IWR Elans

[vstibbard]

As the BRM's converted Elans have a thread, thought it worth putting one up for the IWR converted road cars. I'd be interested in seeing if any are owned by member and details of the various specifications.

Cheers

Vaughan

[Elanintheforest]

Good call Vaughan. Here are a few pictures to get the ball rolling.

The blue road car was for sale in Switzerland for a while, then bought by Paul Matty, registered in the UK, and sold to a guy near Worcester. It was displayed at Donnington last year, and looks a lot better in the flesh that it does in these photos. Paul currently has it for sale again.

The green car was built for LeMans, but never made it due to an incident whilst the car was being set up! Paul also had this and campaigned it at Shelsley and Prescott for a while, but not sure if he still has it.

Now we just need the specifications!

Mark

[elansprint71]

PM sold the green one a few years ago and it reverted to Gold Bug specification, see here:


The blue one seems to be on sale again at PM, 75k, if Sir was asking!
http://www.paulmattysportscars.co.uk/Showroom.aspx

The IWR rally Elan was on sale in 2009, see the first post in this thread:
http://www.lotuselan.net/forums/elan-racing-f12/rally-elans-t24471.html

Interesting chassis number on that one; it has cropped up more than once here.

I'll have to trawl my resources to see what else I have, although since the original road-tests of the IWR road-going conversions, I really can't recall too much having been written; how many did they sell? Maybe they are the next big thing? I'll check that shed at the bottom of the garden.

[vstibbard]

I agree little written about the road conversions that they marketed. I'll scan and pop the road test up, one of my previous elan had 10.7 comp and set of L1's with 3.55 and close ratio box, it was an absolute rocket, often wondered if the owners had simply copied the IWR spec of the time which in stage III was very similar.

Cheers V

[ardee_selby]

Autosport 4/2/66 included:

"2 Ian Walker Racing modified cars tested - a leaf sprung Lotus Cortina and 135BHP Lotus Elan"

Has the article been put on here yet?

(http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/360308591460? ... 1423.l2649)

Richard

[elansprint71]

Anyone know roughly how many of the "production" IWR Elans were constructed?
Any information an any still in existence?

[bigvalvehead]

Some IWR pics for everyone.

Dave

[Matt Elan]

I'm just doing some research into the IWR Elans for my book - I'll post up what I find in the next couple of days....

[Matt Elan]

Info on IWR Elans gleaned to date:

IWR was involved in racing Elans from the start of production of the model, and was supplied with a fastback bodied Elan 26R directly from the factory to race in the 1964 Le Mans 24 Hours race. The chassis was pure 26R and was fitted with all the optional extras, including solid drive shafts, limited slip differential, strengthened chassis, adjustable suspension front and rear and tuned 140 bhp twin cam. The all aluminium body, including the doors and bonnet, was manufactured by Williams and Pritchard Ltd, and a notable and very 1960s recognition mark was the use of round Ford Cortina ?ban the bomb? rear lights. The car?s fastback body was mad in aluminium and was produced by Williams and Pritchard, but before it could be raced it was overturned and damaged by IWR driver Mike Spence at the Nurburgring while practicing for the ADAC (Allgemeiner Deutscher Automobil-Club ? the German automobile club which is the governing body for motorsport in Germany) 1,000 km race. The car could not be repaired in time for Le Mans, and was sold by IWR during 1965, when it was registered as FRX 176C and campaigned by David Goode until 1968. After another couple of owners the car was run on the road between 1971 and 1973, and it then rested until it was sold to Paul Matty during 1980. Paul Matty restored the car and ran it in hill climbs during the 2000s, when it was sold on. At the time of writing (September 2012) the car is currently owned and raced by Martin Stretton in the UK.
This car spawned a second fastback special which was produced in 1965 by IWR for an enthusiast based in Switzerland. Again it was based on the Elan backbone chassis and had an all aluminium body produced by Williams and Prichard Ltd, and had a luxury interior fitted out by Harold Radford Ltd. The body was again a fastback design, with S2 type rear lights and a separate boot. The door openings were the same as the S1/S2 Elan with the sharp angle at front top of the door, and were presumably glass fibre items. The front treatment with its two pairs of headlamps looked like a cross between a Triumph Vitesse and a Gordon Keeble, and was possibly not the designs? most successful aspect. Despite being made for a Swiss customer the car was right hand drive. The engine was a 140 bhp twin cam, tuned by IWR, and a limited slip diff was fitted, along with a dual circuit braking system; both 26R fitments at the time. Around the time the IWR coupes were being built, the Italian coachbuilder Frua was commissioned to build a special bodied Elan for the 1964 Geneva Motor show by the Swiss Lotus importer. This car looked like a scaled down Maserati Mistrale and has been confused with the IWR fastback.

[trw99]

Matt

You've clearly read my piece in the last edition of Club Lotus News!

Tim

PS Edit to add my post in this thread from last week elan-photos-f18/ian-walker-alloy-body-26r-t26016.html

[elansprint71]

Matt

You've clearly read my piece in the last edition of Club Lotus News!

Tim

[Matt Elan]

Hi Tim

Club Lotus News - I've not had a copy since the April 2012 edition......

All the info in my previous post was culled from the Internet and various articles produced at the time - hopefuly it s accurate though!

Matt

[elj221c]

All the info in my previous post was culled from the Internet and various articles produced at the time - hopefuly it s accurate though!

Never trust anything you read from anywhere!

This has the feel of a potential Sh***c***t type thread...........

It might be a good idea to have your book proof read before publishing too.

[elansprint71]

Well spotted, Roy. The alumni of the Ron Hickman School for Copyright Owners are already sharpening their pencils.

Matt, can you tell us from what direction you will be tackling your Elan book? Will it be specialist? Will it tell us anything which has not already been written?

My copy of the Ian Walker 's Racing Cars book is due any day now- can't wait.

[Matt Elan]

Well chaps its not my first book; my previous six must have been popular otherwise my publishers would not have comissioned me. I'm always very careful with copyright and I don't plagerise. I never trust a single source and have been asking some of your good selves questions about the Elans. I aim my books to be above all good reads - it won't be a dry list of individual changes on a week by week basis but it will give a feel for the design and development of the models, and give owners impressions both current and back in the day. About 55,000 words, some 200 pictures, all colour and should be out next summer. Can't really say much more than that at the moment, so you'll just have to wait and see.