much a development gearbox and was largely unreliable. While Senna opted to run only with the five speed, Dumfries was tasked with testing the six speed. Both gearboxes featured Hewland internals within a Lotus designed casing.

Other notable innovations of the 98T included a two-stage ride height adjustment, water injection through the intercoolers, an early form of barge board (also present on the 97T) and an advanced (for the time) fuel consumption micro computer.

During the 1986 Formula One season, the Formula One paddock was very much alive with speculation as to the legality of the Lotus 98T. The increasing rumours prompted Lotus team manager Peter Warr to issue a press statement after qualifying for the German Grand Prix, calling for the rumours to stop or for the teams to officially protest the car. While the rumours died down, they did persist, although no protest was ever lodged.

Driver controversy

At the end of 1985, long time Lotus driver Elio de Angelis had departed for the Brabham team. This left a seat open at Lotus and the team intended to sign Derek Warwick, without a drive after the factory Renault team pulled out of racing, as his replacement. However, Ayrton Senna, not believing that the team could sustain two #1 drivers and not wanting the focus of the team to be on anything but himself, used his position as the team's lead driver to put pressure on Lotus not to sign Warwick, allegedly even threatening to follow de Angelis to Brabham if they did sign the Englishman (though that couldn't happen as Riccardo Patrese, a favourite of Brabham boss Bernie Ecclestone, was already confirmed as de Angelis' new team mate). Lotus management however took Senna's threat seriously and decided not to sign Warwick. Senna then pushed to have his former flatmate and countryman Maurício Gugelmin join the team as the #2, but this time didn't get his own way. Team sponsor JPS reportedly wanted a British driver, so Lotus hired Dumfries instead.

Gugelmin would not make his F1 debut until he joined the March team in 1988, while Warwick, who was forced into sportscar racing in 1986 after being left without a drive, would ultimately replace de Angelis at Brabham after the Italian's death in a testing accident at the Paul Ricard Circuit in May.

The 98T was the last Lotus to carry the famous Black & Gold colours of long-time team sponsor John Player Special (JPS). As Renault were pulling out of F1 after the 1986 season, Lotus signed a deal with Japanese giant Honda to supply their engines in both 1987 and 1988. Part of the Honda deal was the team agreeing to sign their official test driver Satoru Nakajima as Senna's team mate. JPS, who wanted a British driver in the team, pulled its sponsorship and in 1987 Lotus would carry the Gold & Blue colours of another cigarette brand, Camel.

>>Lotus 97T

Lotus 97T

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Lotus 97T

Category	Formula One
Constructor	Lotus
Designer(s)	Gérard Ducarouge Martin Ogilvie
Predecessor	95T
Successor	98T
Technical specifications
Chassis	Carbon fibre monocoque
Suspension (front)	Springs, Pullrods, Double wishbones
Suspension (rear)	Springs, Pullrods, Double wishbones
Axle track	Front: 1,740 mm (69 in) Rear: 1,630 mm (64 in)
Wheelbase	2,730 mm (107 in)
Engine	Renault Gordini EF15B 1,492 cc (91.0 cu in) 90° V6 turbocharged mid-engine, longitudinally mounted
Transmission	Lotus / Hewland 5-speed manual
Weight	540 kg (1,190.5 lb)
Fuel	Elf
Tyres	Goodyear
Competition history
Notable entrants	John Player Team Lotus
Notable drivers	11.  Elio de Angelis 12.  Ayrton Senna
Debut	1985 Brazilian Grand Prix
Races Wins Podiums Poles F.Laps 16 3 9 8 3
Constructors' Championships	0
Drivers' Championships	0

The Lotus 97T was a Formula One racing car designed by Gérard Ducarouge and built by Team Lotus. A development of the Lotus 95T of 1984, it was designed for the 1985 Formula One season by French engineer Gérard Ducarouge. The 97T was powered by the turbocharged 1.5L Renault engine which produced up to approximately 800 bhp (597 kW; 811 PS). Sponsorship came from John Player Special, French oil company Elf (the official oil of engine supplier Renault) and Olympus Cameras, while the car used Goodyear tyres.

The 97T was of a generally simple design, it used elements from the defunct Lotus 96T Indycar project in the aerodynamics with another piece of Lotus design: an early form of bargeboards. These were placed between the front wheels and the side pods improving airflow around the side of the car. Ducarouge also got around the ban on the 'winglets' seen on the rear wings of the 1984 cars by placing them instead on the rear edges of the side pods.

Lotus' major coup for 1985 was signing rising star Ayrton Senna from the Toleman team to replace long time team driver Nigel Mansell who had signed with Williams. Senna, the first driver signed to the team since the death of Colin Chapman, partnered Italian Elio De Angelis who had finished third in the previous season's drivers' championship and had had many promising results with the 95T.

The 97T proved competitive during the season, taking 8 poles, 7 with Senna and 1 with De Angelis, and 3 wins. Senna's first was a brilliant performance in the Portuguese Grand Prix where he won by over a minute in monsoon conditions. His second came in the Belgian Grand Prix at Spa, held in wet/dry conditions. De Angelis added a third win (his 2nd and last win in F1, both for Lotus) at the San Marino Grand Prix after original winner Alain Prost (McLaren) was disqualified an hour after the race finished due to his out of fuel McLaren-TAG being 2 kg underweight.

The 97T while fast, was mechanically unreliable. The car had the best chassis of any car that competed during that season; it had the best braking and turning capabilities and it also had the best designed suspension of that year; although its aerodynamics were inferior to that of McLaren's car that year. As a result of having the best chassis, it performed best on slow and tight circuits like Monaco, Montreal, Detroit and Adelaide, although the Renault engine had reliability issues and was down on power compared to the competitors of BMW and Honda engines, but about on par with the Ferrari and Porsche units. Senna in particular had a run of bad luck mid season, including a huge crash in the French Grand Prix at Paul Ricard, where he went off at almost 200 mph (322 km/h) going into the Courbe de Signes at the end of the 1.8 km long Mistral Straight; and he retired many times while leading which cost him a possible chance at the world championship. Eventually, Lotus finished fourth in the Constructors' Championship, albeit tied on points with Williams who finished in third place owing to their greater number of race victories.

In total the Lotus 97T scored three victories, two second places and four third places. The car also achieved eight pole positions and three fastest laps.

The car marked the start of a brief return to the successful days of the 1960s and 1970s for Lotus, which was continued by the 98T of 1986 and the Honda-powered 99T of 1987.

Senna's 97T was added to Gran Turismo 6 via the May 2014 update as part of the game's new feature "Ayrton Senna Tribute" in two liveries: the Gold Leaf livery (identical to that of de Angelis's 97T apart from the driver number and name) and an in-game only "Team Lotus Special" livery (which was used instead of "John Player Special" due to tobacco advertising regulations).

Elio de Angelis driving the 97T at the 1985 German Grand Prix.

>>Lotus 96T

Lotus 96T

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The Lotus 96T at the Goodwood Festival of Speed in 2012.

The Lotus type 96T was Team Lotus's last Indycar.

The project was the brainchild of former Formula 2 team owner Roy Winkelmann. During the 1960s Winklemann had proved successful running Brabhams and scoring successes with Jochen Rindt. However this team was to break up suddenly in 1969 with some of the core personnel (including Alan Rees) forming March Engineering.

Winklemann then relocated himself in the United States and built up a large and diverse business empire. Following the creation of the CART series in 1979 Winklemann saw a perceived blossoming of international interest and was once again lured to an opportunity to race again. However he did not wish to buy an "off-the-shelf" March or Lola chassis as was de rigueur in CART racing during the 1980s. Instead he initially approached Cosworth and obtained some assurances that they would be prepared to build "works" engines for his team. All teams in the championship were effectively running second-hand DFX engines at this point, with little input from Cosworth.

Winklemann then approached Team Lotus and their new designer Gérard Ducarouge to obtain a bespoke chassis with the plan of competing and conquering CART within three years. Ducarouge enlisted Mike Coughlan to help design the chassis.

The 96T was Ducarogue's response to these requirements. Its tub, lines and suspension were similar to the Lotus 95T that was racing in the 1984 Formula One Championships, but with one significant design alteration. Ducarouge had foreseen that at a track like Indianapolis, the car stood the very real possibility of hitting a concrete retaining wall at over 200 mph (322 km/h), therefore the chassis was modified.

Since 1981 all Formula one Lotuses had been constructed of a carbon/Kevlar (Chapman Tartan) sandwich with the void between the two filled with Nomex paper foil. The Type 96T departed from this by having the void filled with a lightweight aluminium-foil honeycomb. This modification was significant as it built in extra strength at no cost to weight and was to lay the foundations for all future Lotus Formula 1 chassis.

Despite the project's promising beginnings it was to be the American CART establishment's lack of enthusiasm (interpreted by some as outward hostility) for a "works team" that was to effectively kill this project. The repercussions of this were to virtually guarantee none of the sponsorship that Winklemann had originally been so confident of. Also with a lack of sponsorship many drivers were not willing to sacrifice their growing reputations with an unknown European team, despite the legacy that team came with.

The one and only prototype now resides with Classic Team Lotus.

>>Lotus 95T

Lotus 95T

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Lotus 95T

Category	Formula One
Constructor	Lotus
Designer(s)	Gérard Ducarouge
Predecessor	94T
Successor	97T
Technical specifications
Chassis	Kevlar / Nomex honeycomb monocoque
Suspension (front)	Double wishbones, pull rod, coil springs
Suspension (rear)	Double wishbones, pull rod, coil springs
Axle track	Front: 1,800 mm (71 in) Rear: 1,700 mm (67 in)
Wheelbase	2,775 mm (109.3 in)
Engine	Renault Gordini EF4, 1,492 cc (91.0 cu in), 90° V6, turbocharger, mid-engine, longitudinally mounted
Transmission	Lotus / Hewland 5 speed manual
Weight	540 kg (1,190 lb)
Fuel	Elf
Tyres	Goodyear
Competition history
Notable entrants	John Player Team Lotus
Notable drivers	11.  Elio de Angelis 12.  Nigel Mansell
Debut	1984 Brazilian Grand Prix
Races Wins Podiums Poles F.Laps 16 0 6 2 0
Constructors' Championships	0
Drivers' Championships	0

The Lotus 95T was a Formula One racing car designed by Gérard Ducarouge for use by Team Lotus in the 1984 FIA Formula One World Championship. The car was powered by the Renault Gordini EF4 V6 turbo engine and ran on Goodyear tyres, after Lotus had switched from Pirelli. It was a development of the Lotus 94T, which had proved competitive at the end of 1983.

The 95T of Elio de Angelis at the 1984 Detroit Grand Prix

Cockpit of the 95T

Rear wing of the 95T

Renault Gordini EF4 engine in the 95T

The car was driven Elio de Angelis and Nigel Mansell, both of whom were consistently competitive in a season otherwise dominated by McLaren. De Angelis finished in the top five on eleven occasions, including four podium finishes; he also took pole position at the opening race in Brazil. With 34 points, he was third in the Drivers' Championship.

Mansell, meanwhile, finished third in France and the Netherlands, and was running second in the final race in Portugal when his brakes failed (which handed Niki Lauda the Drivers' Championship by half a point from Alain Prost). However, he also crashed out of the lead at a rain-hit Monaco (which prompted team boss Peter Warr, with whom he had a difficult relationship, to famously declare, "He'll never win a Grand Prix as long as I have a hole in my arse"), and in oppressive heat at Dallas he took pole position and led the first half of the race, before his gearbox failed on the final lap and he collapsed from exhaustion trying to push the car to the finish line. He ultimately finished equal ninth in the Drivers' Championship with 13 points, the same tally as Ayrton Senna, who would replace him for 1985.

With a total of 47 points, Lotus placed third in the Constructors' Championship, its best placing since 1978. The 95T was seen by many in Formula One as being as good as the dominant McLaren MP4/2, its biggest problems being the tyres, the gearbox and the Renault engine, which despite being powerful and reliable was not as fuel-efficient as the TAG-Porsche engine in the McLaren. Nonetheless, the car had helped to re-establish Lotus as consistent front-runners, and would be succeeded for 1985 by a further development, the Lotus 97T.

After Formula One

Mansell's 95T was auctioned by Mecum Auctions in Monterey, California in August 2013, with a pre-sale estimate of between $500,000 and $600,000.However, it failed to sell.