Lotus Elan and Lotus Elan Plus 2 Forums

Does anyone in the US, probably CA, know the car mentioned above? Damage on the LH side font edge of the door.


Ian

Sure looks like Sabots



He might have chimed in

Looks like the car is in nice condition apart from the apparently very minor damage.

I hope someone is able to work out a deal.

Ian

If I didn't already have a Plus 2 I'd be VERY tempted!

viewtopic.php?f=51&t=49198

Really sad news, but he was on the hunt for a Élan anyway.
I hope he got a good buyout.

I probably shouldn’t be posting this, so feel free to tell me or remove it.

My guess is the mounts for the door hinge are toast

As the most recent owner (former) of “Kermit” it’s sad to see it in a salvage auction, however the car deserves to be on the road and it would be terrific to see the car back running. The backstory to the salvage auction is that I was hit by a driver that ran a stop sign. Thankfully the other vehicle wasn’t traveling all that quickly but the damage is far more extensive than it looks in the insurance auction pictures. I’ll list all of the damage that I’m aware of and then any other information about the car prior to the accident.

Accident damage:
Passenger door will require replacement. Electric window still works and was intact but the door hinge mounts were pushed in and the internal door hinge is banana shaped
Left hand side sill reinforcement is bent and the inner fiberglass sill is slightly deformed, and although the outer fiberglass sill popped back into place the outer sill fiberglass will have delaminated
Left hand front wing is extensively cracked as is the wheel arch.
Lower sill trim was bent but I put it in the car when it was collected
It’s not obvious on the pictures and the insurance auction are being highly disingenuous by not reporting the chassis damage.
The front left side of the chassis was distorted in the accident.
The left hand wheel camber is neg 3 degrees (0-1 is normal and that’s what the opposite side is) the top of front left chassis upright has been pushed in by about 10mm and front chassis cross member was kinked and the front left trunnion is moved 15mm forward. The accident broke the rubber engine mount on the left side and the chassis is cracked at the engine mount.
Not associated with the accident but the tow company that collected the car put it on a suspended (front) tow and while lifting it on the dolly there were a few heavy crunches from under the car.
I didn’t check for cracks or distortion but if I was going to rebuild the car I would factor in new uprights and trunnions and possibly a steering rack

Other issues with the car that were not accident-related:
The front crankshaft seal leaked which caused it to “mark it’s territory” in a typically lotus style.
Despite having an appropriate anti-sizzle bush on the gearstick the transmission sizzled on over run between about 3300rpm and 2800rpm
There were a few small osmosis blisters in the paint on the nose
Wiper blades needed replaced

Other points of note:
The car is currently on rotoflex coupling driveshafts, I have new CV driveshafts for it and can explain in PM why they are not on the car
There are a couple of other minor points about the car that I’m happy to discuss with anyone interested in buying it.
I never got around to fitting the inertia cut off for the electric fuel pump but it is wired in series with the internal autolec
I have all of the original parts that I replaced during my refurbishment of the car

Now for the good news (in no particular order)
I had done a fair amount of work on the car to make it a capable and comfortable GT.
Very strong, if slightly leaky, big valve engine, and pre-accident drove very nicely.
We’ll set up stromberg carbs
All the electrical systems worked perfectly
It has dynamatt and 1/2” underfelt fitted throughout the car (it was a quiet drive)
Had new inertia real seatbelts fitted
New carpets throughout
New front brake disks
Rebuilt electronic revcounter that will detect modern electronic ignition when fitted
New headliner (yes it was a PIA to fit but it came out great)
Electric headlight lift motor fitted and worked great (another PIA job to set up properly)
K&N front filter fitted
New air horn and radiator fan
Additional relays and fuses fitted to all high-load circuits e.g. windows, fan, lights etc.
Electric fuel pump
Autolec battery cut off put in where the cigar lighted usually is (autolec key was with the car when it went to salvage)
New tires aground including the original steel spare wheel in the trunk
Fabricated and recovered center console
New hydraulic seals throughout
Twin new 2:1 ratio Lockheed brake servos (I still have the refurbished 3:1 ratio Girling mk2b servos but found they added a bit too much servo assistance for my liking)
Under bonnet heat shielding
New locking fuel cap (key was also on the ring given to the salvage company)
Front and rear bumpers were rechromed and other aluminum parts were professionally polished
Very nice dash with matched radio blanking plate.

Given all of the above you might wonder why I didn’t buy the salvage rights from the insurer. Very simple; for me the non-negotiable residual value that the insurance company suggested to me didn’t make it economically viable to repair properly, even assuming I did a fair chunk of the work and repaired value was ~$30-40k, which is slightly debatable given it will have a California salvage title.

For full disclosure I’ll likely watch the auction and, depending on how it goes, I might be tempted to bid on it and put it in storage until I retire, but I do have some other projects including a mk14 Elite that also require my attention.
I would love to see “Kermit” back on the road and appreciated and the description above is to help anybody who has the time, energy and replacement parts to do this. It’s also to ensure that if the car happens to be bought and bodged back together to flip without replacing the chassis that the community knows the history of the car and the extent of the damage.

Hi,

Thank you for such a detailed description of your car and the unfortunate events. I think it would be a tough rebuild given all the damage. Given your knowledge you’d probably be the only one who could do it justice.

Ian

I suppose, “Salvage” is in the eye of the beholder
While most do not know the originality of their car, one could argue. That, if a car has had any glass fibre repair any insurance company at a point in history might deem it salvage. Further, State, Provincial, County etc laws and rules that deem a “salvage” can vary. As I have mentioned before, medical bills, towing, storage, auction etc fees can make a vehicle “salvage” even with zero damage.

Glad you and yours are okay Sabbot (bb)

Salvage is a financial condition not a mechanical one. A repair can always be done usually just as good as OEM. A savage title means almost nothing on some vehicles, I’d suggest this would be one of those vehicles.

I had a salvage Elise, bought from WireWheel, it was perfect in every way. I’ve also rebuilt two salvage motorcycles, 2 Ducati’s and an MV Agusta. When they were finished they were as good as new. One Ducati took a bit of a price hit because it was a newer bike, the others I don’t think suffered at all.

If you loved it, and the auction price is acceptable, it’d be a great project for retirement.

Ian

Salvage is a financial condition not a mechanical one.

Sure, and if there is no damage to a vehicle (no appraisal necessary).
I had a 2018 BMW S1000RR, guy had a heart attack but saved it. Laid it on the guard rail, so almost zero damage (some plastic).
Chopper arrived, $20k
Bike from south USA, and even with IAAN CoPart etc. It was a total loss and destroyed.
It’s a fun track bike now. Might be ripe for a Lotus 7.

This car was gorgeous. Its color in pictures doesn't due it justice. Salvage title should not deter anyone from taking on this on this project. Most Elans have been reborn from a salvage condition.