The Lotus E20 was the car designed by Lotus F1 for the 2012 Formula One season. It was driven by Kimi Räikkönen and Romain Grosjean, with Jérôme d'Ambrosio replacing Grosjean at the Italian Grand Prix. The car was powered by Renault. The car is the first to be designed by the Lotus F1 team since their renaming from Renault. The name "E20" comes from the fact the car is the twentieth car to be designed at Enstone.
The E20 led the team to 4th in the World Constructors' Championship, and helped Kimi Räikkönen to the first win of his comeback year, at the 2012 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.
In June 2017, Robert Kubica tested the E20 at the Circuit Ricardo Tormo, testing a Formula One car after six years.[1]
Design Team[]
| Role | Person |
|---|---|
| Chairman | Gerard Lopez |
| Team principal Managing director |
Eric Boullier |
| Technical director | James Allison |
| Deputy technical director | Naoki Tokunaga |
| Chief designer | Tim Densham |
| Head of aerodynamics | Dirk de Beer |
| Operations director | John Mardle |
| Track operations director | Alan Permane |
| Team manager | Paul Seaby |
| Race engineers | Simon Rennie Mark Slade |
Source:[2]
Technical Specifications[]
Lotus E20 Chassis[]
| Component | Specification |
|---|---|
| Chassis | Moulded carbon-fibre and aluminium honeycomb composite monocoque, manufactured by Lotus F1 Team and designed for maximum strength with minimum weight. RS27-2012 V8 engine installed as a fully-stressed member. |
| Front suspension | Carbon-fibre top and bottom wishbones operate an inboard rocker via a pushrod system. This is connected to a torsion bar and damper units which are mounted inside the front of the monocoque. Aluminium uprights and OZ machined magnesium wheels. |
| Rear suspension | Carbon-fibre top and bottom wishbones with pull rod operated torsion springs and transverse-mounted damper units mounted in the top of the gearbox casing. Aluminium uprights and OZ machined magnesium wheels. |
| Transmission | Seven-speed semi-automatic titanium gearbox with reverse gear. "Quickshift" system in operation to maximise speed of gearshifts. |
| Fuel system | Kevlar-reinforced rubber fuel cell by ATL. |
| Cooling system | Separate oil and water radiators located in the car's sidepods and cooled using airflow from the car's forward motion. |
| Electrical | MES-Microsoft Standard Electronic Control Unit. |
| Braking System | Carbon discs and pads. Calipers by AP Racing. Master cylinders by AP racing and Brembo. |
| Cockpit | Removable driver's seat made of anatomically formed carbon composite, with six-point or eight-point harness seat belt by OMP Racing. Steering wheel integrates gear change, clutch paddles, and rear wing adjuster. |
| KERS | Motor generator unit driving into front of engine with batteries as an energy store. Motor Generator supplied by Renault Sport F1. Electronic control unit by Magneti-Marelli. |
| Front track | 1450 mm |
| Rear track | 1400 mm |
| Overall length | 5038 mm |
| Overall height | 950 mm |
| Overall width | 1800 mm |
| Overall weight | 640 kg (including driver, camera and ballast) |
Source: [3]
Renault RS27-2012 Engine[]
| Component | Specification |
|---|---|
| Engine configuration | 2.4 litre V8 |
| No. of cylinders | 8 |
| No. of valves | 32 |
| Displacement | 2400 cc |
| Weight | 95 kg |
| V-angle | 90° |
| RPM | 18,000 |
| Fuel | Total |
| Oil | Total |
| Power Output | 750 bhp |
| Spark Plugs | Semi surface discharge |
| Ignition system | High energy inductive |
| Pistons | Aluminium alloy |
| Engine block | Aluminium alloy |
| Crankshaft | Nitrided alloy steel with tungsten alloy counterweights |
| Connecting rods | Titantium alloy |
| Throttle system | 8 butterflies |
Source: [4]
Season review[]
- Main article: 2012 Lotus Season
Results[]
2012[]
* Did not finish, but was classified as he had completed over 90% of the race-winner's distance.
Results[]
| Complete Formula One Results | ||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Driver | Tyre | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 |
| 2012 | 
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 Räikkönen |
P | 7th | 5th | 14th | 2nd | 3rd | 9th | 8th | 2nd | 5th | 3rd | 2nd | 3rd | 5th | 6th | 6th | 5th | 7th | 1st | 6th | 10th | |
 Grosjean |
Ret | Ret | 6th | 3rd | 4th | Ret | 2nd | Ret | 6th | 18th | 3rd | Ret | EXC | 7th | 19th† | 7th | 9th | Ret | 7th | Ret | ||
 d'Ambrosio |
13th | |||||||||||||||||||||
Notes[]
- ↑ Chinchero, Roberto (5 June 2017). "Robert Kubica set for first F1 test since accident in 2012 Lotus". http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/129946. Retrieved 8 June 2017.
- ↑ Jones, Bruce (2012). The Official BBC SPORT Guide Formula One 2012, P. 27. Carlton. ISBN 978-1-78097-031-8.
- ↑ "Chassis E20". Lotus F1 Team. http://www.lotusf1team.com/-Chassis-E20-.html?lang=en. Retrieved 2 August 2012.
- ↑ "RS27 - 2012 Engine". Lotus F1 Team. http://www.lotusf1team.com/-RS27-Engine-.html?lang=en. Retrieved 2 August 2012.
| V T E |  Lotus F1
|
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|---|---|---|---|
Notable Drivers Kimi Räikkönen · Romain Grosjean ·  Pastor Maldonado · Jérôme d'Ambrosio · Heikki Kovalainen
| |||
| Personnel Éric Boullier · Nick Chester | |||
| Cars E20 · E21 · E22 · E23 Hybrid | |||
| See also Renault | |||
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