Some cars leave a paper trail; the Lola T160 left a name, a year — 1968 — and a place in Lola Cars's list. What follows is what can be said with a source behind it. The shape is credited to Eric Broadley. 12 were built.
The story
The Lola T160, and its evolution, the Lola T165, is a series of purpose-built Group 7 sports prototype race cars, designed and developed by British chassis manufacturer Lola Cars, specifically to compete in the Can-Am series in 1968. The T160 was the successor to the competitive T70, sharing similar design and roots. Lola built the chassis, constructed out of fiberglass, and molded it into an aluminum monocoque body.
This meant the car was lightweight, weighing only 670 kg (1,480 lb). The chassis was designed to accept a small-block engine, but most cars were powered by either the Chevrolet ZL1 or the Ford FE "big-blocks", generating about 625–750 hp (466–559 kW); mated to a 4-speed or 5-speed Hewland L.G.500 or L.G.600 manual transmission. This made the cars very fast, with a notably excellent power-to-weight ratio. It was used in active competition until 1971, and was succeeded and used alongside the new T220 in 1970.
What is underneath
the output is 560-900 hp. On the scales it comes to 1477-1950 lb. That is roughly 379 horsepower per tonne: genuine supercar pace. The wheelbase is 94-95 in. These are manufacturer figures carried by Wikipedia and Wikidata, not road-test measurements.
Its place in the line
In the Lola Cars line-up the Lola T160 has a clear place: it replaced the Lola T70; it handed the line to the Lola T220. The cars a buyer would have weighed it against include the Mercedes-Benz C111. Nearby in the Lola Cars catalogue sit the Hill GH1 and the Lola B02/50.
Owning one today
MotorJury scores cars on the United States complaint and recall record, and the Lola T160 has none: too old, too rare, or never sold there. Its value today is a collector's question, decided by provenance and condition rather than by a class average.