Wedding Cars?

[matt4478]

Hi everyone! If I've posted this in the wrong forum then please say and I'll either move it or delete it straight away!

My fiancee and I both love the looks and style of the Elan and we think it'd make a fantastic, photogenic Wedding car. Our Wedding is in July 2010 so we've got plenty of time to arrange things, but we're after a little advice and thought someone here might be able to offer some help?

We're considering buying one in need of some TLC, restoring it ready for the day then selling it afterwards to release the cash we invested. I appreciate this isn't for the fainthearted, but I built an old mini about 10 years ago from body panels which I welded together myself and also built the engine from parts, so I've got some mechanical knowledge and I'm quite thorough and determined, so we know it's an option - but one which will take a lot of time and we'll probably not want to sell it afterwards!

The other option is renting one for the day/weekend. Is anyone aware of any contacts for things like this? I used to own both an Elise and an Exige for 4 years until they became thoroughly impractical, so whilst I love cars, my racing days are behind me and I've built a car and engine before so I have a great deal of mechanical sympathy, so the car would be well and truly pampered, but I don't know who to talk to about it? I found this owners forum and it seems like the best place to ask about things like this?

We're based in Derbyshire and the Church and Reception venue are about 10 miles away. If anyone has any suggestions we'd love to hear them!

Thanks in advance,
Matt

[jimj]

To restore a car then sell it would be a very expensive proposition. We also live in Derbyshire, whereabouts are you?
Jim

[matt4478]

Hi Jim!

Thanks for responding We're in the Chesterfield area... is that anywhere near you?

We'd thought of buying something like this: http://www.pistonheads.com/sales/1017265.htm which seems very cheap and then slowly(ish) restoring it. As I mentioned, I've built a car before and after owning Lotii (Elise and Exige) for 4 years I've become quite accustomed to getting my hands dirty with the mechanical side of things, lol! We know it would be expensive, but we could sell it afterwards and hopefully turn a profit if the job was done well? I don't know if anyone knows the car I just posted a link to and has any opinions on it?

The better (simpler) option would be if we could find somewhere that might rent the car out for the day/weekend, but we've not found anywhere that does this with an Elan (either a private individual or a company) so that's why I thought I'd ask on the forum to see if anyone has any suggestions

Thanks again,
Matt

[steveww]

There are very few classic cars you can buy, restore, sell for a profit. If you want a restored classic the best option is to buy one that is already done.

However why not buy, restore and keep it? Join us full time you will not regret it. I have had my Elan 6 years now, this is the longest I have ever kept a weekend toy, in fact it is the longest I have kept any car.

[jimj]

Matt, wedding 10 miles from Chesterfield, not Hassop Hall by any chance? we live in Froggatt and have an S3 Elan (and an Elise), give me a ring on 01433 639404. The plus 2 you were looking at is a very fair price but I suspect the paint and interior will be poor and the cost of putting that right would probably total double it`s final value.
Jim

[matt4478]

Thanks for that Jim - I'll give you a bell over the weekend and see if I catch you in It'd be great to hear about any suggestions you might have

The reception is at Chatsworth House, so you weren't too far away with the Hassop Hall guess! I've been through Frogatt many times - lovely little place and the roads around there were great for a sunday morning play in the Lotus!

Cheers!
Matt

[adigra]

My father in law called about that white Elan +2 advertised. It was sold the morning after it went up. Not sure why the seller hasn't updated the ad. I think buying something that cheap and restoring it wouldn't lose you money, if not make you any, but cars at those prices seem to go on the same day. Elans have been having a lot of buzz about them lately and I've noticed every single cheap one that's come up has been snapped up by a dealer almost instantly. There was a grey S3 with a QED 1700 engine advertised about a month ago for around ?9k. I thought it was remarkable value, but apparently so did a dealer who bought it the same day and has it now advertised for ?15,950.

[RotoFlexible]

Nearly 29 years ago, my S2 transported myself and my new bride a few blocks from the church to the reception. My stepchildren and their cousins decorated it appropriately.

The photo shows the car in its original S2 condition, before I crunched the nose and replaced it with an S3 front clip. It had been repainted, with gold swoopy stripes, and I was running Cosmic 6" wheels with 175/70-13 tires. I still have the wheels and I'm thinking of reviving them.

[matt4478]

Just to put this thread to bed, I'd like to say that Jim is an absolute star and a thoroughly nice chap to boot!!!

Lets just say that my wife and I will be driving away from the church in a beautiful red Elan!

Thanks again Jim - really nice to have met you and we'll be in contact in due course! Look after the Elan for us, please?
Matt

[jimj]

Well thanks for the thanks Matt, happy to help especially as we also had an Elan as our wedding car 35 years ago !!! Though shortly after the need for furniture became a priority and nearly 30 years elapsed between Elan ownership.
Don`t forget that the "cost" of the "rental" is a damn good polish.
Jim

[matt4478]

(I wanted to send this straight to Jim, but it appears I can't send private messages at the moment - I assume because I'm only a newbie around these parts - so I'm posting a reply to my original post, sorry everyone!)


Hi Jim,

Hope you and yours are keeping well! Myself and my fiancee came to see you back in May last year (has it really been that long!?!) after talking to you on the phone about borrowing your Elan to use as our Wedding car on Saturday 24th July 2010 at the Crooked Spire in Chesterfield! After judicious amounts of pleading (not really) you very kindly said that you'd be happy for us to borrow it from you

A lot has changed for us over the last year - we bought our first house (and became even more penniless, lol!), my fiancee got a new job down in London and, well, I've lost yet more hair... but our excitement about our wedding and the dream of driving off together from the church in a classic little red Lotus remains well and truly unchanged!

I thought I'd email you before calling you out of the blue just to see if you'd still be happy with us borrowing the car for the day, as it's obviously much less awkward for you to decline if you'd prefer not to anymore. We'd both love to be able to use the car on that day, but I appreciate that things change and you may have other plans, so we wouldn't take any offence at all if that's the case? If you're still happy with us borrowing the car from you on that day, then would it be okay if I gave you a call one evening just for a chat? I could maybe let you know what we were thinking of, and you could tell me which wax you want me to use liberally?

Take care,
Matt

[pereirac]

Watch out...We used my Elan to get back after our wedding reception 20 years ago and we still get confetti blowing out through the fresh air vents when we turn the fan on full.... and that's after a full rebuild

Carl

[Keith Scarfe]

Makes a great wedding car. Heres a few shots of my wedding. Wife may struggle to get in & out with big wedding dress on especially with the hood up if it is raining like it was at ours.

[billwill]

Congratulations.

[matt4478]

Hi everyone!

Just wanted to say thank you to everyone for their kind wishes and to put this thread to bed at last, here's a few car-related photos from the day! Unfortunately we weren't able to borrow Jim's lovely Lotus so with just a few weeks remaining before the big day it was a mad rush to find another car we liked - just when we started to despair we happened across a 1960 Austin Healey 'Frogeye' Sprite in a rather charming Old English White, and we thought it looked fantastic!

Bit different from the Elan, but it's along the right lines!

Thanks again guys!
Matt