RE: Lotus Elan M100: Spotted
Discussion
Most hot hatchbacks have twice the power nowadays but a simple piggy back chip gets you to about 200bhp, so certainly brisk enough for our roads. Its the handling where they come into their own.
Brakes are VX Astra GTE spec, need maintenance to ensure they work efficiently but they are OK for the road.
Some parts are getting tricky to source but a lot of stuff can still be sourced with a bit of homework. Mostly bits of trim/seals are difficult to get.
Stainless steel exhausts/upgraded front and rear brakes/performance chips are all available to better performance.
Yes the roof does leak, can be improved as some people have made/modded their own seals to a higher spec. Apparantly Tickford made the original hoods but did so as long as they had nothing to do with making the seals !! The seals are made out of some kind of sponge like material, once the surface has deteriorated they act exactly like a sponge and soak the water up !!
All in all a fun, capable roadster, comfortable and easy to get in and out of, can do longer journeys with ease.
Brakes are VX Astra GTE spec, need maintenance to ensure they work efficiently but they are OK for the road.
Some parts are getting tricky to source but a lot of stuff can still be sourced with a bit of homework. Mostly bits of trim/seals are difficult to get.
Stainless steel exhausts/upgraded front and rear brakes/performance chips are all available to better performance.
Yes the roof does leak, can be improved as some people have made/modded their own seals to a higher spec. Apparantly Tickford made the original hoods but did so as long as they had nothing to do with making the seals !! The seals are made out of some kind of sponge like material, once the surface has deteriorated they act exactly like a sponge and soak the water up !!
All in all a fun, capable roadster, comfortable and easy to get in and out of, can do longer journeys with ease.
Got a white one back in my home country, roughly 10yrs ago cost me about £10,000. It was sweet handling and I could feel it any weaker than my E36 323i. However, it turn into a waterfall under heavy rain when turning into corner, and somehow my Isuzu engine doesn't not have the famous reliability like my NA6 have
This is the only Lotus which leaves me cold.
I very nearly bought one when they first came out and was disappointed by the test drive. I drove one more recently and it was exactly as I remembered it.
It's not a FWD thing - Classic Mini, Fiat Barchetta, Alfa Sud. I like them all. I just found the Elan a bit meh. I lust after an original Elan or a 2007 Europa.
Simon
I very nearly bought one when they first came out and was disappointed by the test drive. I drove one more recently and it was exactly as I remembered it.
It's not a FWD thing - Classic Mini, Fiat Barchetta, Alfa Sud. I like them all. I just found the Elan a bit meh. I lust after an original Elan or a 2007 Europa.
Simon
simonrockman said:
I lust after a .... 2007 Europa.
I was rather disappointed when I had a look at one of those. Expensive hardtop cross between a VX220 and an Elise. Certainly rare though and has a certain novelty value as I can't think when I last saw one on the road, or anywhere else. I've still got the sales leaflet somewhere. I had an M100 sales brochure as well and sent it to an owner I met at Goodwood.
I have just got one to keep my 106 Rallye company ( Thanks Pops if your reading this )....The Elan really is a great drive. Its plenty fast enough ( here in The Netherlands ) and handles well. In this day and age with other 80's/90's cars going skyward the Elan is a bargain...I am certainly loving mine!
SimonTheSailor said:
s m said:
bristolracer said:
There are some that say that the NA version is the sweeter (albeit slower) car.
Who says that?https://www.carandclassic.co.uk/car/C960736
At 15k I'd rather seek out a Lotus turbo though
I went to see the car in the OP today at the dealer in Southampton where it was advertised, but it wasn't there and appears to have been sold, so it cant have been all bad. I'm not currently in the market for one, but I was passing, and always interested to be able to have a look at things like the condition of the roof, seals, chassis, etc, for future reference.
I had an s2 elan in the early 2000 s had very few issues with the car .The seals were a known weak point and the cam angle sensor too played up causing very lumpy running.Had it chipped and a bailey motorsport dump valve fitted went very well.
I remember there being a bit of lag up to 3000rpm then she flew felt just like an old school single turbo car should.The handling was very impressive felt like it just wouldn't let go attacking corners and very predictable too.Ended up buying a noble afterwards but I felt a lot more confident pushing the élan hard on the public rd than the noble plus was nice to have that wind in the hair experience too.
I remember there being a bit of lag up to 3000rpm then she flew felt just like an old school single turbo car should.The handling was very impressive felt like it just wouldn't let go attacking corners and very predictable too.Ended up buying a noble afterwards but I felt a lot more confident pushing the élan hard on the public rd than the noble plus was nice to have that wind in the hair experience too.
benhwilkinson said:
I have just got one to keep my 106 Rallye company ( Thanks Pops if your reading this )....The Elan really is a great drive. Its plenty fast enough ( here in The Netherlands ) and handles well. In this day and age with other 80's/90's cars going skyward the Elan is a bargain...I am certainly loving mine!
That's a nice couple of cars you have there - don't think you'll lose any money on those 2!jnoiles said:
"how does a £6k Elan turbo sound?"
Like a massive liability. And I say this as an S1 Elise owner who is used to shelling out all the time for whatever has died this week.
Having owned an S1 Elise & still owning an Elan Turbo, the Elan in a country mile ahead of the Elise in terms of reliabilityLike a massive liability. And I say this as an S1 Elise owner who is used to shelling out all the time for whatever has died this week.
Beautiful little car. Shame it wasn't more successful. My cousin had a blue S1 turbo when they first came out. I remember thinking that it was nearly as wide as it was long.
Excellent article posted above, another of my £1m garage toys is there - the Panther Solo 2. I've never seen one in real life though.
Excellent article posted above, another of my £1m garage toys is there - the Panther Solo 2. I've never seen one in real life though.
simonrockman said:
This is the only Lotus which leaves me cold.
I very nearly bought one when they first came out and was disappointed by the test drive. I drove one more recently and it was exactly as I remembered it.
It's not a FWD thing - Classic Mini, Fiat Barchetta, Alfa Sud. I like them all. I just found the Elan a bit meh. I lust after an original Elan or a 2007 Europa.
Simon
Simon, go for the Europa, but make sure it's SE spec. As you may be able to tell, I was rather fond of mine.I very nearly bought one when they first came out and was disappointed by the test drive. I drove one more recently and it was exactly as I remembered it.
It's not a FWD thing - Classic Mini, Fiat Barchetta, Alfa Sud. I like them all. I just found the Elan a bit meh. I lust after an original Elan or a 2007 Europa.
Simon
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