Lotus and Club History

The Lotus marque was founded in London in 1952 by British engineer Colin Chapman. The four letters in the Lotus logo, ACBC, stand for Chapman’s initials, Anthony Colin Bruce Chapman

Lotus early success in motorsport reached all the way to San Diego just 3 short years later. In the Torrey Pines 1-Hour Road Race of 1955 two Lotus cars, a Mk VI and a Mk IX, raced in the Under 1500cc Sports Car G Modified class. The 1098cc Lotus Mk IX driven by George Buchanan won it’s class. 

Lotus success at Torrey Pines continued the following year. In 1956 three Lotus cars raced here, two Mk VIs and one Mk IX. This time the 1098cc Mk VI of Ed Freutel took the G Modified class win.

In addition to Lotus early racing success in San Diego, the Golden Gate Lotus Club held it’s West Coast Lotus Meet in San Diego in 1991.  

The San Diego Lotus Club is officially launched on June 1, 2018 as a chapter of the Golden Gate Lotus Club.