I wish you the best of luck with this project. Whilst the principle of the chassis design of both the 19 and the 23 do have similarities, i would not advise you to consider them in any useful way to be the same. My advise would be to find the Costin and Phipps book and to then remember that the 19 was in principle a wide bodied 18 F1. Why not take measurements from an 18 or a 19. In the UK I have a contact to whom I sold my 19 (952 The Rosebud car) They carried out a superb restoration and the car is now owned by Otto Reedz Thott. A really beautiful new body was made for the car and they would certainly be able to make a body from their molds. For a road car and yes I too had the same thoughts, i would suggest that you may need to create a chassis that may not have too much in common with a racecar chassis. Overall weight is not of such critical importance and you are not going to fit too powerful an engine are you!? You almost need a frame that will carry the body whereas on the racecar an opposite is almost correct.
Remember that the 19 has only about one to two inches of ground clearance on the rear uprights ..... if you puncture a rear tyre the lower suspension points will be instantly dragging on the ground. On reflection the original rear suspension arrangement may not be the way to go on a road car.
I very much regret selling the 19, it had taken me years to find one and then to buy one but in 1978 when I bought the car it really was impossible to find good bits for Climax engines whereas today all these bits are one phonecall away followed by a massive cheque.
Good luck with the project.
Charles Smith-Maxwell, Selkirk. Scotland.
john terrell
22-Sep-2011 23:52
Be careful on the 23 frame as the cars were designed for significantly different displacements/horsepower. Workmanship and techniques might be similar but engineering loads significantly different
john terrell
22-Sep-2011 23:43
Good luck! My Dad raced #960 my favorite of many Lotus he raced. Will try to follow you, where are you located
Ray Proulx
19-Sep-2011 23:26
How is your project going, and where did you find the body; have you found any original or other drawings?
Patrick
11-Feb-2011 01:20
Hi Joseph
That will make a very pretty car.
Have you had any luck finding 19 drawings?
I am searching for 23 drawings, which I believe are similar.