Re: Bit of a Mongrel
Posted: Wed Apr 13, 2016 2:54 pm
440HUU wrote:However, values today are VERY much dependant on how far away a given car strays from being original, and they don't come much further away than your car.
I'm not sure I agree with this based on what I've seen. Yes, an original S1 with the original engine and chassis carries a premium, unfortunately because it clearly spent a few decades not doing what Chunky built it for. So does a 26r with enough provenance to prove it's a 26r. But most Elans aren't original, and even the premiums I've seen aren't all that large. The car (actually no car built by Chapman, oddly including the Type 15) simply doesn't get the kind of respect that, say, a 1964 Mustang or a 1970 Barracuda Hemi has.
Many of us translate "original chassis" into "front turrets rusted through." And if they've been repaired, that original chassis is worth quite a bit less than a Spyder even if it's functionally equivalent.
Focusing on your car, it's likely one of two animals: Either as 'Spyder fan' notes it has simply lived long and survived through shedding parts not designed to live long, or it was 'bitsa-built' from components and a VIN plate. Here in the U.S., provided some government has already blessed the result with a registration, the difference doesn't matter much, particularly because cars weren't titled in most states during the lifetime of the Elan.
Come up with a VIN plate someone else has already or have someone realize your engine block came from their stolen Elan and you'll see a bit more of a challenge, but with a 711M you're safe there unless someone really treasured their Escort.
The best thing you can do to establish the legitimacy of your car is to recover the original block or come up with documentation (provided it happened at a legitimate shop, which didn't legally have to happen) related to the body swap.
I have the original blocks from two Europas hanging out in my basement, and have notified the Europa group both of their existence and the VINs of the cars they came from. No takers or interest, but Elans are more popular right now than S2 Europas.
Provided nobody from the DVLA who has read your post is chasing after you for relabeled hot bits, I would price your tall block S4 (what it really is at this point) at about the same as a any other S4 in similar condition. Maybe higher. Late Elans aren't the most valuable, and the extra stroke increases the curl of the grin.