Stop "Baby Elan"

[pereirac]

"Plus two babies" would be more correct as you can't fit two adults in the back

[gjz30075]

Do the Mini / MINI people go through this same thing?

[mbell]

"Plus two babies" would be more correct as you can't fit two adults in the back

You'd be lucky to get two babies in there with the now required car seats. My testing show a baby seat only fits (wedges in)if the front seats are fully forward. So you'd need to be very short or flexible to get two baby seats in and drive the car. A baby out of the baby seat fits very easily, tested it with mine.

Maybe it should be plus two vertically challenged people...

[mbell]

Do the Mini / MINI people go through this same thing?

Having a brother who is into real minis, they refer to the bmw mini as a bini...

[dgym]

Hi I just wanted to get involved in the ruckus.

why on earth are we discussing m100's in this thread? it's about the term "Baby Elan" when used do differentiate it from the +2 . Any M100 discussion is just bad forum etiquette.

does anyone know when the term first appeared? was it on this forum? It's the only place I've heard it. Was it from a +2 owner?

is "baby Elan" simpler to say than "+2" ? it's not.

If someone starts a thread about their "Elan", would we assume it's a +2? I wouldn't.

In other circles of other cars, I think people start using the term "classic" to denote the original model. This also seems rude to me as the original model now has to have an elongated name in order to accommodate the imposter.

I will never call my Elan a baby. and to say "well it kinda does look like a baby" is silly. DO BABIES HAVE WHEELS I ASK YOU?? ......NO. And it only looks small because cars today are BLOODY HUGE.

peace out yo

[dgym]

We would be fools to let this term spread any further than it already has.

Our absolutely kick arse cars, with such racing heritage, such driving prowess,the simplicity, such singularity of vision, reduced to being called a baby. How can this not devalue the Elan? People outside already have little respect for them, and here we are on the cars own forum helping them out with demeaning nicknames!!??

this must end here, for the sake of the wonderful heritage that is Lotus and the Elan. It's a big mistake not to be fussed by it, you're devaluing everything we love about this car.

less is more. less is not a baby.

[prezoom]

Ok, I'll kick the lid off the can.......... Having both an S2 and a Plus 2 130S, I have decided to identify them. Since the first Elan is an "S"2, it shall be the Spirited Elan. And, since the "P" Elan is 500 lbs heavier, it shall be know as Miss Piggy, or perhaps Petunia after the other cartoon character. I shall now run for cover.........

[Rob P]

Cant believe there is such a huge debate over something so trivial, what's in a name after all, calling the original Elan a "baby" Elan doesn't devalue it in any way, it is just a terminology used by various people, it should matter not one bit.
As for the subject of the Elan M100 let me tell you as an owner of an se version from 1991 it's a fantastic car, totally different to my S4 fhc Elan but in many ways drives those country lanes in a very similar fashion with verve and road holding to die for.

I'm also from the Mini vs mini world and I'll tell you now, arguments such as these has completely destroyed the whole mini environment for many people. I have two classic mini's and two new Mini's (one being the Huge Countryman) and again I drive them because I like them and not a single comment from either side of the Mini/mini fence will deter me from doing just that.

So crack on guys and argue away, create animosity as you go but remember, cars are very much chosen as a personal thing, it shouldn't matter what anyone else thinks because it was your choice and in some way reflects you as a person. Everyone, (that includes the man who drives a ?million pound Ferrari down to the simple man in the street who has a mint Morris Marina), buy, drive and care for their car because of one thing and that is because they want to.

For the love of cars lets just get on with doing what we love best and that's driving the darn things

[theelanman]

wow what a thread......

someone has seriously got the 'ump

call it what you like...others do......
mines been called a Ferarri....so what......
it is to me what I call it.......

I call my +2 a +2 and the SE an SE.......

I think that the threads are all intermingled then the definition of baby and +2 is just an easy way of avoiding confusion.......if you were writing about the elan I wouldn't know which....unless we make it compulsory when talking about the +2 to never call it an Elan again.......

phftttt

[rgh0]

The Elan is "Elan" the Plus 2 is a "Plus 2" or an "Elan Plus 2" . These are the terms Lotus used in hteor literature and I see no need for any other terms unless you want to get into the specific model details eg 130/5 or S4 FHC etc

Baby Elan is just some peoples short hand to avoid saying " it not the Elan Plus 2 its the 2 seater" If I see the term Elan I always assume people are talking about a type 26/36/45 unless it is explained other wise in the context.

but I enjoy the debate

cheers
Rohan

[Grizzly]

why on earth are we discussing m100's in this thread? it's about the term "Baby Elan" when used do differentiate it from the +2 . Any M100 discussion is just bad forum etiquette.

I was trying to point out the Hypocrisy (Whining about the Elan being called "Baby" when most Elan owners look down on M100 Elans like there some how belittling the Elan name)

The Mini and Latest reincarnation of the Mini is more like the Lotus Elan and the Kia Elan (totally different manufactures)

For me there all Elan's (as Lotus Intended) and if you want to be specific call them by the Version (S1, Sprint, Plus two etc) as i pointed out there are FAR worse things they could be called so don't see why Baby Elan would be so Insulting. There is an Argument that the two seater is the Original Elan but at the same time it changed so much over the years you could say that only covers the type 26 cars, so if you want to call any car THE Elan it would be an S1.

[ken ob]

I have never thought that using the name ' baby ' was insulting.
It just means small, which they certainly are.
If memory serves me, the first time i heard the term used was in the 1970s when i owned my first Elan.
I think it was the late Graham Arnold or another very well known ex Lotus employee who used it during a Club Lotus meeting.

Ken

[nebogipfel]

Please can we start a campaign to stop using the phrase "Baby Elan"! The Elan was one of the definitive sports cars of the 60's and 70's and the +2 was a spinoff to cater for the family man. To call it "Baby" is a disservice to a fabulous car. After all you don't hear of a " Baby E Type" when compared with the 2+2 version. Maybe I am an old f--t with a voice in the wilderness but would welcome other members views. The Revolution starts here!! Jim

There's a lesson to be learned here Jim. Always do a topic search before posting

The campaign will continue. WE ought to know better folks.

Bored with this thread now.

[el-saturn]

lets get it statistically right: on ebay a baby is never a +2 and and on google if you ask for baby elan you get both - if the difference ment size (could that not also be the reason?????????????????) then we'd all have to agree. ..............................however: let's not try to indoctrinate one another!!! sandy (with a baby)

[billwill]

How about we call the Plus 2 the Chunky Elan. - after Colin himself?

Or the "Family Elan" , since the rumour was that Colin had the original Elan stretched to accommodate a growing family.