Eric Broadley designed and prototyped his Sports racing car in 1958 before founding a company to manufacture it. The new car was only the second he'd ever built. In designing it, Broadley focused on challenging Lotus Engineering in the small bore sports racing classes they had dominated for two years with their Eleven and Eleven Series Two models. Small displacement sports racing classes had become very popular, largely due to the Lotus Eleven's merits. Lotus Engineering's success demonstrated that these classes presented a ready and profitable market, and a good stepping stone toward more prestigious classes - not just for racers, but also for constructors. Like the Lotus Eleven, the Lola Sports was designed around the Coventry Climax FWA engine. Eric Broadley believed he could beat Lotus at their own game by creating a sports racer with smaller frontal area, superior rear suspension, and lower overall weight. We don't have accurate measurements with which to quantify and compare crossection or coefficient of drag, although the Lola appears smaller in profile. The Lola Sports does have a particularly effective independent rear suspension, which is at very least equal to the Lotus Eleven DeDion suspension (and it certainly has less unsprung weight). Depending on customer specification, the car typically weighed 810 to 840 pounds, which is about a hundred pounds less than a comparably specified Lotus Eleven. Lotus engineer Michael Costin included a glowing detailed analysis of the Lola Sports in his book Racing & Sports Car Chassis Design and particularly praised its frame: "with a stiff, well-designed chassis, it could well go down to posterity as one of the classic cars of the post-war era." Broadley soon proved out his ideas on the racetrack, finishing second at Snetterton in the prototype's second race. He followed up immediately by winning at Brands Hatch with a 24 second margin of victory.
