Page 1 of 1 Specifically for the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 1975, gentleman racer Alain de Cadenet commissioned Lola to design and construct a Cosworth-engined sports prototype. In addition to the car for De Cadenet, Lola also built a second T380, which was sold to the Jolly Club in Italy and raced throughout Europe through to the 1977 season.
With the exception of the rear suspension, the T380 was a wholly conventional Cosworth DFV 'kit car'. It was built around an all-aluminium monocoque chassis with double-wishbone front suspension. At the rear high mounted springs and dampers were fitted and a sliding block was used to control the longitudinal movement of the hubs. A slippery fibreglass body was draped over the chassis and at one point, a tall air-scoop was also added to feed more fresh air to the Cosworth V8.
Even though it was the second T380 built, the Jolly Club car was raced first as De Cadenet only raced at Le Mans. The all-white Lola debuted at the Nürburgring 1000 km where Vittorio Brambilla and Giorgio Pianta started 10th but failed to finish due to an accident. At the start of the 1976 season, the T380 was sold to Marco Capoferri, who continued to race the car under the Scuderia Brescia Corse banner. The best result was a fifth in the Coppa Florio Pergusa in 1977, which was also the car's final contemporary outing.
Although the T380 could do no better than fifth, De Cadenet proved that the design was sound as he managed to place his sister car third at Le Mans in 1976. Derivatives of that car were raced well into the 1980s. Page 1 of 1
Ultimatecarpage.com
> Cars by brand
> Great Britain
> Lola
Racing cars
> Other Sportscars
Specifically for the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 1975, gentleman racer Alain de Cadenet commissioned Lola to design and construct a Cosworth-engined sports prototype. In addition to the car for De Cadenet, Lola also built a second T380, which was sold to the Jolly Club in Italy and raced throughout Europe through to the 1977 season.