1965 Lotus Elan S 1.5 on 2040-cars
Des Plaines, Illinois, United States
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Summer time is here! Time to get out and enjoy the back roads. And what better way to enjoy springtime driving than with a 1965 Series 1.5 Lotus Elan. Yes, this is a very rare Series 1.5. Some people say the S1 was the best Elan, some thought the S2 was better. Here you have the best of both worlds. As some of you know, the late great Colin Chapman would use up all his old parts before he switched to the new parts. So on this car he had run out of the 2 piece dash with a separate glove box and switched to the 1 piece dash with an integrated glove box. But it still has the round tail lights that came on the original S1. Thus you have a series 1.5. I'm selling this car for my friend who is a great wrench and does some amazing things with fiberglass, but he struggles painfully with a pc. So this is one of his daily summer drive toy cars. Time to thin the herd for some parking space so this one was tagged to go. This car was in a nasty accident about 15 years ago but it was bought back from the dead and properly rebuilt. The frame was straightened and reinforced. The back of the body was sawed off and a new/used rear clip was professionally grafted on by the owner at Fiberglass Solutions in Addison Illinois. The car was then professionally painted by the local paint shop down the street. The car has been driven as often as the weather allowed since it was rebuilt. The Twin Cam, weber head engine starts easy and runs well. The car handles fine and gets lots of thumbs up and double takes wherever it is driven. The dark green cloth seats are a bit overstuffed so they are comfortable. Trans was rebuilt and shifts great. New drive donuts were installed about 7 years ago. The problematic headlight vacuum system was replaced with real nifty gas struts. Miniature versions of what holds up the back of a hatchback. You pop up the headlight pods when you want the lights on at night and pop them back down when you don't. Adjustable height coil over shocks in the back. Clutch and brakes are good. Clutch master and slave cylinders were recently rebuilt. Convertible top is old but complete. It has a few patches but it keeps out at least 80 of the rain. Rear fenders have slight flares. Stock generator was replaced with an alternator. Now the warts. The paint is just so-so. It has some scratches and chips and a few cracks here and there. A little TLC would make it better. The engine starts easy and runs good but it is a bit lumpy. Could maybe use a good carb tune up. There are the usual engine oil leaks. Nothing terrible but you want to stay away from fresh concrete driveways. As
this is a Lotus, there will be a certain amount of
fiddling you will have to do on a regular basis. The car has adjustable coil overs in the rear, so it can and has a little larger tires.
If you follow ebay, you will have seen plenty of "project" Elans go for $15-$20k. Why buy a chopped up car that is missing parts and hasn't run in years when you can buy this one, drive it and enjoy it right away and tinker with it later!
Email any questions. We encourage you to come out for a test drive!
We could not find the real VIN number as we were writing this up. We will update it later....... |
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Auto blog
Lotus Esprit all but ready to go, but held back by management issues
Mon, 26 Nov 2012Brief and disappointing is this report from Autocar on the status of the Lotus Esprit: it is finally ready and sitting at the light, but the light might not go green for a long time. The good news is that from being a concept two years ago at the Paris Motor Show, the aluminum and carbon fiber revival coupe is "purportedly almost finished." It is powered by a twin-turbo, 5.0-liter V8 with something like 650 horsepower, boosted by a kinetic energy recovery system (KERS) and shifting through a seven-speed paddleshift transmission. Even with all that, the UK price is said to be around that of a Porsche 911 4S Cabriolet, and the car only needs "signing off and minor tweaking."
The bad news is that former company owner Proton couldn't stay independent long enough to see through the company's ambitious five-concept-car assault - led by then-CEO Dany Bahar who was hired explicitly to lead such a campaign - and was swallowed up by Malaysian auto supplier DRB-Hicom. For a brief spell Lotus had to shut down production for lack of funds. Then the new owner cleaned house, sweeping out Bahar and, according to the Financial Times just one month ago, the Esprit and every other concept with it. Just after the FT piece came out, Lotus denied the Esprit had been canceled. Still, according to Autocar, the management whirlpool is keeping the Esprit "far from becoming a production reality."
If we're honest with ourselves, we'll keep in mind that the Esprit has been slipping into and out of a terminal ether for what seems like decades. None of us knows what is going on inside Hethel HQ, but the fact that there really is a lightweight, twin-turbo, 650-hp Lotus Esprit finally ready to be produced has to be, in spite of all else, very good news.
Next Lotus Elise to draw from its roots
Wed, Jul 27 2016Recently-appointed Lotus CEO Jean-Marc Gales told Autocar that work on the new Lotus Elise, which is coming in 2020, is already underway, and thanks to growing sales, the automaker is set to make a profit for the first time in 20 years. Gales also dropped some details about the new sports cars' design philosophy and underpinnings. According to the report, the new Elise will utilize the same aluminum chassis technology found in the original Elise and won't bear any resemblance to the 2010 Elise concept. Instead, the upcoming vehicle will uphold its roots with a lightweight design that emphasizes driver involvement at an affordable price. The new Elise is rumored to weigh in at roughly 1,984 pounds, almost 384 pounds more than the original Elise. In order to meet US crash ratings, the Elise will most likely be wider, but have the same length as the current model. Power will probably come from a Toyota unit producing between 134 horsepower and 245 horsepower. The Elise is expected to come to the US where it will be offered with a manual and automatic transmission, which will both come from Toyota as well. Gales claims Lotus has more orders now than in any year in the last 10 years, with the US being one of the automaker's most important markets. Related Video:
Lotus Evora GX to race in U.S. Grand-Am series
Thu, 26 Jul 2012The Lotus Evora has taken many forms as a race car over the past few years, starting in 2009 with the Type 124 Endurance Racer built for the FIA GT. Since then, Lotus has developed a GT4 Cup version designed for a one-make series, the Evora GTE that currently competes in the GT class of the ALMS and the recently introduced Evora GTC.
Now, Lotus has released the Evora GX, a variation of the GTC tweaked to specifically meet the requirements of Grand-Am's new GX class that will launch at the start of the 2013 race season. While the two cars are very similar, using the same lightweight carbon fiber and plexiglass bodywork, the GX version gets a thicker U.S.-spec roll cage, a revised front splitter and bumper, a standard Grand-Am rear wing, yellow headlights and a new fuel filler system. ABS and traction control have also been removed per Grand-Am regulations.
Pricing for the Evora GX is listed at $335,000 with each one built to order, and one customer has already taken the plunge. McMahon Raceworks has placed an order and should have the car on the starting grid at the first race next year.