1969 Lotus-Ford Type 61 Formula Ford Racing Single-Seater
Chassis no. 61M-X-F3-219

Lotus Components Ltd displayed their brand-new Lotus Type 61 Formula Ford car at the British Racing & Sports Car Club's annual Racing Car Show, in London, at the start of 1969. The highly successful Jim Russell Racing Drivers' School headed the order list as this replacement for the Lotus 22/51-series of single-seater customer-sale designs headed for tremendous success.

The new Lotus 61 featured a new multi-tubular spaceframe chassis composed of round-section tubes and stiffened by a stressed-steel sheet undertray panel. Typically Lotus all-independent suspension was adopted, with double wishbones at the front pivoting on nylon-lined bearings, with interposed coil-spring/damper units as the springing medium. The rear suspension featured reversed lower wishbones, single top links and twin radius rods each side, again with outboard-mounted coil-spring/damper units.