Lotus Elan and Lotus Elan Plus 2 Forums

webrest7 wrote:

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Hi all,
When I first read 'Classic Lotus Elan Register' I thought it was going to be a list of owners and their cars, details etc. Such as the TVR and SP 250 owners have.
Maybe such a list page already exists and I am unaware of it if so I'm only too happy to be put straight.
Having owned my Elan in Australia for nearly 30 years I never come across one and if one is out there somewhere I'm only too happy to provide my details.
Having owned my SP250 for over 33 years they actually post out a an annual booklet to all owners around the the world with details of the vehicles and their respective owners, a fabulous resource to all in the fraternity.
Cheers Dave

UAB807F wrote:Well done, that's a very clean looking website. Easy to navigate, plenty of interesting comments to read and I like the idea of period b/w photographs rather than going for modern colour ones.

If you want nit-picking feedback (and it really is nit-picking) then on my browser (W11/Chrome & also W11/Firefox) the page with Type 50 has the second photo positioned just slightly too high and across the bottom line of the text about George Best buying a Europa. (was that deliberate ? )

That's a very, very minor point. I like the website, have it bookmarked and look forward to seeing more.

Brian

SimonH wrote:Nice website. Just tried it on the computer rather than the phone and saw it properly. Doesn't really work on my phone for some reason.
Otherwise its a good factual history page. Interesting for me that my +2/130 is 365L so a fairly early on. Shame it lost its engine to an escort before I got it.

trw99 wrote:Thanks all for your comments to date.

In addition to the elanregistry run by unibrain, a useful resource, I also have a full register of all Elans known to have been made. I update this on a regular basis and attempt to keep abreast of all adverts, changes in ownership and so forth. However, the only way I can do this is via Unit Nos. Registration numbers (in the UK) only tell half the story and so are not reliable sources for data in general. I make an exception for Sprints, my pet subject!

As most folk now know, a good many of the Elan records were lost in a flood in the old fire engine garage at Hethel in the late 1970s. I therefore share my register with Andy Graham, the Lotus archivist, in an attempt to rebuild those records for our cars. On behalf of Lotus Cars Andy has a duty, quite understandably, to maintain the current corporate reputation and to prevent fraudulent activity where he can. He is therefore reluctant that too much of the register is made public, which in turn could lead to criminally minded individuals incorrectly claiming an identity for a car.

Having said that, I am very happy to help owners with any data I may have on their car and I know Andy is helpful too. I am also able, where I can, to help prospective buyers verify a car they are interested in. CLER will therefore continue in this vein, much as I am sure we would all like to be able to view a full register of all Elans. I believe it is easier for other car marques, such as the Daimler SP250 register referred to above, to make public to their members their register, where data on all the cars produced is already known by the manufacturer.

I would also wish to assure you that Lotus have been supportive. Indeed, I made an initial approach to CEO Matt Windle this time last year via email, on a Sunday. Within a couple of hours I was surprised and delighted to receive a response from him indicating that he would be happy to host us to celebrate the 60th. I was then passed to the PR & Media department, who have been very busy in the intervening period with car launches and so forth. Our wee celebration must have appeared rather less significant to them than it does to us and so what I had hoped to be a meeting on a larger scale has been reduced to where we are today. I shall of course be inviting Matt Windle to join us at some stage during the day.

On a brighter note, since we went public, Richard Parramint at CTL has offered to do a group tour of their collection on the 25th. I currently have no more details from him, but he has said that it will be restricted in numbers. In addition, Guy Munday has kindly offered to get permission to lead factory tours, more of which will be available when we know. Finally, we have had an indication that CTL will be opening up their new classic stores for us on the day.

Thank you again for your helpful comments; please keep them coming.

Tim

Spyder fan wrote:

SimonH wrote:Nice website. Just tried it on the computer rather than the phone and saw it properly. Doesn't really work on my phone for some reason.
Otherwise its a good factual history page. Interesting for me that my +2/130 is 365L so a fairly early on. Shame it lost its engine to an escort before I got it.

Apologies Simon,
I just did a very quick rehash of the mobile site and it should now display correctly. Feedback always appreciated.