Tolman to debut Lotus Elite at Silverstone

British GT race winners Tolman will debut its freshly built FIA specification Lotus Elite at this year’s Silverstone Classic. Its entry in the RAC Historic Tourist Trophy marks the first time the Warwickshire-based specialist has competed at the event since 2014.

Craig Dolby will race the Type 14 Elite, built up from a new body shell in less than 10 weeks and shook the car down at Blyton Park as preparation for its first meeting.

Despite Tolman being a renowned restorer and supplier of upgraded parts for road and race Elites, this is the first competition Elite it has constructed from the ground up. The build draws heavily on its contemporary motorsport experience and knowledge running Ginetta and McLaren factory campaigns in British GT.

“The impact of the pandemic made us re-evaluate the business and despite having successfully run historics on occasions, including winning at Goodwood with our Lotus 19, we decided to put more focus this year on that side that keeps growing,” says team founder Christopher Tolman. “We produce a lot of parts for Elites and there are usually one or two in the workshop, including most recently a former Le Mans car, so we thought we could bring all of that knowledge together and build our own.”

Alongside the Elite, Tolman is running a Lola T212 in the HSCC Thundersports this season. “We already look after a number of other historics in the workshop including a Ralt RT3 Formula 3, but we are now looking to offer more trackside support so owners can get the most out of their weekends and focus on enjoying the driving.”

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