Lotus 79

The Lotus 79 was a Formula One car designed in late 1977 by Colin Chapman, Martin Ogilvie, Tony Rudd and Peter Wright of Lotus. It is considered by many the most significant and respected racing car design of all time.

The Lotus 79 was the first F1 car to take full advantage of ground effects aerodynamics, pioneered in its immediate predecessor, the Lotus 78. The car was powered by the Ford Cosworth DFV and constructed of sheet aluminium honeycomb, specially strengthened for the pressures exerted on the car by the ground effects.

The 79 was also the first F1 car to be designed using wind tunnel and computer design aids.[citation needed] In fact it was the first F1 car to use computers to analyse it in the pits on race weekends.

The need for smooth airflow dictated the car must have clean lines; as a result the 79 was one of the most beautiful cars ever to take to the track. Nicknamed 'Black Beauty' by the press and F1 fans alike, for its graceful design and sleek profile and its black and gold livery through sponsorship by John Player Special cigarettes, the Lotus 79 was instantly competitive on its debut, the Belgian Grand Prix at Zolder. It took pole at the hands of Mario Andretti by more than a second, and won the race comfortably. Andretti said after driving the 79 for the first time that the Lotus 78 was like driving a London bus. He did however have reservations over the car's brakes, which faded noticeably over a race distance. Peterson once quipped, after scoring an impressive pole position, that the car was so brilliantly set-up all he had to do was steer.

In its lifetime, the 79 took 7 wins, 10 pole positions, 121 points and won the last drivers' and constructors' world championships for Lotus.

// Extracted from Wikipedia (see full text clicking here)//

Video (Lotus 79 first GP):