There is no doubt that the lotus elan stirs some special emotions in many people, but none more so than in the driver, in fact, there are very few sports cars that evoke emotion and pure driving pleasure quite like the lotus elan does.
Where ever an elan is parked in the street, or at a coffee shop, they have the habit of drawing attention like a magnet, even from complete strangers. And if you are driving out on the road, don’t be to surprised if you get an admiring wave from other drivers… both male and female.
And it does not matter whether it is a very quick road going early S2 elan.
Or the later model and more refined S3 and S4 elan, any elan will evoke a mile wide grin for the driver, and it’s not altogether unusual to hear exclamations like “I’ve gotta have one” offered from passers by.
Can you imagine that kind of exchange happening in 30 -40 years time with some electric powered thingy.
I’m not sure if it’s the ageless classic shape of the elan, or the fact that they are so rare and different to what is on the roads today, but there is one solid motoring fact…. We will never ever see the likes of a car like the lotus elan again.
Having being designed and built in the golden age of motoring, (1960s) the elan has become a highly sought after sports car, and market prices for well maintained or restored examples bear testimony to that.
Of course, all of this is nothing knew to the enthusiast elan owner, we all know only to well how fantastic these awesome little sports cars are. To the great unwashed motoring public they are an undiscovered motoring jewel.
The motoring magazine journalists in particular must have been constantly searching for the ultimate superlative to describe the elan, well, we found a few and have printed them below for your enjoyment and entertainment.
- It fits like a Sprite, goes like a Corvette, and handles like a single seater. Car & Driver USA.
- Drive it and you get noises in the ears, visions of splendour, staring eyes fitted with stars and an urge to rush out and rob a bank. Gentlemen that is the lotus Elan. Wheels Magazine.
- It is a car that keeps young men and makes old men younger and is one of the few cars that can average 69mph without exceeding 70MPH . . . sell the television set, the washing machine, the wife’s car, give up smoking, give up drinking, but scrimp and save and buy a lotus Elan, you won’t be disappointed. Motorsport.
- The lotus Elan has been a good investment as they have increased in value well ahead of inflation. The Lotus elan is one of the most sensitive and exhilarating cars we have ever driven. Wheels.
- A really small and light weight two seater sports car that can be flung into corners in complete safety and it accelerates like the wind. Such a car is the lotus Elan Sprint.
Below we have an extra bonus of excerpts from an Autostorica lotus elan rally article from Thoroughbred & Classic cars: May 1989.
Article: Paul Howcroft – Autostorica- Lotus Elan.
Article Excerpts:
As things stand, to do well in the European Historic Rally scene you need an elan, or on a mixed discipline event such as the Coppa d’Italia, a heavily modded E type. He continues, besides, I’m not the worlds greatest driver and I need the best car I can get to give me a chance.“Very few truly exotic cars now run in the European events for two reasons, “A”. Simply because some are far to valuable, and B, most are uncompetitive against the likes of the elan.
The elan was designated the 26 and while the standard elan was an outstanding performer, the 26R racing version was the real winner with its lighter weight, bigger tyres, stiffer chassis and high output engine. It is the homologated specification of the 26R that all of today’s front running rallying/racing elans are based.
Click To Enlarge Image.
There seems little doubt that the elan could have been made into a highly successful rally car, but Lotus never had the resources or inclination to do it; besides which Colin Chapman was exclusively racing oriented, no one else was brave enough to attempt it.
Technology and engineering materials have come along way in the last few decades, and the bottom line is that today’s elan 1600cc twin- cam engines produce more power than they ever did in their heyday.
A steel crankshaft, steel con rods, and light modern pistons allow an 8000+ rev limit which coupled with modern camshaft profiles and state of the art cylinder head gas flowing, can produce outputs of more than 180HP; significantly more than the likes of John Miles enjoyed in his works elan all those years ago.
Paul Howcroft’s lotus elan engine produces around 175BHP; less than most of the Italian 26R lookalikes that dominate the European Historic racing scene, but more than enough to leave most other cars of the period for dead.
Start Up Procedure:
Master switch on, primary fuel pump on and a couple of dabs on the throttle are sufficient to prepare the engine for activity. From cold the twin cam starts readily and soon idles, sounding a little like a caged lion. Without ear protection, the noise bouncing round the unsound proofed cockpit is deafening, even with the motor just idling. Blip the throttle and our eyeballs start dancing.Commitment is needed to get the elan moving cleanly as the clutch bites sharply and it’s all too easy to let the revs die. Keeping the revs down until the gauges come up is difficult as it’s clear early on that there is plenty of power on tap.
What is also clear is that the engine has been put together superbly. It pulls cleanly and strongly right through to 8000rpm. Lack of peakiness is exactly what is needed for a rally car where instant response is of the essence and speed out of the corners makes all the difference to stage times.
The gear change has a lovely positive feel to it and you can slice the lever through the ‘box with barely any loss of momentum.
On many smooth predictable roads the Elan would be unbeatable, but on stages being driven blind where it’s difficult to be precise on entry line and apex, a car that can be drifted or thrown sideways more easily may well be quicker… in the right hands.
Under hard acceleration the same tenacious grip was evident, while under braking I constantly had to reassess my braking points. Even on the loose I found time after time that I was hitting the middle pedal far too early
On the sections where I was able to give the Elan its head, its speed was simply electrifying with the revs peaking in each gear. I savoured that wonderful sensation of a well-sorted car responding instantly to each slight movement of the steering wheel. I winced as we hit bumps and potholes or flew across depressions in the runway. “Keep going, it’s built to take it,” said Paul Howcroft through the intercom: brave man, being driven in his own car for the first time!
To say that I enjoyed driving the Elan is an understatement. It is clearly a car of the highest calibre and the utmost potential. There is no secret to the Elan’s success in Historic events; as the rules stand it is simply the best car for the job. Paul Howcroft may yet have only tapped part of his Elan’s potential, but he is gaining, experience with the car all the time.
Article Source.
Thoroughbred and Classic Cars- May 1989 – Writer – Jeremy Coulter.
It is sad to note that Paul Howcroft died in a motorcycle accident in the early 1990s.
