Value of a garage find?

[Marsupilami]

Hello all,

I've been dreaming about owning an Elan for the past ten years or so, but haven't bought one yet for several reasons.
However, the garage to the house I'm about to buy houses not one, but two Elans in miserable condition!
One of them is for sale, but I have absolutely no clue of how much it might be worth. All I currently know is that it's a non runner, a coup? and it looks like crap with cracked paint etc.
I haven't been able to examine it yet, I don't even know if it has an engine.

Before I talk to the owner about buying the car, it would be nice to have an idea of what it might be worth.
I understand that it's impossible for anyone to give me an estimated value at his moment, but maybe a rough estimation of some sort? Maybe a couple of examples depending on what's wrong with the car?
Any help with what to look/ask for is also appreciated.

Thank you very much in advance.

[1964 S1]

If you can supply some more information we're all glad to help. A rough Elan for sale with no description is worth between $1500 and $10,000 here in the USA depending on which model it is and whether or not it has an engine (with a useable Weber head.)
Try to turn the engine over with a wrench on the crank pulley, then look the whole car all over with a flashlight and let us know what you see. Year, badges, and chassis condition determine a lot concerning value. Most rough garage finds are not good buys in that you can get a running example for less than what you'd pay to get the "find" up and running. Although, if you love to work on cars and are capable at restoration projects, the labor costs can be ignored?
Eric

[Jolly Jumper]

a rough but complete and original Elan Coupe could/should be 8.000 to 10.000 Euro. But it should be a Sprint or an S3. Stromberg-Carb S4 are less. RHD or LHD is also important to know.
But what we need are: PICS!

[Marsupilami]

Thank you for the input so far. I will arm myself with a camera the next time I go over there.
I'm not afraid of putting lots of hours into the car, but I haven't got much experience in the area so I'll be learning as I go along. Since the Elans was sold as kit cars as well, I'm thinking that it can't be too hard do work on as long as you have some mechanical knowledge.

[types26/36]

I'm thinking that it can't be too hard do work on as long as you have some mechanical knowledge.

.........and a sometimes a deep pocket
Try to get details from the chassis plate

[rgh0]

The beauty of Elan restoration is that much of the work can be done by a person with basic tools and skills and most if not all of the parts needed are available at a reasonable cost. This is a much better situation than the restoration of almost any other similar and typically metal bodied car.

The biggest challenge to an amateur to get a good quality job in my mind is the top skin of the body work and painting but even most of that in terms of preparation can be relatively easily learned and done with basic tools.

However - you do a restoration becasue you enjoy the work and want to own and drive the best sports car ever built - you dont do it to make money.

cheers
Rohan

[Marsupilami]

The paint job and the "artistic" bits are what worries me the least. A friend of mine and I resprayed my last car (a black Mercedes 500SEC) after fixing all the rust etc. and to be honest, that paint job turned out better than on a factory new car.
I got constantly stopped by random people on the street, praising the car.
I never noticed how much "orange peel" there is on factory painted cars before this.

I've a lot of experience working on motorcycles, so I think I'll be able to pull this project through as long as the seller and I can agree on the price. It will take a few years, but patience is one of the few things I have loads of.

[mikealdren]

Sounds like you have the spraying skills but don't underestimate how much harder GRP is that metal. Preparation takes ages. You are likely to want to take off all the original paint and then repair the fibreglass. The painting then has to be correct to avoid repairs showing through, moisture problems, sinkage etc. It's much easier to lose the outline shape with GRP than steel while sanding down as well, quite a lot of filler was used on the new cars to get the correct lines and shuts.

Lots of help and advice on this site, well worth and afternoon's searching.

Good luck
Mike

[Marsupilami]

Well, my friend has the skills, not me. But I'm learning. Thanks for the heads up regarding the GRP.
I've allready spent a few hours on the site, but it feels like I've just scratched the surface. Lot's of knowledge.

[Uboat]

Hej Marsupilami!

I knew almost nothing about restoring before I bought my car. But after joining this super site, I now do all work by myself, with the exception of engine tuning and severe electricity problems.
It is a simple car to work with, and with the help of the friends here, nothing is really impossible to fix, and as said almost all parts can be bought from UK Lotus specialists or e-bay. The only problem is bad access to some parts, such as in the engine bay. There are also some local experts in Sweden, although I have bad experiance from some,
Good Luck!

/Ulf

[Marsupilami]

Thanks for the encouragement. I'm going to be really dissapointed now if it turns out that we can't agree on a price or the car is in too lousy condition to even consider.

[1964 S1]

There is no pre 1973 Lotus in too lousy condition to consider, unless it's caught fire. The price will dictate the decision.

[PeeVee]

a rough but complete and original Elan Coupe could/should be 8.000 to 10.000 Euro. But it should be a Sprint or an S3. Stromberg-Carb S4 are less. RHD or LHD is also important to know.
But what we need are: PICS!

So what's wrong with an S2 for example? They even have weber carbs.

Peter

[Jolly Jumper]

So what's wrong with an S2 for example? They even have weber carbs.

Peter

Nothing is wrong with a S2. But Marsupilami wrote the car in question is a Coupe / Fixed Head. So it is not a S2 - unless you count the very first Elan Coupes built in 65/66 as S2. I was only trying to answer his question re. prices. A Stromberg Carb S4 is worth less than Weber Carb S4, all other things being equal. But the difference is tiny.

[PeeVee]

Sorry Jolly Jumper - missed the coupe part.

Peter