What do you guys think of this car?

[SeanB]

Hi Guys,

My name is Sean and I have been an avid reader here for some time. I have long wanted to scratch the Elan itch after owning quite a few Elises and Exiges. I currently have a Series 1 Elise Sport160.

Graham, who is a friend of mine and also a member here said to put a post up asking the collectives opinion on a car I am interested in. So here goes. What do you guys think of this car? Has anyone viewed it or know the last owner?

https://www.uksportscars.com/view/lotus ... el-arches/

I really like the 26R wheel arches and it looks like a well cared for example? Thoughts??

[foxoles]

Well, I'm more of a Europa expert than an Elan - although I do have an S4 Elan....and IMO...nice car but a bit of a mishmash. Surely it has an S4 dash and crashpad and door locks (inside and out) which are far too late for a '67 car? A late S4/Sprint steering wheel? So not for the purist?
But if you like the car it looks nicely kept... should still paint the lower sill edge black though.

[Elan45]

For starters, its not an S3, but rather a S4 w/ S3 rear lamps. It is not a Super Safety. S4 features include exterior and interior door handles, Door latches, crash pad demister vents, boot latch, radiator. The oil cap on the engine is from a S1. Oh, and the VIN plate is also from a S4.

Roger

[SeanB]

Thanks guys. So it?s seems it?s very much not a purists car. What do we think of the price?

[types26/36]

Untaxed since 2010 .......no MOT history ........Looks nice but as said its a bit of mixture of models ......sounds expensive for a BITSA to me for a car with dubious/no history, unlikely to be a good investment if that is a factor .

[trw99]

It does have a MoT history:

January 2014 47,923 miles Pass Advisories Offside Front Steering column top bearing slightly worn (2.1.2c)
January 2014 47,923 miles Fail Reasons Offside Front Direction indicator not working (1.4.A.2c); Offside Rear Direction indicator not working (1.4.A.2c); Brake pedal anti-slip provision missing (3.3.A.1b); Windscreen washer provides insufficient washer liquid (8.2.3); Horn control insecure (1.6.1); Steering system has excessive free play detected at the steering wheel (2.2.A.1b)
September 2012 47,750 miles Pass ?
July 2011 47,454 miles Pass ?
April 2010 47,366 miles Pass ?
May 2006 47,327 miles Pass ?
July 1967 First registered on the road 1st July 1967

I suspect it is based on a Series 3 with a S4 dash added at a later date, an unsigned Lotus steering wheel added at a later date and sundry excess dash switches, a hole and incorrect radio blank all added at a later date. The flared arches may have been added to the original S3 body.

If you get interested in this car, go there with your eyes wide open. To my mind it is over priced, even for UK Sportscars!

Tim

[661]

Hi Sean. You admitted to the Elise, but not the Caterham or the M2 .....!
Did you get along to Matty's to have a kick of some tyres?
As you can see, already some very good advice on here.
As the weather improves a few Elans appear on the for sale list as owners realise they have had their time with them.
Go and look but don't fall in love!


Oh, and you forgot to mention the Audi turbo'd Exige S1....

[661]

Pretty:
https://www.classiccarsforsale.co.uk/lotus/elan/282570

[Concrete-crusher]

Take it for a drive and see how it feels, if it drives well and handles well that's the real point

Then consider the cost involved to take a project and bring it upto this standard parts and time and then it doesn't seem quite so expensive

Personally I quite like it

Steve S4 with a few S3 bits in the mix

[Elan45]

The only S3 feature this car has are the rear lamps. The door handles and latches and the S4 type demister vents are not something one would do to an S3. And the VIN plate being the later type screams S4. It'd be so simple if they'd only provided the actual VIN. After all, it looks pretty nice from here, an ocean away.

I don't like the wheels arches of the S4and the arches presented here solve that issue. It would be a simple mater to replace the rear lamps if you like the car. I have a Super Safety which has rocker switches, dual brakes and a number of other S4 features, but is an actual S3

Roger

[jimj]

I remember it struggled to sell at auction for around ?22k about 3 years ago. It`s been moved around at least 3 dealers since and tarted up a bit.
Jim

[SeanB]

Thanks for all of the information guys. Very helpful.

[Elan45]

So, did the auction list the VIN #? Just curious. Roger

[theelanman]

there are a few discrepancies.......some people like, some not.....
depends on your view..........
how many have you driven?.....Id drive several before you make your mind up
then you can get a feeling for what the car should feel like.......

other than that........erm.........

I personally wouldn't buy anything from UK Sportscars......

[trw99]

This car is indeed a Series 3. It started off as a FHC. The VIN and Engine No confirm the factory records entry.

It has clearly had a lot of chopping and changing done to it over recent years. It was sold at Brightwells auction in Dec 10 for ?12,100; Brightwells sold it again in Nov 11 for ?17,600. In Sep 12 Bonhams had it in their auction. This was their description:

First registered in July 1967, this Elan had had only three owners from new, the current one for the last 27 years. 'KOM 371E' starting life as a Series 3 fixed-head coup? and was totally restored during the early 1990s, receiving a new/old stock chassis and new/old stock drophead coup? body. With future competition usage in mind, a Type 26R rollover bar and side impact protection bars running through the sills were installed, making for extremely well fitting doors. A thorough overhaul of the original engine included new pistons, etc together with most of the other mechanical components and ancillaries. The car's total mileage is circa 47,700; only 7,000-or-so being covered since the restoration's completion, all of them on the road. In 2003 new front brake discs and callipers were fitted. Other new parts include the Dunlop 'knock off' wheels, Dunlop tyres, electrical wiring loom, hood, tonneau and hood cover. The interior trim of this low mileage Elan is entirely original. 'KOM 371E' comes with history file and many bills recording the works carried out to date including recent re-commissioning and service work costing nearly ?2,000. All old MoTs dating back to 1990 (at 40,137 miles) are on file also.

Just to round this off, we were speculating about this very car back in 2012. See lotus-elan-f19/with-arches-t25103.html

Tim