The Ralt RT1 is a race car chassis produced by Ralt, and was the first modern car produced by the company. It saw widespread use in a number of different motorsports categories, mostly open-wheel racing, but later including sports car racing.

Motor Racing Developments (MRD)/Ralt racing record 1975-1993 RT1. A single aluminium alloy monocoque with rear tubular sub-frame served for all three categories in which the RT1 ran.

But this new Ralt RT1 (RT standing for Ron Tauranac) started with a blank sheet of paper, whereas each of his previous models had been an evolution of the last. A batch of ten cars would be produced in 1975, and the Ralt marque’s racing debut came at Thruxton on March 31 st with Larry Perkins driving for team Cowangie.

In 1978 the Ralt RT1 Toyota dominated the scene in the UK winning the BP Championship with Nelson Piquet and the Vandervell Championship with Derek Warwick. Jan Lammers won the European Championship, Anders Olofsson won the Swedish Championship again and Bertram Schäfer conquered the German one.

The first F3 Ralt, the RT1, consisted of a 16-gauge L72 aluminium monocoque with a steel subframe behind the cockpit. This consisted of two tetrahedron frames that ran to the bottom of a square frame that attached to the Hewland gearbox, a pair of tubular brackets secured the engine to the back of the tub.

In 1978 Ralt drivers won the two British Formula 3 championships as well as the German, Swedish and the European crown in that category. One of the British Formula 3 Champions was Nelson Piquet in Ralt RT1. More championships went to Ralt in 1979 and 1980 in Formula 3, Formula Atlantic and Super Vee.

Of the ten Ralt RT1s built for 1975, three were built for Formula Atlantic. They went to John Macdonald in Hong Kong, Pat Walter in California, and Team Gunston for Roy Klomfass in South Africa. The Ralt RT1 was conventional for its time in having a monocoque chassis reaching to just behind the driver, and a steel subframe supporting the engine.

The first F3 Ralt, the RT1, consisted of a 16-gauge L72 aluminium monocoque with a steel subframe behind the cockpit. This consisted of two tetrahedron frames that ran to the bottom of a square frame that attached to the Hewland gearbox, a pair of tubular brackets secured the engine to the back of the tub.

Mike Catlow (Dulwich, London/Charing, Kent) drove a Ralt RT1 in British Formula Atlantic from 1980 to 1983. The car was later acquired by Jackie Harris for hillclimbs in Ireland, at first with a 1600cc BDA engine in 1986 and later with a 2-litre BDG from 1987 to 1990. It then went to Andy Kittle, who ran it in hillclimbs around 1993.

The first product released by the new English factory is the Ralt RT1, a simple and versatile single-seater used in Formula 2, Formula 3 and Formula racing Atlantic between 1975 and 1978. The RT1 chassis is an L72 sheet aluminum monocoque 16 gauge with a steel subframe behind the cockpit to support the engine and Hewland FT200 gearbox.