Her name is Lola; seven Can-Am and sports racers ...

To round off the year, we have taken a detailed look at a two series of Lola racing cars; the late 1960s Can-Am machines and the sports racers produced a decade later of which we have seen quite a few over the last couple of years.
Built to replace the ageing T70, the earliest of these is the Lola T160. The first Lola Can-Am racer that could be equipped with a big block V8, it was built specifically for the 1968 Can-Am series. It was raced by the likes of John Surtees and Dan Gurney but was not quite able to keep up with the dominant McLarens. The T160 evolved into the interim T162, which was used early in 1969. Altogether more successful was the subsequent T163 Chevrolet, which was ready at the start of the 1969 Can-Am. Although campaigned by Roger Penske and the All American Racers, it was most successful in the hands of Chuck Parsons, who piloted the semi-works example for Carl Haas. Although he did not win a race against the all-conquering McLaren M8B, he ended the year best of the rest. For 1970, a final evolution, the T165 was readied for customers but this was a just stopgap machine until the next generation of Lola Can-Am cars was ready.
Turning away from Can-Am, Lola focused on two-litre sports cars throughout the 1970s. Like the T160, the cars evolved over the years as the company's understanding of aerodynamics and suspension geometry improved. Following a brief hiatus, Lola resumed production with the T296 in 1977. Compared to its predecessors, it featured a much more efficient body. The following year, it was replaced by the T297, which featured only very few mechanical changes that barely warranted a name change. After only a few were built, it was superseded by the ultimate evolution of the T290; the T298. Between 1979 and 1981, Lola produced a further 15 examples, which remained remarkably competitive despite boasting a chassis design that was nearly a decade old.

Enjoy the links:

[url="http://www.ultimatecarpage.com/car/6051/Lola-T298-BMW.html"]1979 - 1981 Lola T298 BMW - Images, Specifications and Information[/url]

[url="http://www.ultimatecarpage.com/car/6050/Lola-T297-BMW.html"]1978 Lola T297 BMW - Images, Specifications and Information[/url]

[url="http://www.ultimatecarpage.com/car/6049/Lola-T296-Cosworth.html"]1977 Lola T296 Cosworth - Images, Specifications and Information[/url]

[url="http://www.ultimatecarpage.com/car/4154/Lola-T165-Chevrolet.html"]1970 Lola T165 Chevrolet - Images, Specifications and Information[/url]

[url="http://www.ultimatecarpage.com/car/4153/Lola-T162-Chevrolet.html"]1969 Lola T162 Chevrolet - Images, Specifications and Information[/url]

[url="http://www.ultimatecarpage.com/car/1251/Lola-T163-Chevrolet.html"]1969 Lola T163 Chevrolet - Images, Specifications and Information[/url]

[url="http://www.ultimatecarpage.com/car/4152/Lola-T160-Chevrolet.html"]1968 Lola T160 Chevrolet - Images, Specifications and Information[/url]