how reliable are the elans?

[newelisefan]

i can foresee the answers already....
if it's a lotus, it'll be in the shop a lot

but by a lot, do we mean espirit alot or elise alot?

[mopho]

Which Elan are you talking about, the original model 26 Elan or the M100 Elan

[lotuscar]

My M100 Elan has been very reliable. I understand that parts are becoming scarce.

[TimMullen]

Originally Posted by newelisefan

how reliable are the elans?

Actually, they can be very reliable - if you start with a good one, and take car of it.

When I first got my '72 Elan (in '76), it was pretty much my only transportation for several years. It even did a cross country trip (Southern California to North Carolina and back) averaging 85 MPH without any problems at all.

I did have to constantly repairs things when I first got it - the previous owners had not taken car of it. You have to take care of the Elan - do all the regular maintenance, and do it right. Failing brake seals because previous owners used regular brake fluid (instead of the Girling Castrol), clutch slave cylinder that failed regularly because a previous owner had installed one that was slightly larger in diameter, burnt valve because the previous owners had never bothered to adjust the valves (which required removing the cams and replacing shims with a different thickness), and... well, you get the idea.

But once sorted out and well cared for, the Elan can be very reliable.

But you will expect to do a valve job every 40-50 thousand miles, and an engine rebuild every 80-100 miles - it's just the nature of the engine.

[RegGuy]

Originally Posted by TimMullen

But you will expect to do a valve job every 40-50 thousand miles, and an engine rebuild every 80-100 miles - it's just the nature of the engine.

Sorry Tim, but re-read the latter part of that last sentence.

Talk about a heavy burdon on the daily driver.

[charliex]

The m100s are reliable too, its an isuzu motor with mostly GM parts, so its pretty much available everywhere. Dave bean engineering carry most of the parts, and lotus will help you find stuff for it. i've got a spare tranny out back (post op) and a bunch of other stuff, if i hear of a wrecked car thats parted out for sale i usually try to get the better stuff.

the body work is obviously the big deal you can still get the clams but a rebuild might be cheaper.

i've never had an actual break down, though to be technically correct (the best kind) i did once drive to the dealership with a stuck master cylinder and locked brakes, but since i was changing out my brake system anyway. the smoke was pretty cool as were the glowing red brakes.

and douglas valley breakers have lots of m100s on their racks.

[srwhitman]

As Charlie noted, M100 is very reliable. Parts are a mix of GM and Isuzu. I've found that other than the engine bay being a bit cramped, it is relatively pain free to deal with. In fact, I'd argue its the most reliable exotic sports car there is. That is, until the Elise. I'm thinking of selling mine. I haven't used it as much since I bought my Elise. I was using it when I had another exotic because that one had gas mileage that was in the toilet and the Elan was cheap to run.

[GaryD]

If you are buying an old one, as Tim says, it will probably need to have a lot of stuiff done to start with - especially if the previous owner let it sit around... Anything with seals might need rebuilding (brakes and brake master clutch slave and master etc). Its an easy car to work on though - I did all my own work for many years and, like Tim, had it as my only car for.. hmmm... about 15 years.

The thing that finally got mine to be fairly bullet proof was a I had someone rewire the car and then I installed an MSD ignition... after that all the little Lucas ground fault gremlins and general wierdness were gone and I could count on it every day rain/snow or shine. The old Elans are a lot of fun. Good luck!