Lotus Elan and Lotus Elan Plus 2 Forums

Steve G wrote:It does seem quite strange, to feel that way about replica Lotus Cortinas when you were contemplating putting an S2000 engine (or even a supercharged Buick V6!) into an original Elan! But then you are from Tunbridge Wells and two of the strangest people I know are from there.

I think every classic car enthusiast sits on a scale of purity, like the autistic spectrum. But there are a lot of grey areas. For instance; concourse restorations that make a car look exactly as they were new int he showroom but by replacing practically every part with new. I am contemplating fitting a Burton EWP and my car already has an electric fuel pump, but I would never consider replacing the twink with a Zetec, some would say there is hypocrisy in that viewpoint. I think an important classic car should be maintained in a way that doesn't alter its fundamental character, that where visible only period modifications should be made. But at the same time, I love Hot Rods which are custom cars that 'destroy' an original chassis and shell.

The way I see it is you are building a Hot Rod based on an S4 Elan and it will be interesting to follow the project's progression. The most important thing is that you will enjoy the car, I think that's better than leaving an original car rotting away in a barn, for someone to 'restore' the car years down the line with all new 'original' parts, then put it back in another barn.

Spyder fan wrote:Hi Mike,

I don't like fakes, I too can spot most fake Cooper or Cooper S recreations a mile off...... sometimes it's quite amusing to spot the glaring errors. A standard 2 door cortina shell seems to be worth an awful lot of money for some reason, can't think why as the 4 door is much more practical and quite rare these days And there seem to be almost as many mk1 coopers on the road today as there were in the 1960's, they must have made them from special non rusting and crash resistant steel I used to be in the old Mini scene and got the V5's as part of another deal, they will remain in my file until my conscience allows me to do something with them which means thats where they will remain most likely.

I don't feel the same way about Lotus Elan's, the modifications that I am making are so drastic that nobody with at least half an ounce of sense wouldn't know that my cars aren't original. Or if I built a totally standard 'original' car from a pile of bits and assigned a V5 to it, the car would be worth no more or less than any other similar condition example. The problem with Mini's and Cortinas and other similar cars that had a sporting item in the model range is that the surviving standard cars with quite low value can be "upgraded" to the same specification as the highly sought after models with all the associated problems and opportunities to hoodwink and basically con the unwary.

Keep spotting those fakes and let me know when you find a real one...... I might be interested!

Regards

richgilb wrote:If I had a Mini, it would have receive even more non-purist treatment than my +2.

Spyder fan wrote:John,
A red top vauxhall 2.0 16 valve would be a much better option, there's a company that sells the ready modified subframes....... couldn't recommend doing this of course, it would spoil a classic.

http://www.hybrid-mini.co.uk/vauxhall/AllSpeed.htm

I like an original inside and out look, I think the Americans call this 'Retro-Modding' (Gary, Frank please help here?).

Spyder fan wrote:
Mark,
Great to hear from you, pleased your build is coming along nicely and I look forward to seeing pictures (hint to post something up here ).

Regards