Team story
Origins
Refrigerator manufacturer Lec financed the single-seater David Purley wanted to take into Formula 1 in 1977. His father Charles backed the project and Mike Pilbeam designed the CRP1. Purley had already raced a March in 1973 and then progressed through Formula 2 and Formula 5000: the new car allowed him to return to Grands Prix with a machine built for him.
The Formula 1 journey
The CRP1 made its non-championship debut at the Race of Champions, where Purley was sixth. He failed to qualify at Jarama; at Zolder he made the start and briefly led as the race conditions changed, before being classified thirteenth. Fourteenth place in Sweden and a retirement in France followed.
Its five World Championship entries produced three starts, not a complete season.
Historical timeline
Three chapters in the story of LEC
Three episodes to revisit the people, cars and races that shaped this journey.
First appearance · Belgian Grand Prix
David Purley · Belgian Grand Prix 1977. The recorded position is P13; this number alone does not show whether the driver completed the race distance. This is the first recorded race start, or the first entry if the team never started a race.
Sporting landmark · Belgian Grand Prix
David Purley · Belgian Grand Prix 1977. The recorded position is P13; this number alone does not show whether the driver completed the race distance. This marks the first win or podium where one exists, otherwise the highest recorded placing for this constructor.
Latest recorded appearance · French Grand Prix
David Purley · French Grand Prix 1977. The recorded outcome is DNF. This is the last race start attributed to this constructor in the archive, not necessarily the end of the organisation behind it.
A distinctive way of racing
Pilbeam used an aluminium monocoque, the Cosworth DFV and a Hewland gearbox. The front suspension operated inboard springs and dampers through pull-rods; the bodywork was also shaped using machinery for refrigerator doors. The relationship with Lec was therefore both financial and material: an industrial business outside the automotive world provided resources for a small construction programme.
What remains
During practice at Silverstone, a stuck throttle caused a violent head-on impact. Purley survived with serious fractures, and the World Championship programme ended. A second CRP1 enabled him to return in minor events in 1979.
The wreck of the first car and the later machine were displayed at Donington: two different objects linked to the end of the project and the driver’s return to competition.