Project back on!!!!!!!!!!!

[DreamBuilderiHope]

Hi,
It is with heavy heart i have to give up my project!
I have twice tried to check out a body shell with Vin plate etc Had them checked out

And on both occasions there has been a problem with the vin plate!
So that's it, enough it's just to much of a bother!!!

I shall be cleaning up my spare parts and selling them!

Thank you to everyone who helped and believed in my project.
Wishing you all many hours of motoring!

Regards,
Dave.

[berni29]

Hi There

I would not give up so easily, bodies with correct identities do come up for sure. What exactly was the problem with the VIN plates? I have read a few posts over the years where information was incorrectly recorded either on the V5 or the VIN plate itself. You are dealing with Lotuses after all, and some pretty funky stuff was possible back in the day so to speak.

You will not find a finer or more beautiful car of its type than a Plus 2.

Edit, I myself have had many great experiences buying Lotus cars and car parts over the years, but have also bought cars that were mis-described in quite major ways before, as well as parts. Its the rough and smooth of life. Its how you deal with it that matters.

All the best

Berni

[The Veg]

Wot Berni sed! Hang in there Dave, you'll find what you need and it'll be worth it!

[billwill]

Are you trying to BUY a VIN???

What's wrong with the VIN of the car you are restoring?
The VIN IS the vehicle identification. It's not a plate on the body, that's just there for convenience.

Is your present restoration actually registered at the DVLA? as an off-the-road vehicle (SORN)?

Literally if you don't have the VIN of the car you are restoring, you are not rebuilding a Lotus Elan, you are building a kit car, and that is what the DVLA will say too.

[h20hamelan]

Who cares if its a kit car, a salvage, or self identifies as a pencil car
If its what you want, build it, register however, and enjoy the drive

My perspective is a bit different than others on originality, i have brought 7 cars and 6 bikes back from the dead. Still have them, and wouldn’t trade them because i want them.

[berni29]

Hi

I am also not a great one for originality, but if the identification does not tally with what the DVLA has, it can open a can of worms and you may get a Q plate or have significant difficulties registering the car, so it does matter and is not an "originality issue`".

All the best

Berni

[jono]

Just look for a nice project Dave, that way you end up with a complete car and save the utter ball ache of trying to source parts (been there, tried it and eventually gave up - Mk1 Mini). You also end up with a car that is not a 'bitsa'.

I picked up a really nice, and totally complete and original, early Plus 2 project for a very resonable price which I'm currently on with - it's definately the way to go.

[JonB]

Dave

Join Club Lotus and ask for advice regarding these shells you’re looking at. There’s a chap there who is the DVLA “expert witness” and he can tell you how registering a car with a shady past will go. After all, DVLA will approach him when considering your case.

You can buy a blank VIN plate from the usual suppliers, and the body’s identity can often be found in various other places; for example, on the back of the glovebox, on the saddle felt or etched into the inner door skins. So, you can usually determine the unit number of the car and this is the basis of the VIN.

You can do this, but as I said before, maybe you’re better off buying a complete car to restore.

[DreamBuilderiHope]

Hi Thanks All!!!


I love this Group!

Now, Some people have come forward with a body shell and chassis/Vin plate Details (Being checked out) and quite a few bits that are from the car so that's looks hopeful.
SO the project may be still going ahead after all!

Regards,
Dave.

[billwill]

Who cares if its a kit car, a salvage, or self identifies as a pencil car
If its what you want, build it, register however, and enjoy the drive

My perspective is a bit different than others on originality, i have brought 7 cars and 6 bikes back from the dead. Still have them, and wouldn’t trade them because i want them.

My post was not about originality. AFAIK, DVLA insist on a very thorough engineering inspection on kit cars and they have to conform to standards that did not exist for the Elans.

So there would be an awful lot of hassle and if you had to have a brand new identification, from the DVLA you would end up with a car that was not of any significant value and might not even look much like an Elan.

[JonB]

An Elan is capable of passing the IVA, maybe with modifications.

But this is moot. I believe that you would be OK and not require an IVA for a restoration with questionable provenance. Just get the Club involved. Worst case, you get a Q plate. But you’d be on the road!

Come on Dave, you set yourself a real challenge. Don’t give up now!

[SimonH]

You can register a car that didn’t exist as a rebuilt classic if it’s made from parts at least 25 years old and original so there is a route for a car to appear. That doesn’t require an iva to be passed.
Tbh the honesty title of this post and then going on about trying to buy a chassis plate and make a car up from parts to bypass any checks, as I read it, is a little bit of a double standard but maybe I misunderstood. Anyway good luck building your bitsa and have fun doing it