Jim Clark and the 1965 Indianapolis 500
26 artifacts in this set
1965 Lotus-Ford Race Car
Racing car
Scotsman Jim Clark won the Indianapolis 500 with this rear-engine car in 1965. After his victory, a traditional front-engine car never won that race again. The Lotus-Ford combined a European Formula One-inspired lightweight chassis with a big Ford V-8 engine. The Lotus-Ford's success effectively killed the traditional Indy roadster and established a new design for American race cars.
Program for the Victory Banquet of the 49th Indianapolis 500 Race, June 1, 1965
Program (Document)
Jim Clark won the 1965 Indianapolis 500 in a Lotus chassis powered by a rear-mounted Ford V-8. It was the first Indy 500 win for a rear-engine car, and it changed the paradigm -- no front-engine car has won the race since. This program, for the celebratory banquet held the next day, is autographed by Clark.
Jim Clark and his Racing Team with Lotus Racer, Indianapolis 500 Race, 1965
Photographic print
Jim Clark (in car), Colin Chapman (in necktie, kneeling) and the Team Lotus crew posed with Clark's Lotus-Ford Type 38 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway in 1965. Designer Chapman and driver Clark revolutionized the Indy 500 with their rear-engine Formula One style car. It was the very opposite of the front-engine roadsters that dominated the race prior to Clark's 1965 victory.
Jim Clark in Lotus Racer after Winning the Indianapolis 500 Race, 1965
Photographic print
Photographers surround driver Jim Clark in first-place car number 82. English car builder Colin Chapman kneels beside him, undoubtedly thrilled that his Formula One Lotus race car had defeated the conventional American Indy roadster. After the innovative rear-engine Lotus-Ford's 1965 win, a traditional front-engine car would never again see victory in the Indianapolis 500.
Jim Clark in Lotus Racer at the Indianapolis 500 Race, 1965
Photographic print
Scotsman Jimmy Clark was photographed in his Lotus-Ford Type 38 in 1965. Clark finished second at the 1963 Indianapolis 500, and he was forced out early by tire and suspension damage in 1964. The third time was the charm when, in 1965, Clark became the first driver to win Indy with a rear-engine car -- and the first foreign driver to win since 1916.
Jim Clark in Lotus Racer Talking with Pit Crew at the Indianapolis 500 Race, 1965
Photographic print
Driver Jim Clark in Formula One style Lotus-Ford race car number 82 confers with his pit crew before winning the Indianapolis 500. This historic victory marked the end of conventional Indy roadsters. After the innovative rear-engine Lotus-Ford's 1965 win, a traditional front-engine car would never again take first place in this prestigious race.
Jim Clark Seated in Lotus Racer Talking to Pit Crew before Indianapolis 500 Race, 1965
Photographic print
This photograph shows a rear-engine Lotus-Ford at a 1965 practice session before the Indianapolis 500 race. Car builder, Colin Chapman, talks with the eventual winner, driver Jim Clark.
Jim Clark Seated in Lotus Racer, with Colin Chapman and Pit Crew at Indianapolis 500 Race, 1965
Photographic print
Driver Jimmy Clark conferred with Team Lotus director Colin Chapman (in sunglasses) at the 1965 Indianapolis 500. Clark's rear-engine Lotus Type 38, powered by a 256-cubic-inch Ford V-8, won that year's race -- the first rear-engine car to take the checkered flag at Indy.
Lotus-Ford Race Car at the 1965 Indianapolis 500
Photographic print
Scotsman Jimmy Clark piloted his Ford-powered Lotus Type 38 around Indianapolis Motor Speedway in 1965. Clark won that year's Indianapolis 500 with an average race speed of 150.686 miles per hour. He was the first driver to win Indy in a rear-engine car, and the first foreign driver to win since 1916.
Lotus Racer with Ford Engine at the Indianapolis 500 Race, 1965
Photographic print
Scotsman Jimmy Clark piloted his Ford-powered Lotus Type 38 around Indianapolis Motor Speedway in 1965. Clark won that year's Indianapolis 500 with an average race speed of 150.686 miles per hour. He was the first driver to win Indy in a rear-engine car, and the first foreign driver to win since 1916.
Lotus Racer with Ford Engine during Indianapolis 500 Race, 1965
Photographic print
Scotsman Jimmy Clark piloted his Ford-powered Lotus Type 38 around Indianapolis Motor Speedway in 1965. Clark won that year's Indianapolis 500 with an average race speed of 150.686 miles per hour. He was the first driver to win Indy in a rear-engine car, and the first foreign driver to win since 1916.
Lotus Racer with Ford Engine, Jim Clark at the Wheel, Indianapolis 500 Race, 1965
Photographic print
Jim Clark won the 1965 Indianapolis 500 in a Lotus chassis powered by a rear-mounted Ford V-8. It was the first Indy 500 win for a rear-engine car, and it revolutionized the race. No front-engine car has won the Indianapolis 500 since. Clark is seen here posing in his groundbreaking car at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
Lotus Racer with Pit Crew Loading Fuel at Indianapolis 500 Race, 1965
Photographic print
Jimmy Clark's Lotus-Ford is refueled during Clark's run to victory in the 1965 Indianapolis 500. To service Clark's car Ford Motor Company hired the Wood Brothers, the fastest, most efficient crew in NASCAR. Even though Clark's Lotus was number 82, the Woods wore the same uniforms they used when racing their number 21 Ford on the stock car tracks.
Bobby Johns in Lotus Ford Racer #83 with Pit Crew at the Indianapolis 500 Race, 1965
Photographic print
Team Lotus and Ford brought in NASCAR driver Bobby Johns to pilot the Ford-powered Lotus number 83 car in the 1965 Indianapolis 500, alongside Jimmy Clark's number 82 car. Johns finished seventh. He made seven attempts to qualify for Indy during his career, also succeeding in 1969 where he finished the race in tenth place.
Bobby Johns Driving Ford Powered Lotus Race Car Number 83, Indianapolis 500 Race, 1965
Photographic print
Team Lotus and Ford fielded two drivers in the 1965 Indianapolis 500, Jim Clark and Bobby Johns. Both men drove a monocoque Lotus Type 38 powered by a rear-mounted Ford V-8 engine. Clark's car wore number 82, while Johns's wore 83. Bobby Johns finished seventh and Jimmy Clark finished first, becoming the first Indy 500 winner in a rear-engine car.
Jim Clark Standing in Lotus Ford Racer after Winning the Indianapolis 500 Race, 1965
Photographic print
Jim Clark stood in the cockpit of his Lotus-Ford Type 38 immediately after winning the 1965 Indianapolis 500. The Borg-Warner Trophy, the race's official prize, stood behind him. Clark's victory was the first Indy win in a rear-engine car, and it represented a major technological shift in America's premier motor race.
Jim Clark Standing in Lotus Ford Racer after Winning the Indianapolis 500 Race, 1965
Photographic print
Jim Clark stood in the cockpit of his Lotus-Ford Type 38 immediately after winning the 1965 Indianapolis 500. The Borg-Warner Trophy, the race's official prize, stood behind him. Clark's victory was the first Indy win in a rear-engine car, and it represented a major technological shift in America's premier motor race.
Lotus-Ford #82 Driven by Jim Clark at the Indianapolis 500 Race, May 31, 1965
Slide (Photograph)
In this May 1965 photograph, racing legend Jimmy Clark pilots the Lotus-Ford race car to victory at one of racing's legendary tracks, the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. This innovative car's lightweight chassis, four-wheel independent suspension, and rear-mounted Ford V-8 engine -- combined with the driving skills of Jimmy Clark -- helped redefine Indy racing in the 1960s.
Jim Clark in the Lotus-Ford #82 after the Indianapolis 500 Race, June 1, 1965
Slide (Photograph)
Driver Jim Clark gave a thumbs-up signal from the cockpit of his Lotus-Ford Type 38 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway in 1965. Clark won that year's Indianapolis 500 in his Formula One style car -- the first rear-engine car to win at Indy. The British-built racer was powered by a 495-horsepower Ford V-8 engine.
Wood Brothers Racing Team Working on Lotus 38 Racecar during Pit Stop, Indianapolis 500, Indianapolis, Indiana, May 31, 1965
Slide (Photograph)
Tires are changed on Bobby Johns's Lotus-Ford during the 1965 Indianapolis 500. Ford Motor Company hired the Wood Brothers, the fastest, most efficient crew in NASCAR, to service its cars. Even though Johns's Lotus was number 83, the Woods wore the same uniforms they used when racing their number 21 Ford on stock car tracks. Johns finished in seventh place.
Dan Gurney, Colin Chapman and Jim Clark at the Lotus Ford Indy Test, February, 1963
Photographic print
Drivers Dan Gurney (left) and Jim Clark (right) combined forces with designer Colin Chapman (center) to revolutionize the Indianapolis 500. Front-engine roadsters still dominated the race in the early 1960s, but Gurney believed a rear-engine Formula One style car could win. Gurney brought Chapman together with Ford, and Clark won the 1965 Indy 500 in a Ford-powered, Chapman-designed rear-engine car.
Dan Gurney, Colin Chapman and Jim Clark Looking at Engine at the Lotus Ford Test, February, 1963
Photographic print
In February 1963, drivers Jim Clark and Dan Gurney, and Lotus designer Colin Chapman, gathered with Ford engineers to test their theory that a rear-engine, Formula One style car could compete against the front-engine roadsters that dominated the Indianapolis 500. Clark proved the theory correct in 1965, winning at Indy in a Lotus powered by a rear-mounted Ford V-8 engine.
Dan Gurney and Jim Clark, Dual Overhead Cam Indy Test, November 1963
Photographic print
Even though front-engine cars dominated the Indianapolis 500, Dan Gurney (center) believed that a rear-engine Formula One style car could win. In 1962 he brought the United Kingdom's Team Lotus together with Ford Motor Company. Jim Clark (right) proved Gurney's theory correct in 1965, winning the Indy 500 in a Ford-powered, rear-engine Lotus Type 38.
Benson Ford, Jim Clark, and Lee Iacocca with Ford Dual Overhead Cam Engine at Indianapolis 500 Race, 1964
Photographic print
Ford executives Benson Ford (left) and Lee Iacocca (right) stood with driver Jim Clark in front of the company's Indianapolis 500 racing engine. Starting with Ford's production Fairlane V-8, engineers substituted lighter materials, increased compression, and replaced the pushrod valvetrain with double overhead camshafts. Horsepower was tripled, and Clark won Indy with the engine in 1965.
Jim Clark after Winning the 1965 Indianapolis 500 Race
Photographic print
This photograph shows the victorious Jim Clark after his 1965 Indianapolis 500 win. Clark drove the innovative British Lotus. The car's builder, Colin Chapman (in sunglasses), beams next to the driver.
Coveralls Worn by Team Lotus Mechanic Graham Clode, 1965
Coveralls
Scotsman Jim Clark won the 1965 Indianapolis 500 with a rear-mounted Ford V-8 engine, but his car and his crew belonged to the United Kingdom's Team Lotus. Mechanic Graham Clode brought two sets of coveralls to the race -- one to get dirty and one to keep clean for the much-wanted victory photo. This is Clode's clean set.
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