Vintage Lotus cars rarely fail to disappoint on the Gee-I-haven’t-seen-one-of-those-lately meter, and this 1977 Lotus Eclat Sprint is no exception. Known more commonly as a Sprint due to some branding issues around the Eclat nameplate, this car has been off the road for 20 years out in California, and the seller has recently gotten it to fire back up. This is good news, but there’s still a long ways to go before it’s roadworthy. Find the Eclat here on eBay with a $5,500 Buy-It-Now.
Wearing surprisingly decent blue paint over some tasty period BBS-style wheels, the Sprint’s fastback-style body looks like it’s at speed when sitting still, a fairly common Lotus design hallmark. The model was based on Lotus’ famed Elite, and provided snappy handling with decent fuel economy, and the fastback body increased luggage capacity in an otherwise cramped car. Rust issues were a headache with Series 1 cars in the rear chassis area due to a design flaw; no word on the health of this car’s.
Like so many Lotuses of this generation, the seller notes the interior will need full restoration. It seems Lotus used very brittle materials in its cars, underscoring the somewhat rudimentary construction of cockpit areas. As you can see, trim above the transmission tunnel and driver-facing dashboard panels have deteriorated significantly, and we can’t see the condition of the dashboard. At least this is a manual transmission car, as an automatic was offered.
My personal favorite Sprint (or Eclat, whichever you prefer) wears the tasty flat-face, or “Turbo”-style alloy wheels. This one looks reasonably complete and the interior condition can be forgiven if the trouble spots for rust in the chassis can be eliminated as a potential concern. Other issues the seller notes include an oil leak near the upper valve cover and shoddy brakes. The list price seems reasonable but the option exists to submit a best offer; would you try and save this Sprint?
This Eclat has lost its shine.
(bilingual joke ;) )
Colin Chapman, when asked how he intended to get more performance out of Lotus’ Formula 1 offering at the time, said (paraphrasing): “The way to increase speed is to simplify, then add lightness”. That is the Lotus philosophy.
Their engines are jewellike masterpieces (usually), but their body/chassis combinations everywhere reflect Chapman’s philosophy.
Mr. Chapman continued: “Adding power makes you faster on the straights; subtracting weight makes you faster everywhere”.
I love Lotus. As most on this site know, I’m a big engine fanatic. But Lotus is the exception.
Anyone who fully experiences Lotus, becomes addicted.
Some of the designers of the Elise followed the same philosophy.
If you’ve got a couple of hours to kill this is a good watch:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TZ5lxms9xuw
Go figure, they rode Ducks…
The original quote is “”Simplicate and add more lightness.” It was penned by Gordon Hooton, then attributed to William Bushnell Stout (for whom Hooton worked) and afterweard adopted by Colin Chapman.
Useless trivia #876
+Patrick D. – Thank you for the correction / enhancement. Thumbs up. I love this peer-reviewed format. We all learn more because of it.
The REAL quote was, “whaddaya’ doin’ buyin’ them dad burn’d (*#! *#&#@!) furrin cars for!?” — Carroll Shelby
Well, my Europa (used) was 1/4 of what a used Cobra cost back then.
I wish that this site had been around in the ’70s- a lot of expertise around here- since it would have saved me from my own-car buying-self. Loved the Europa. Did not like the semis tailgating. Something about looking up at the bottom of the front bumper of a ‘Pete’ in my rear view mirror.
The Europa was to me, a 1/2 scale 250LM.
+Dick Johnson – Speaking of Europa rear view mirrors, at least your view to the rear is unobstructed by large trucks… maybe a little bit by their oil pans.
How, how, how’d you know that? Bet you can tell that I’m still nervous around semis.
A California Lotus with no title.
It seems like trouble to me.
I will pass. ( I still want a Lotus however and this one is only a few hours away. )
We’ll, someday I will find a decent one.
Elite’s the 1 4 me.
(This model’s shooting brake brother).
Sideview of thisun reminds me of Citron>
I worked for a Lotus dealer when this car was new. During the late seventies and eighties Lotus had terrible body and trim build quality. Even still there were only two Lotus models I definitely don’t like, the 80’s Elite and the born again Elan with no resemblance to the giant killer the first Elan. I find the Eclat more interesting now than when it was new. When it was new the Esprit got all the attention.