The Elan is well known as one of the sweetest-handling classic sports cars, but like most Lotus cars, it’s not known for it’s robustness. The good thing about buying a good driver like this one is that most or even all of the bugs will have been worked out – if the owner has been conscientious. This example is located in Scottsdale, Arizona and is for sale here on eBay with a buy-it-now price of $25,000. The seller is also inviting lower offers. This Elan has the famed Lotus twin-cam based on a Ford block. There’s a small crack in the fiberglass near the driver’s side headlight and the seller reports some scratches and wear, but the car really looks great overall. The ad says to check back later for a more thorough description – I’ll be doing just that.
It looks pretty good, with a better interior than I remember seeing in any other Elan I’ve looked into lately. But I don’t think the seller has done himself any favors with that brief description and a promise of more information….sometime.
I’m guessing it will take more than a promise like that to get someone more than a day’s drive away from Scottsdale to part with 25 grand or anything close. But I hope it goes to someone who appreciates C.C’s early cars. They were special.
Whenever I see an early Elan like this I can’t help but remember Peter Egan’s story of a trip from Wisconsin down to New Orleans I think it was, with his wife in their Elan, on secondary roads, with things that either fell off or stopped working, like the windshield wipers in a downpour. And he acknowledged that he restored the car. Vintage, classic Peter Egan.