1962 Lotus Type 22 Monoposto

Lotus Components, the customer race car arm of Lotus Cars, provided small formula race cars to distributors, racing schools and directly to race teams and drivers. One such customer was Jim Russell Racing Driver School, located at Snetterton Race circuit in Norfolk England. During the period of 1960 to 1963, the cars furnished were Formula Juniors, usually fitted with 1000cc or 1100cc Cosworth or Holbay Ford motors. Lotus 20 J 962 became part of the Jim Russell fleet in early 1962. It was upgraded with disc brakes and better rear suspension off a Lotus 22 by the school in 1964. These upgraded modifications were quite common and the cars became known as 20/22s.

In 1966, John Frankenheimer of MGM studios proposed making the movie 'Grand Prix,' about characters involved in Formula 1 racing. This movie became one of the best-known racing movies of all time. In order to have cars on the various tracks holding Formula 1 races that year, he convinced Jim Russell to sell MGM all the school's cars and modify them to look more like Formula 1 cars they were supposed to be. Special fiberglass bodies were made with extra vents and large rear engine covers with fake intake trumpets, looking like the car was fitted with a V8 and fake exhaust pipes exiting high at the rear. They were also fitted with wider wheels with special wheel covers to make each 'marque' appear different. But underneath each faux F1 car was the heart of a Lotus Formula Junior. 20 J 962 became one of the Yamura team cars, driven by James Garner.

After the movie was completed, the cars were sold off. Some came back to the United States and were probably used as props in the theater lobbies during first-night showings. Later these cars too were sold and 20 J 962 was bought with three other movie cars by a couple in Florida. At the time, it still had its Yamura body and wide wheels. It was raced in SCCA competition for a short while until it was involved in a roll-over accident. The car was repaired as well as it could be but the Yamura body was destroyed in the accident. The car remained for many years in the Pensacola, Florida / Mobile, Alabama area, but was never fully put back together. In the late 1980s, 20 J 962 had been bought by a Lotus collector in Minnesota who disassembled it to begin a restoration but sold it once again before any work was done. Finally, it was bought in 1992 by the current owner and over several years restored back to its original form as a Lotus 20/22. Even the fiberglass body is an original Lotus body found in Texas and repaired.