Car · Team Lotus · 1978–1979

Lotus 79

The 78 proved the principle; the 79 removed everything that got in its way. Andretti said it was like being painted to the road. It was so far ahead that Chapman had already moved on to the 80, which failed, and then to the twin-chassis 88, which was banned - Lotus never won another championship. Every team copied the 79 for 1979, and Williams and Ligier did it better.

Seasons: 1978–1979
Entries: 11
Wins: 0
Poles: 0
Fastest laps: 0
Constructors' titles: 1
Drivers' titles: 1

Why it mattered

The idea. The 78 idea done properly: everything moved out of the airflow under the car so the tunnels run clean from front to back

New on this car. Full ground effect, with the fuel moved to a single central cell and the rear suspension repackaged to clear the diffuser exits

What it did. 26 races, 6 wins, 10 poles. Andretti's 1978 title and Lotus's seventh and last constructors' championship.

Designers: Colin Chapman, Tony Rudd, Tony Southgate, Peter Wright, Martin Ogilvie, Geoff Aldridge
Supersedes: lotus-78
Design life: 1978–1979
Confidence: high

Specification

Chassis: Aluminium monocoque
Front suspension: Double wishbone, inboard spring/damper.
Rear suspension: Parallel top links, lower wishbones, twin radius arms, outboard spring/damper.
Brakes: disc
Gearbox: Hewland FG 400
Gears: 5-speed
Tyres: Goodyear
Fuel: 1978: Valvoline ; 1979: Essex

Engine: Ford-Cosworth DFV
Configuration: V8
Capacity: 2,993 cc
Aspiration: naturally aspirated
Power: 475 bhp
Power note: 475 hp min, up to 495 hp @ 11,000 rpm
Weight: —
Wheelbase: —
Track, front: —
Track, rear: —

A blank is a figure nobody published for this car. Where several teams quote the same number in a season it is usually the rule they were all built to rather than a measurement, so it is kept with the regulation limits instead of here.

0 wins can be traced to this chassis; its article publishes 6. Neither is wrong. A win counts here only where the entry list says which car the driver was in, and a team running two designs in a season does not always say. The unresolved seasons are listed below.

Every entry 11 entries

Every entry
Season	Grand Prix	Driver	Grid	Result	Out
1979	Dutch Grand Prix	Héctor Rebaque	24	7	Finished
1979	Austrian Grand Prix	Héctor Rebaque	—	DNQ	DNQ
1979	German Grand Prix	Héctor Rebaque	24	DNF	Handling
1979	British Grand Prix	Héctor Rebaque	24	9	Finished
1979	French Grand Prix	Héctor Rebaque	23	12	Finished
1979	Belgian Grand Prix	Héctor Rebaque	15	DNF	Transmission
1979	Spanish Grand Prix	Héctor Rebaque	23	DNF	Engine
1979	United States Grand Prix West	Héctor Rebaque	23	DNF	Accident
1979	South African Grand Prix	Héctor Rebaque	23	14	Engine
1979	Brazilian Grand Prix	Héctor Rebaque	—	DNQ	DNQ
1979	Argentine Grand Prix	Héctor Rebaque	19	DNF	Suspension

Where this comes from

Constructor: Team Lotus
Predecessor: Lotus 78
Successor: Lotus 80
Races (published): 26
Wins (published): 6
Poles (published): 10
Confidence: reference
Specification source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lotus_79
Register source: https://github.com/f1db/f1db