Mystery Lotus with engine in excess of 10,000 CC

[Spyder fan]

http://www.howmanyleft.co.uk/vehicle/lotus_missing#!engine

The above is a link to the www.howmanyleft.co.uk website that claims to list the number of surviving examples of cars there are on the road or SORN in the UK. One of the interesting tabs allows you to view the engine sizes fitted to the cars registered and there is one unspecified Lotus without a model designation that is listed with an engine in excess of 10,000 cc. Apparently it is road registered, any clues as to what it is?


There has been some discussion about this website elsewhere here http://www.lotuselan.net/forums/post183778.html#p183778 and here http://www.lotuselan.net/forums/lotus-elan-f19/definitive-number-elan-the-road-t23340.html and the consensus is that it is not very accurate.

[oldelanman]

Whatever it is it seems to have been mislaid

[Spyder fan]

Whatever it is it seems to have been mislaid

It refers to the model description missing. For instance my S4 was registered simply as a Lotus, no Elan, no S4 no nothing. And there are quite a few hundred others just like that if you believe the details.

[Bud English]

....one unspecified Lotus without a model designation that is listed with an engine in excess of 10,000 cc. Apparently it is road registered, any clues as to what it is?

Probably this one...

Apologies if it was your car I ?borrowed?.

[elansprint71]

The Lotus Excess; it never reached production.

[Spyder fan]

The Lotus Excess; it never reached production.

So is the one registered the prototype, a bit like the Metier?

On the how many left site it gives the link to the data that can be downloaded from DVLA, unfortunately it isn't offered in any logical manner and you have to trawl through quite an array of Excel tables. I think the offending vehicle probably has a 1558 which was entered as 15580.

The only petrol engines I know of that have a greater than 10,000 cc displacement are the Meteor tank engine or it's closely related Aero engine the Merlin. There are a few cars around that have one or other of those fitted, here's one owned by Charlie Broomfield of Practical Performance Car.

Link to site here http://www.ppcmag.co.uk/old-car-info/rover-sd1-27-litre-v12.html

project1_4.jpg (49.1 KiB) Viewed 2041 times

a couple of pictures

project3_4.jpg (62.22 KiB) Viewed 2041 times

[Bud English]

I like it! nice aggressive stance. Not exactly a sleeper though. The Merlin's a little harder to conceal than a Zetec.

[Quart Meg Miles]

The Lotus Excess; it never reached production.

Nevertheless, a few slipped out and were offered as "The 1558 litre Mi Sprint".