employees we had, I reckon the lines would be
pretty similar and steady.”
The combination of Dinnage and Eddie Dennis, chief
mechanic from the 1960s and 1970s, was crucial at this
stage. “It was an invaluable partnership,” reckons Dinnage.
“He had experience and knowledge of the older cars I didn’t
have. We formed a strong bond and a successful partnership.”
Dinnage left in 1999 as Group Lotus recruited him to run an
Exige series, but he returned in 2003 to manage the racing side
as Classic Team Lotus was restructured: “Then the business
started to grow significantly and we branched out into racing
regularly with the Historic Grand Prix Cars Association
pre-1966 cars and Formula Junior cars.”
One of the most successful cars Classic Team Lotus has
run is 25 chassis R4, the machine with which Jim Clark
dominated the 1963 world championship,
now owned by John Bowers. It has
subsequently scored many successes
in the hands of Andy Middlehurst,
including at the Monaco Historique
and Goodwood Revival.
“I planned to acquire the type 39 that
I had seen Jim Clark drive in
the Tasman series, and race it
myself in Australia,” recalls
Bowers. “But I ended up
becoming the custodian of
R4 and returning it to its
original home in the UK for
the purpose of historic racing
there. That meant I had to
find both a driver and a team
to support the car on the
other side of the world.
“I chose Classic Team Lotus
on the basis that Clive would
have access not only to the
original drawings and other
historical knowledge, but also
to the mechanics who had
worked in period. So imagine
how pleased I was when I
discovered that Bob Dance was
one of the people who worked
at CTL! His colleague Cedric Selzer, who spannered R4
for Clark in 1963, has also been a great help.
“At the time I chose CTL, I was advised by some people
in the UK that CTL was not a race shop, and only good for
producing display cars. I think our results over the past 10
years have shown how wrong that was, with Chris Dinnage
being just as competitive as I am.
“Clive’s skill has been to create a team atmosphere that is
reminiscent of the original Team Lotus days. When there is
a race problem, absolutely everyone pitches in to help. I can
truthfully say that there is not a single person at CTL that
I have not enjoyed working with.”
CTL now maintains, runs and restores dozens of cars, and
has fabrication and machining facilities (appropriately with
the Eagles’ One of These Nights 1975 track playing during
Autosport’s visit) and a composites shop.
“A couple of years ago we were fortunate to add one of the
really outstanding fabricators to the team, Steve Jest,” says
Chapman. Nick Yallop, who made the original Lotus F1
carbon monocoque, is also part of the team.
On the day of Autosport’s tour, legendary Lotus mechanic
Dance and Middlehurst are both present, working on R4. Nick
Fennell is also in Hethel, preparing to shake down the ex-Jim
Clark/Al Unser Lotus 38
that has just been restored
to its 1967 Indianapolis
500 guise. Among the
other cars in the workshop
are the 56B, 16s and an
ex-Ronnie Peterson 79.
Although it has a lot
of expertise, Classic
Team Lotus is happy
to use specialists where
necessary. “Anything
best done on a machine,
which costs so much money if you’re not running 24 hours a
day, we send out to other companies,” says Chapman. “There
are a lot of companies in Norfolk. It’s a hotspot because of
Lotus, Snetterton and North Sea oil.”
Despite its many benefits, CTL has become a victim of its
own success at times. “Because it crept up on us we got seriously
overcrowded in the old workshops,” admits Chapman. “The
lads have done extremely well to maintain the standards
and put up with pretty difficult facilities.
“The plan is to finish paying for the new workshop, but
that’s been on the radar for the last 10 years! It took a long
time to pluck up courage to do it.
“Margins in historic motorsport are tight. To a degree it’s
still something of a cottage industry and it’s nothing like
modern motorsport at all from a commercial point of view,
which has its good points and bad points. Most of the things
people find unattractive about modern motorsport aren’t
present, but we wouldn’t mind a bit more money!
“It’s a competitive marketplace. While we have a lot of
advantages at Hethel – with original team members, the
[design] drawings and the name – there are a lot of very
able preparers who offer an alternative.”
As with many bigger preparers, the Classic Team Lotus
presence at events varies considerably. Sometimes it willJEPAUTOSPORT HISTORICS
14 25 JULY 2019 AUTOSPORT HISTORICS
Ex-Clark Indy
Lotus 38 was
one of the cars
present during
Autosport’s
visit to Hethel