Lotus Elan and Lotus Elan Plus 2 Forums

Guys, I wasn't refering to any new-fangled C6 I was thinking more of
the car a buddy of mine had in college. It must have been about a 67
coupe with the 435 horse 427 and 4:11 gears with a set of big tube
headers a hairy cam and a Holley the size of a microwave oven. I think
he got about 6 MPG. Heck the 454 Suburban my wife hauls her horses
with gets 8 MPG. Makes the Lotus look downright practical. Steve

Interesting comparison with the Corvettes of the mid 60's. Both cars were 2
seat convertible sports cars utilizing independent rear suspensions, 4-speed
transmissions, 4 wheel disc brakes, and fiberglass bodies. Despite the fact
that the 427 Corvette had almost 4-1/2 times the displacement, twice the number
of cylinders, and weighed twice as much, both cars were priced about the same.

Frank Howard
'71 S4 SE
Minnesota

Frank

And one is now worth four times the other! I haven't seen an Elan at the
Phoenix or Miami auctions on the Speed channel but seen a lot of Vettes

Ken

p.s. The Europa TC (or was it the Renault engine) and the Datsun 240 Z first
went on sale in the US during the same month and the selling price was less
than $100 difference.



_____

From: ***@***.***lto:***@***.*** Behalf
Of ***@***.***
Sent: Wednesday, April 20, 2005 10:04 PM
To: ***@***.***; ***@***.***
Subject: Re: [LotusElan.net] Re: Gas and Vette Mileage Vs Elan mileage



Interesting comparison with the Corvettes of the mid 60's. Both cars were 2

seat convertible sports cars utilizing independent rear suspensions, 4-speed

transmissions, 4 wheel disc brakes, and fiberglass bodies. Despite the fact

that the 427 Corvette had almost 4-1/2 times the displacement, twice the
number
of cylinders, and weighed twice as much, both cars were priced about the
same.

Frank Howard
'71 S4 SE
Minnesota














_____

Gidday Steve,
Petrol around $5-50 per Imperial Gallon here in Queensland, Austalia.
See ya, Les
----- Original Message -----
From: Steve Foster
To: Lotus List
Sent: Wednesday, April 20, 2005 9:28 PM
Subject: [LotusElan.net] Gas


This week, here in Upstate New York, we are paying around $2.29 for Regular
and $2.59 for Premium. I'm told that in some places in California it's over
$3.00 per gallon. With the recent run up in gas prices I'm wondering how
much you guys across the pond in England and Europe are paying?

It makes me really glad I drive an Elan that I can afford to put gas in, and
not something like a 427 Corvette. I sure do wish I some stock in Exxon
Mobil and not just one of their credit cards. Steve














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***@***.***

I did a business trip in my Weber carbed Super Safety back in the 70's, a good bit of it on I 71 and I 75 and I tracked my mileage. Most of the trip was at 70-75mph with the hood stowed, so not the best aero configuration. IIRC, I acheived just under 30, something like 29.8mpUSG.

Roger



Honestly, I was basing my statement on the published mileage for the ?lan
from the mid 60's which states 22-26mpg (that's imperial gallons). My point
was that the Corvette probably isn't a good example of a gas guzzling car
(at least not the new Vette).

-----Original Message-----
From: ***@***.***lto:***@***.*** Behalf
Of ***@***.***
Sent: Wednesday, April 20, 2005 7:07 PM
To: ***@***.***; ***@***.***
Subject: Re: [LotusElan.net] Gas



In a message dated 4/20/05 04:55:52 PM, ***@***.***es:

<< I have seen them get

30 MPG on the freeway (although 26 MPG is more typical). That's probably

better than the ?lan. >>

If your Elan can't get 30 MPG on the highway, it's time to change the air cleaner, pull the carbs apart, adjust the plug gap, and adjust the timing,
or
shift into 4th.

Frank Howard
'71 S4 SE
Minnesota












































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I can confirm that. I don't know what sort of mileage my Elan gets ...
I would guess something in the 22-25 mpg range,
but my 2004 Z06 averaged 26 (per the onboard computer) on a recent 1000+
mile road trip. That included heavy work traffic in LA and San
Francisco in both directions. On the highway, it was more like 28-30.
Amazing to me. I doubt if my MX5 will get that. Of course the Corvette
does need premium fuel but I'm still impressed.

On the track though, the mileage is probably in single digits (haven't
checked that yet).

Rod Bean

And now my Z06 weighs less than an Esprit (to say nothing of various
so-called compact performance sedans). Who'd have thunk it?

Rod

Hello from the land of Fondue!
Just saw all the notes on gas prices. Here in Western Switzerland, we're
at 1.55 Swiss Francs/L or about $5.05/gallon. I never see any full size Ford
trucks, and the only SUVs are driven by expats. I bought a used BMW 318 (1.8L)
which gets about 35mpg highway - I wish the engine was approved for the US
- I'd ship it back!
Geneva's one of the most expensive places to live in Europe. That means that
the markup on cars is proportional. I went to see the Lotus stand at the
Geneva Auto Show (they had a small booth with three cars) and was told a
new one would cost me CHF63500!! Even at the exchange rate of 0.83 - that's
about $53,000 compared to the mid-40's in the US. Other cars are more expensive
here also - not just British cars.
To counter that - we have a great transit system that is on time, clean,
and quite efficient. I take the bus to work - so we only need one car. Trains
are similar. We took the TGV (Tres Grande Vitesse-very high speed) to Paris
last weekend and it was amazing how quiet the thing was. Truly a joy to ride
- not to mention that we didn't have to drive or park in Paris. Parking over
here can cost the equivalent of $30.00 per night - as bad as New York.
Gotta run - cheese is ready!
Ha
Paul
26/4600 S2

Since I've learned about the price of fuel from around the world, I'll
post for Houston Texas where oil is still big business, I paid $2.05/US
gallon for regular last night which is down about 10 cents from the
previous week. I use premium in the Elan and last week it was $2.75

I also monitor my gas mileage as a way to keep track of its tune, and I
normally get between 25 and 27 mpg per tank. I run my carbs on the rich
side which explains why I'm not getting closer to 30.

And I will admit to owning a Chevy Silverado Pickup truck which gets
about 19mpg.

Fred T.

In a message dated 4/21/05 02:28:44 PM, ***@***.***es:

<< And I will admit to owning a Chevy Silverado Pickup truck >>

Fred,

No need to apologize for owning a pickup. As I understand Texas law, pickup
truck ownership is mandatory isn't it?

Frank Howard
'71 S4 SE
Minnesota

Hey, Rod,
Your petrol may be cheaper in Oz than the UK, but your beer tastes like
donkey piss!
Let's see if Les is listening too?!

Cheers,
Pete.


***@***.***e:

Frank:
I'm currently having my Elan painted in a body shop that specializes in
old 'Vettes. Mine is the first Elan (or other Lotus for that matter)
that they've done, and the Owner was really shocked about how light in
weight the Elan hood is compared to that of a Corvette... (and a
lightweight 26R is even lighter still.)

Gary
'71 Elan Sprint
Miami, FL
___________________________________________________________
From: TYPE45@a...
Subject: Re: Re: Gas and Vette Mileage Vs Elan mileage

... the 427 Corvette ...weighed twice as much, both cars were priced
about the same.

Frank Howard
'71 S4 SE
Minnesota

This reminds me of a similar story of a 'Vette specialist working on a Lotus
for the first time remarking, "The glass is so thin, it's only got one
side!" Or words to that effect. I wish I could give proper attribution to
this, but alas I don't recall just where I hear it...

Regards,
-John

Marc:

Looking at your numbers another way, the cost increase for the Brits
in that interval has been $0.34 and has been a relatively modest $0.28
in the U.S.

In this instance, it is probably more valid to look at the magnitude
of cost increases, rather than percentages, where the fuel tax
structure between the two countries is so vastly different.

David


--- In ***@***.***, Marc Fuller <marcfuller@a...> wrote:

I know. My Elan S1 hood/bonnet is noticeably very light. Of course, I
pay for that in the warpage that has occurred over the years. My S2
hood/bonnet is heavier (still lots lighter than any Corvette hood) but
isn't warped owing to the fiberglass strengthening added by the factory.

Corvette fiberglass used to be quite heavy with what seemed to be lots
of resin. They apparently use a totally different type now that is
lighter and not as thick. At least I read that someplace.

Rod