Itching to get an Elan

[mopho]

Originally Posted by FunElan

What's the deal with those Europas? I didn't know of a 47R, I knew just of a 47.

R= Replica, Reproduction, Recreation

The Real Type 47's were built between 1966-68 and there was a type 47A, 47F, & 47D (V8 Powered)
Banks Europa is pretty well known for making bad ass resto-mod Europa's that are based on the original type 47 concept

[peck555]

I miss my Elans

[FunElan]

Those Europa's do look pretty sweet.

[Alii Kai]

Had a 63 Elan, most fun I've ever had with a car, exept when it decided not to run. Make sure you get the Weber carbs, not the Strombergs, and check the wishbone chasis for any rust, water could build up in the old ones and had nowhere to go.Believe that was one of the first cars that actually made Colin any money.

Best of luck,
SB Elise SC

[glb]

I think the Elan is the best "classic" Brit sports car ever made.

Comfortable, incredibly responsive, a real trunk (and spare), the best-shifting trans I ever had, even lower wt than an Elise, good ride, excellent handling, great brakes. (Even really good heat in winter.)

I agree w/above: avoid Strombergs (or buy a Weber head, or have Dave Bean convert it).

Admittedly, mine was heavily modified (Sypder chassis, suspension, real axle conversion, +2 frt brakes, lots of hp, etc.), I (repeat) that I characterized it as "the best of both worlds": classic great looks, modern performance.

Even if you want to keep the car pretty stock, I'd recommend a rear axle conversion to eliminate one donut (rotoflex) per side. Makes the car smoother and easier to drive and, with the Spyder version at least, if one of the remaining donuts lets go, the axle won't flail thru the car and destroy it.

(In 1969, a dealer drove the 1st leg of my test drive. He power-shifted into 2nd. Donut let go. 45 min walk back to dealership. Years later, I ran into him and he told me car was totaled. BTW, I bought a BMW 2002.)

Feel free to ask me any advice, as I owned mine for 20 years and had 130k on it when it sold. I miss it. Let me down only once, due to eng builder error.

If you go ahead, buy the manual on www.rebuildingalotuselan.com. Expensive ($150), but everyone raves about it.

A friend sells it, I think. David@chelsealit.com

The fellow who bought my car LOVES it. I have right of 1st refusal.

Series 4s weigh a bit more, earlier versions lighter but w/fewer amenities.

For a while, I had a 7 and the Elan. I almost always drove the Elan, not the 7.

Trust us, the Elan is a wonderful car.

[kestrel74]

This guy wasn't in a hurry to sell his, I'm sure he still has it.

http://www.elisetalk.com/forums/showthread.php?t=28058

[babak]

Morgan,
I have been watching that 63, looks great, specially the interior. Murphy's law, when you're trying to learn about something so that you can get one later one lands in your lap. I don't have room for one yet.
The Europas looks great too, but a lot higher than I thought they would go for.

[darkSol]

Bobby, have you read this yet?

It may help...

BTW, if you get one I want a ride/drive...

[flyguyskt]

Banks does some gnarly stuff with europas...if you can afford it! they can get very pricey! i looked into them wow!

[babak]

Originally Posted by darkSol

Bobby, have you read this yet?

It may help...

BTW, if you get one I want a ride/drive...

Hadn't seen it, thanks.

[TimMullen]

Originally Posted by codymac

call me nuts, but I'd prefer an FHC.

Okay, you are nuts. Drop top is the only way to go!!

A couple of things, the Elan forum has been pointed out, but you should also check the Elan group on Yahoo Groups - there's a lot of traffic and lots of technical data.

The Webber head/carbs is cooler than the Stromberg head/carbs, but the reality is that the Stromberg's are better. You really have to know what you are doing to tune the Webbers, and they are not as smooth across the broad rpm bands. The Strombergs are much easier to tune (actually there isn't much that you can do to tune them), and they are very flexible on the power delivery.

Yea, you might get a little bit more power from the Webbers/Dellortros (used on later versions), but the Strombergs are more practical and give better driveability.

The Elan will require lots of maintenance, but it's simple and easy to work on. Most parts are relatively cheap, but some are unobtainium - but normal wear items are readily available. My Elan was my only transportation when I first bought it 30 some years ago. I was it's third of forth owner, and it was only four years old at the time. I did lots of repairs to the car, but they were all a result of poor (or incompetent) maintenance by the previous owners (by the way, DPO means Dreaded Previous Owner - it's a term you will learn well when you buy a Elan and sign up for the mailing list). But my Elan never let me down, never broke down, and that included a California to East Coast and back trip one summer (overall speed averaged 83+ MPH for the entire trip). They are a great car, but they have all the disadvantages of the Elise - small, fragile, and invisible, without the advantage of the "forget about it" reliability of the Toyota engine in the Elise.

By the way, here's mine http://members.cox.net/elans4/ and it is not now, and never will be for sale.

[lotiguy]

i'm cosidering parting with my 1967 S3....
http://qcma.org/modules.php?full=1&s...view_photo.php
it's modified for better use though
weber engine
cams
header
pertronix ing
LSD diff
u-jointed axles
flares
13x6/7" revolutions
235/45/13 kumho V70 r-compound tires
5 pointed belt
"autopower" 4-point roll bar
1540lbs/approx 140hp.
i guy in a Boxter S hated me "honking" the horn at him through the twisties at a trackday this spring
if interested contact lotiguy@sasktel.net
see ya gord

[kyohan03]

I've owned or been around a lot of Lotus over the years, and know a lot of guys w/Elans.

I had forgotten just how small they are though, until this past summer when an Elan in Gold Leaf livery was parked directly next to my Elise at a British Car Day outside of Philly. The Elise dwarfed the Elan. The difference in size was striking.

[codymac]

Originally Posted by TimMullen

Okay, you are nuts. Drop top is the only way to go!!

Yup, I am! Still want an FHC though!

[stan340r]

and you can re-create a dhc from a fhc...

[glb]

Originally Posted by TimMullen

Okay, you are nuts. Drop top is the only way to go!!

A couple of things, the Elan forum has been pointed out, but you should also check the Elan group on Yahoo Groups - there's a lot of traffic and lots of technical data.

The Webber head/carbs is cooler than the Stromberg head/carbs, but the reality is that the Stromberg's are better. You really have to know what you are doing to tune the Webbers, and they are not as smooth across the broad rpm bands. The Strombergs are much easier to tune (actually there isn't much that you can do to tune them), and they are very flexible on the power delivery.

Yea, you might get a little bit more power from the Webbers/Dellortros (used on later versions), but the Strombergs are more practical and give better driveability.


The Elan will require lots of maintenance, but it's simple and easy to work on. Most parts are relatively cheap, but some are unobtainium - but normal wear items are readily available. My Elan was my only transportation when I first bought it 30 some years ago. I was it's third of forth owner, and it was only four years old at the time. I did lots of repairs to the car, but they were all a result of poor (or incompetent) maintenance by the previous owners (by the way, DPO means Dreaded Previous Owner - it's a term you will learn well when you buy a Elan and sign up for the mailing list). But my Elan never let me down, never broke down, and that included a California to East Coast and back trip one summer (overall speed averaged 83+ MPH for the entire trip). They are a great car, but they have all the disadvantages of the Elise - small, fragile, and invisible, without the advantage of the "forget about it" reliability of the Toyota engine in the Elise.

By the way, here's mine http://members.cox.net/elans4/ and it is not now, and never will be for sale.

I'm afraid I must agree and disagree with Tim.

I wouldn't own a small car w/o an open top, but Tim and my preferences are personal.

Strombergs are not better at all. Diaphrams go, alcohol in gas attacks them and they do not stay in tune. OTOH, once I set up my (two sets) of Webers, they never needed anything else.

Both my 40DCOEs (156hp) and 45DCOEs (170 hp) were wonderfully tractable, pulling cleanly from 2000 rpm w/o hiccup or surge. I have heard the "driveablity" saw for years and have not seen proof of it. I have many friends with Stromberg Elans, many w/Webers too. Have driven all their cars and, trust me, Webers are the way to go.

This is why Lotus decided to bring back production of Weber heads, and why Dave Bean converts Stromberg head to Webers. No one has ever asked for a conversion in the opposite direction.

Tim is right again, about DPO, reliability, etc. Lots have been written about Elans. Gordon Murray says they tried to emulate the Elan steering on the McLaren F1, but couldn't. Someone wrote that it's the only car that, on a twisty road, can average 70mph without exceeding 70. (Paraphrase)

My Elan was as fast as my Elise in certain gears, situations. Handling and braking were superb. The Elan's handling is limited only by its narrow track, which is why some add fender flares. (I don't like them, but again, this is personal taste.)

On a track day @ Pocono (during which I hit 132 mph), I put 100 miles on it just on the track. I took a long backroads drive home (vs highway). That's how much I loved driving it.

PS: Elan is way more comfortable than Elise, w/a useable trunk to boot (sorry).

[Series 2 Elite]

Originally Posted by mopho

The only time my Elan has left me stranded is when the throttle cable broke, but I knew it was on it's last legs and went out for a drive anyway

the reputation of unreliability is over inflated, if you maintain them, they can be reliable.

Amen, I've put well over 110,000 miles on my +2S (over 150,000 on the clock now including previous owners). It certainly has not been trouble free but I have never been delayed more than 15 minutes on the road.

[FunElan]

Strombergs here :Wave:

They have not been much trouble. In the past 2 years we've definately spent more time driving our Elan than fixing it. Not many things needed fixing, but when something broke, we fixed it.

We are fixing our Dash, Crash pad, and windsheild seal at this very moment. (They didn't break, we just thought we should repair them).

The Elan is very comfortable. Way easier to get in and out of than an Elise. And if someone can't see you on the road, just remember that they'll probably hear you.

[mopho]

Originally Posted by lotiguy

i guy in a Boxter S hated me "honking" the horn at him through the twisties at a trackday this spring

I had the same thing happen when I was behind a souped up Miata on Mulholland Dr, except my horn was blowing around the corners because of a bad ground

[Alii Kai]

If you're going to get an early Elan, pre 68 or so, make sure you change out the starter motor. My 63 had an MGA starter, bendix gear would go out all the time, something to do with compression ratio between the two engines, MGA starter wasn't up to the task. Other than that, a fine ride, exept when you had to push start it, thankfully it's very light, makes the Elise look like a behemoth:
Best of luck,
May get one again myself, Babak, I'll hold you responsible for planting the idea.