Page 1 of 1 Lola returned to sports car racing late in 1998 with the B98/10. Built around a carbon-fibre composite monocoque, the first Lola prototype racer in over half a decade was aimed at the top level sports car classes on both sides of the Atlantic. At the start of 2000, Lola added an entry level model to the line-up for gentleman racers to race in Grand Am's SR II and ACO LMP675 classes.
Dubbed the B2K/40, it was built around an aluminium monocoque chassis. Suspension was by double wishbones with push-rod actuated springs and dampers on all four corners. A separate steel subframe was used to house the engine and gearbox. Although there were other options, the engine of choice was a Nissan-based V6 engine developed by AER, which was mated to a proprietary six-speed gearbox with Hewland internals.
The B2K/40 was clothed in a carbon-fibre composite bodywork that was a derivative of the B2K/10 that was also developed for the 2000 season to replace the B98/10. The most significant difference was the lack of the bow nose that made the B2K/10 instantly recognisable. Instead the B2K/40 sported a smooth nose with sharp edges around the front fenders and slab sides. To comply with the SR II regulations, a full width roll bar was fitted.
The B2K/40 debuted in the second round of the 2000 Grand Am Championship and took a class win in only the second round. It was the start of a successful season, which also included a class win in the 24 Hours of Le Mans. The car remained competitive for quite some time and crucially also proved popular with customers as 15 cars were built between 2000 and 2002.
While Lola built the B01/60 to race in the LMP675 class as well in 2001, this was a works racer, and the real replacement for the B2K/40 was the B05/40 introduced in 2005. The B2K/40 turned out to be the first of a long line of successful 'junior' sports prototypes built by Lola until the company's demise in the early 2010s. Page 1 of 1
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Lola returned to sports car racing late in 1998 with the B98/10. Built around a carbon-fibre composite monocoque, the first Lola prototype racer in over half a decade was aimed at the top level sports car classes on both sides of the Atlantic. At the start of 2000, Lola added an entry level model to the line-up for gentleman racers to race in Grand Am's SR II and ACO LMP675 classes.