Description:

A dominant force in Masters Endurance Legends with multiple pole positions, victories and fastest laps, this spectacular LMP1 car offers a fast-track to the front of the grid.

Update: now offered with a freshly rebuilt engine and newly crack tested in readiness for the 2024 racing season.

OVERVIEW 

• Built in 2019 following the inspired idea to mate an example of the superb Lola B12/60 LMP1 chassis to Judd's 640BHP, 4.4L, naturally-aspirated V8 (a combination available to customer teams in from 2012 but declined due to fuel consumption concerns that are no longer relevant to today's shorter sprint race format)

• Engineered to match the specification of Dyson Racing's similar, and hugely successful, Mazda-powered Lola B12/60, including trade-mark extra wide front wheels

• Hugely successful in Masters Endurance Legends with multiple pole positions, race wins and fastest laps recorded since the car's race debut in 2020

• Eligible for all Masters Endurance Legends races in Europe and the US, in addition to HSR Classic Sebring 12 Hour and HSR Classic Daytona 24 Hour

• Offered in race-ready condition with a freshly rebuilt engine and newly crack-tested in readiness for the 2024 racing season

• Running spares package included, plus three sets of wheels with further spares avaliable by seperate negotiation

BACKGROUND

The B12/60 model is the last sports racing car produced by Lola before the company's closure in late 2012. It was very successful in a variety of guises and was a descendant of the 2008 B08/60, the company's first closed cockpit sports prototype in nearly two decades.

Available both in LMP1 and LMP2 trim, the earlier B08/60 would evolve and form the basis of several works cars, including those of Aston Martin, Lotus and Mazda in addition to high-profile customer efforts from teams like Rebellion and Dyson Racing. Despite the Huntingdon company's closure in 2012, so capable was the fundamental design, that it formed the basis of later models that raced on until 2016.

One of the most comprehensive evolutions came in 2012 when the B12/60 LMP1 car was introduced. It came one year after a substantial rule change had effectively promoted the existing LMP2 cars into the LMP1 category in an effort to cap costs. This allowed for Rebellion Racing in Europe and Dyson Racing in North America to vie for outright victories against factory entrants using a naturally-aspirated Toyota V8-powered example and a Mazda-badged turbocharged four-cylinder respectively. The more powerful 4.4L Judd V8 engine was also made available by Lola as a homologated option that the chassis was designed to accommodate, but fuel consumption concerns disuaded potential customers otherwise attracted by the strong power output of the engine.

The B12/60 evolution introduced for the 2012 season finally signalled a departure from the basic aerodynamic shape that could trace its lineage even further back to that of the MG-Lolas raced a decade earlier. An important reason for this was the trend to fit ever wider front tyres, with the teams eventually running rear tyres on the front for additional front-end grip. This required substantial changes to the front suspension and aerodynamics. Most obvious of these were redesigned front fenders with more prominent headlight pods. As per the rule changes at the time, the fenders also featured mandatory cut-outs at the top.

The B12/60 debuted at the 2012 Sebring 12 Hours where Dyson ran their brand new car and Rebellion fielded their updated Lolas. The Dyson car would go on to finish eighth overall. The following month it qualified on pole and placed second at Long Beach. At Le Mans, one of the Rebellion cars finished fourth overall, beaten only by three works Audis and outperforming all other privateer LMP1 cars. Finishing second three more times, the Dyson Lola B12/60 finally won at Road America after starting from the back of the grid. At the end of the year, the Rebellion team also added Petit Le Mans to the B12/60 tally.

Rebellion won Petit Le Mans again in 2013 and at the very last outing scored a class win during the 2014 Silverstone 6 Hours. By this time, Lola's assets had been acquired by Multimatic, who gave the design one more lease of life, supplying chassis to Mazda for their IMSA prototype campaign. Strikingly liveried, the cars were simply known as the Mazda Prototype and were powered by four-cylinder diesel engines. In this guise, the venerable machines were raced through to the end of 2016.

THIS CAR

The Lola B12/60 on offer here provides a glimpse of what could have been. While the thirst of Judd's V8 may have been a concern a decade ago for teams contesting long endurance races, the power plant is now perfectly suited to the shorter, sprint race format of today's Master Endurance Legends series. Thus, the idea to marry the engine to such a well-proven chassis as the B12/60 has proven somewhat inspired.

Using a spare chassis acquired from Mazda's former IMSA program, our vendor commissioned Peter Chambers Automotive to build the car up around the powerful Judd DB 4.4L V8 engine. Having previously campaigned the similar ex-Dyson Racing B12/60, both our vendor and Peter Chambers were familiar with the model and used that experience to build the 'new' Judd-powered car to the same specification as that of the Dyson.

Assisted by a large collection of new parts from the Mazda spares package, and others from both Rebellion and Dyson inventories, the brand new LMP1 took shape, clothed in correct 2012-specification bodywork. Finished in the striking Dyson colours, it was ready for the start of the 2020 Masters Endurance Legends season.

In what turned out to be a heavily curtailed calendar due to the Coronavirus pandemic, the vendor only raced the unique Lola B12/60 Judd once that year -but what a stunning debut it was. Held at Donington Park in the UK, the 'brand new' car qualified on overall pole position for the Masters Endurance Legends grid, set the fastest lap in both races and finished second in the first contest before winning the second.

In 2021, three further victories were scored; the first at Donington early in the season, before a further two wins were secured at Brands Hatch’s double-header event later in the year. The car's final outing came at Barcelona in April of 2022 where the car finished fourth.

In total, this Lola B12/60 has contested over ten Masters Endurance Legends races, winning four, and finishing second once, in addition to securing three pole positions and two fastest laps.

CHASSIS

Underneath the carbon-fibre skin, the B12/60 is a state-of-the-art prototype. It was built around a carbon-fibre composite monocoque that was able to accommodate a variety of engines. The modified front-suspension features push-rod actuated springs and dampers, while at the rear, the springs and dampers are actuated by push-rods and rockers. Today, the car meets the required 900kg minimum weight through ballasting.

ENGINE & GEARBOX

The baby brother to Judd's iconic V10, the 4.4-litre V8 weighs just 115kg and produces 640BHP at 9,250rpm. Rebuilds by Judd are available and recommened at intervals of 3000kms.

Update as of October 2023: the car is now offered with a freshly rebuilt engine.

The V8 is mated to a six-speed, sequential gearbox that combines a Lola casing with Hewland internals and is operated by paddles behind the steering wheel.

ELIGIBILITY 

• Masters Endurance Legends, Europe & USA

• HSR Classic Sebring 12 Hour

• HSR Classic Daytona 24 Hour

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