The STP Lotus Gas Turbine race car is set to make a very rare appearance at the Goodwood Festival of Speed that runs from 1-3 July. It will be driven by the same man who raced the car in 1968, Parnelli Jones.
With four-wheel drive and power from a 500bhp gas turbine engine, which also generates 1151lb.ft of torque, the Lotus is capable of 171mph. This was enough to get the car on pole position in the 1968 Indy 500 race, though it retired from the lead in the race on lap 10.
The STP Lotus appears at Goodwood as part of this year's theme of "Racing Revolutions - Quantum leaps that shaped motor sport". Clive Chapman, son of Lotus founder Colin Chapman, said: "Amongst its competitors the STP Lotus type 56 looked years ahead, and it was. My father learnt a lot about the commercial and promotional aspects of motor racing which would not go to waste."
Alisdair Suttie - 28 Jun 2011