Lotus Found And Built A Lost 1970s Can-Am Prototype

This is the car that could’ve taken down the McLaren M8D in 1970.

Lotus founder Colin Chapman aspired to compete against the dominant McLaren cars in Can-Am but never progressed further than the design stage. However, the Lotus Type 66 will finally see the track 53 years later as a limited-edition track-day special.

For a generation of motorsports fans, the Can-Am Challenge Cup was the greatest racing series on the planet. The championship operated on the premise that everything goes. Can-Am had next to no technical regulations and only required that cars be fitted with a windscreen, a roll bar, fenders and two seats.

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The Type 66 is based off an early 1970s plan but designed to modern safety and technical standards. Over a 1,000 hours of computational fluid dynamics (CFD) work went into maximizing the downforce produced by the Type 66. The 21st-century Can-Am racer also features an inboard fuel cell, a sequential gearbox, an anti-stall system and a modern driver compartment to ensure the car is safe to drive.