Lotus Elan and Lotus Elan Plus 2 Forums

Hi all,

I am from Ingolstadt / Germany and currently considering adding an Elan +2 to my Morris Minor. I am interested in purchasing a car in good condition (dont want to start a rolling restoration) and from the information provided this car offered by PembrokeshireClassic could fit the bill:

http://www.pembrokeshireclassicinvestme ... cle_id=347

Has anyone on the Forum seen this car yet or knows something about its history/condition? I am happy to invest time/money to get the car to Ingolstadt if its in a good condition, but not really if it has a lot of issues popping up when I first see it.

I would be very grateful if anyone could provide me with any additional information on the car.

Hi Stephan,

Welcome to the forum. I dont know about this car but I was in Paul Matty Sports cars (Bromsgrove, Nr Birmingham) last week getting some parts and walked past a very very nice red Plus 2 that (I think) was about ?14.95K or near. You may want to consider that if it is still there and you do a trip. No connection but Paul and his team are good guys and he does seem to pick some nice motors.

http://www.paulmattysportscars.co.uk/home.aspx

Mike

Stephan,

I understand that you want to buy a car that you do not want to carry out any work on, but buying a car from a dealer, in your situation, does not seem the way to go to me.

You will be paying a premium of about ?3k for a car from a dealer, on an asking price of ?15k. But the reason most people buy from a dealer, is because they want a warranty. You will be taking any car you buy, back to Germany, so any warranty that you get with a dealer bought car, will be worthless to you, as you would be required to return the car back to the dealer, should you need any work carried out under warranty.

So why pay a premium. Bide your time and wait till a great car comes along privately. You will get a better deal.

Good luck,

Leslie

RHD and after market sunroof. Are there no left hookers in Germany for sale?

mike

Thanks all for posting your thoughts. While I can follow them and agree partly, some comments:

Regarding the dealer premium:

You are probably right regarding the premium and the guarantee. The way I see it I am just looking at a car and decide if the asking price is ok with me (of course in respect of the condition) or not. Yes I would probably get the same cheaper from private seller. But on the other hand if the dealer is for example known as trustworthy ( there are some car dealers that are ) the risk of turning up to buy it and find something totally different than advertised is somewhat lower, since he does not know if he will get a British customer or a foreign one beforehand so does have to suspect he will be liable to garantie claims. And going to Britain in vain could easily cost a good chunk of the dealer premium. I know dealers being reliable is not always the case, being long enough in the game, but sometimes buying from them helps. That does not mean I despise private offers (esp if people are known in the community), just that I do include dealer ones.

Regarding RHD:

Yes, I would take a LHD one. If its original and not cobbled together. But those are rare finds and due to this usually command a 20% premium. In fact prices for LHD Elans start with around 22.000 Euros here in Germany, though they might go down a bit in winter. I am used to drive a RHD, with my Morris still being one after 15 years of owning it, despite complete conversion kirs being offered. Though I do agree the Lotus has the difference of being able to go fast and overtaking on winding roads much more often then the Morris .

Regarding the aftermarket sunroof:

To be honest I see it more as an asset then a liability. For me it does deal with one of the main disadvantages of the Elan +2, being hot inside in summer. And thats when I mainly drive my classics. I have an aftermarket sliding sunroof installed in my Morris, and this being the only non original modification I felt necessary for a car that a good percentage of owners do modify in one way or the other. And I am enjoying it massivly. In fact the roof was one point that drew me to this particular car. If I would have to install one I would have to pay between 1.500 to 2.000 Euros.

Stephan

Hi Stephan
Welcome to the forum.

In the Lotus world at least converting a Plus 2 from RHD to LHD would be seen as a normal thing to do if moving the car to a LHD part of the world. Driving pleasure is what Lotus is about, not matching numbers and total originality. The conversion itself is very simple as the cars were originally designed for both and involve a new steering rack and dash board and not much else. it s been done often and many people on the forum can give you more details.


cheers
Rohan

Thanks for the hint Rohan,

I will definatly look into it. As with the sunroof, while I enjoy driving classic cars and not wanting to make a 2013 version out of it its not ALL about originality. If there are professional solutions availiable that result in the same as an original LHD car that could be considered. If anyone joining in is able to point me towards where to get the parts and what cost/time involved, I would be gratefull ti have that information.

Hi Stephan

Rohan is right, the conversion is a simple work .. that?s the theory !
It might be a little longer depending on what you find behind the dashboard or every removed part!
I?m involved for 2 years and I had to renew the wiring loom and many other parts but it?s a pleasant work to do. You don?t need to be an expert, and it makes you meet kind people who share the same passion.
About the part you need I would just add a steering column bracket, a LHD handbrake or a KM/H speedo ? But you can do without them and the chase is another pleasant game

About cost, the dash board was made by Margaret Cuthbert, she did a fantastic work for a low price
Have a look on the thread about my car :

lotuselan-plus2-f51/plus-tyg862f-t29833.html*

Good luck
Franck

Thanks Rohan for the link to your Elan. I will definatly considering the LHD conversion, though maybe at some later point (I set myself a budget for purchase & yearly maintanance/upgrades; did the same for the Minor and it worked out).

May I ask if you could end me a PM what the dashboard costed. Seems from your enquiry it was a kind of one of for them.