RIP Eric Broadley, founder of Lola

[Elva164]

I was sad to hear this, though 88 is a pretty good run. If you like auto racing at all, you owe a lot to this man. One of the greatest designers/team owners ever.

https://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/129841

From the 1958 Lola Mk1, which was created using his £2000 savings and designed and built at a ramshackle West Byfleet workshop, to the mighty Lola T70s of the 1960s, the fearsome F5000 cars of the 1970s, and the customer Group C and F1 cars of the 70s and 80s, Broadley and his team created some of racing's most iconic designs.

Lola's record at Indianapolis was the best of any overseas constructor from the 1960s to the 1990s. Graham Hill (pictured with Broadley below) became the first English driver to win at the Brickyard in 1966 with the Lola T90 Red Ball Special, while Al Unser Snr took the 500-mile triple crown - Indy, Pocono and Ontario - in a Lola T500 in 1978.

His achievements as the brains behind Lola are staggering, and it says much for his benign and quirky personality that he was known as the 'engineer's engineer' rather than an effervescent personality such as Colin Chapman, Ken Tyrrell or Ron Dennis.

Eric:

The National Champion Lola Mk1 we take care of:

The Mk6, father of the GT40:

Arguably the most famous Lola, the T70:

 

[DrEntropy]

Not to denigrate the import of E. Broadly's contribution, nor the sadness of his passing, I gottta throw this in the mix: Colin Chapman and Jim Clark

 

[coldplugs]

Sad to hear this. I've always thought that Mk 1 Lola was a wonderful little car, even though it was the "enemy" when we had our clapped out Lotus Eleven ~way~ back when.

I thought Oliver Schmitt's Lola-OSCA came as close to perfection aesthetically as any race car I ever saw. Beautiful car, beautiful engine. There's a web page showing it here. (I took the picture that's below the builders plate at Thompson - I was surprised to see it when I googled the car just now.)

Whatever Lola wants....

 

[DrEntropy]

"Little Lola wants YOU...."

 

[Elva164]

.

 

[Elva164]

Not to denigrate the import of E. Broadly's contribution, nor the sadness of his passing, I gottta throw this in the mix: Colin Chapman and Jim Clark

Assumedly the difference being Jimmy was Scottish.

 

[DrEntropy]

And Jim C. was a driver with "simpatico" with th' equipment. Not an "engineer" like Broadley. Just sayin' the Chapman/Clark symbiotic partnership made for a 1965 Indy win.

 

[pdplot]

That's when sports cars looked like sports cars and not spaceships...But race cars today are much safer. Anyone see that picture of Scott Dixon's car flying through the air? And he walked away with a twisted ankle. No longer can we say there are two kinds of race drivers - those who get killed before they are good and those that get killed afterwards.