Lola Cars brand and technical assets put up for sale
British sportscar constructor and former Formula 1 entrant Lola has been put up for sale in a move that could result in the storied brand's return to modern motorsport.

Lola's Technology Centre and windtunnel facility has been open to offers since 2018 but now the brand itself, trademarks and technical archive are also available.
Lola designed and produced nearly 5000 cars between 1958 and 2012, scoring success in many branches of motorsport including endurance racing, Indycar, Formula 5000 and junior single-seaters.
John Surtees took a pole position and two second places in F1 with Lola machinery in 1962, and the marque also provided cars for single-make categories, such as A1GP and post-1995 Formula 3000, as well as touring cars with MG.
Founder Eric Broadley ran Lola until 1997, when businessman and former racer Martin Birrane bought it and invested in new facilities.
The factory closed its doors on race car production in 2012, but the Lola name has since continued to be part of modern motorsport through the ongoing services of the Lola Technical Centre, which has continued to provide windtunnel testing and associated services to a small number of race teams as well as road-vehicle manufacturers.
Read Also:
A Lola statement said: "Martin Birrane cherished 'everything Lola' and his family's goal is now to find a buyer with the necessary ambition, tenacity and drive to write the next chapter in Lola's illustrious 62-year history.
"The preference is to sell everything in one single package, but consideration will be given to separate sales of the windtunnel and the Lola assets. The guide-price is £7million pounds sterling.
"It is anticipated that this opportunity will be of interest to someone looking to restore the Lola brand's position in modern motorsport, providing third-party engineering services, supplying genuine Lola spares to support the thousands of Lola cars that still race today, manufacturing continuation cars such as the iconic Lola Mk1 and T70, and producing Lola race cars and roadgoing supercars."
As well as the 10,500 sq. ft. Lola Technical Centre and windtunnel, the sale includes the Lola Brand, its registered trademarks, an extensive technical drawing library and various items of tooling, equipment, windtunnel spares and a seven-post chassis development rig.
Also included is the specialist tooling Lola recommissioned in order to manufacture a small batch of T70 Mk3B continuation cars for historic racing.

Vincenzo Sospiri, Lola T97/30 Ford
Photo by: Sutton Images
Related video

Previous article
Motorsport Images assists Ferrari with 1000th GP celebration book
Next article
2020 Autosport Awards: All the winners, voted for by readers

About this article
Series | General |
Teams | Lola Cars |
Author | Kevin Turner |
Lola Cars brand and technical assets put up for sale
Trending
French Motorsport: the Stuff of Legend
Racing Files Season 2 Trailer
How to Launch a D2C Platform
ROC: Snow & Ice
The real-life racing rogues stranger than fiction
The forthcoming Netflix film linking the world of underworld crime and motorsport plays on a theme that isn't exactly new. Over the years, several shady figures have attempted to make it in racing before their dubious dealings caught up with them.
The cherished curios kept by motorsport's professionals at home
Keeping trophies and momentos of key triumphs is par for the course for motorsport professionals, but what are the most cherished souvenirs picked up by the drivers and engineers who have seen and done it all?
Why motorsport should consider a mid-week future
International motorsport has been the preserve of weekends, but the pandemic forced Formula E to get creative with its Berlin season finale as four races were held mid-week. Should FE and other series break with tradition and repeat the experiment?
How pragmatic principles made Ron Tauranac a design legend
Jack Brabham's 1966 world championship campaign in his eponymous car was also a defining moment in the career of designer Ron Tauranac, who would apply the same ethos to his ultra-successful production racing car business, Ralt.
The ingrained failure motorsport must fix to avoid 'turf wars'
OPINION: The FIA has warned that the major motorsport championships must not get engaged in 'turf wars' when it comes to the urgent need to re-organising the 2020 calendars, but there are tedious past problems that must be addressed to satisfy all.
The tech changes that could seal a Nordschleife record
Volkswagen's I.D. R smashed the Pikes Peak record and now its attention has been turned to Nurburgring Nordschleife. The ultimate benchmark there may appear far out of reach, but technical changes to the car have made a new electric record possible
The story of motorsport's single biggest safety advance
Today, the HANS device is commonplace in motorsport, but it wasn't initially greeted with open arms. This is the story of a major safety breakthrough and the man whose invention has saved countless lives.
Motorsport's greatest imposters
There are many tightly enforced rules in motorsport – some complex, some simple, but there have been a few extraordinary instances of teams and drivers bending the rules and getting away with it