D19 TUS - Elan SE (SOLD)

[Artaban]

Spot on with the 550 Maranello, remapped ECU by DMS Automotive to ridiculous BHP and nicknamed Rolling Thunder because it could be heard long before it was seen. The guy in the picture spent 3 days polishing the car and doing all the paint correction and had just finished. Seriously dedicated to his job but produced the most amazing flawless finish.

If I kept the Elan I was going to paint it in this colour.



Your wrong on the other one though. Its a unique colour that I haven't seen before or since on this car. Need to go back before the 456.

Keep guessing.

[maz_r]

Testarossa, methinks?

[Rob P]

deffo testarossa

[lotusflasherman]

Dead Easy ... Testarossa. I can even tell you the Registration Number ...

(Click on the photo and you go to Andy's Photobucket page, go left and there it is in all it's glory.)

[Giniw]

[Graaf]

A difficult decision but its time to make the effort again to sell my car. I've amended the details in the various posts above to include the work I've done on it since Brands Hatch last year. I've also just fitted BCN's gear cables and short shift kit and I've had the suspension geometry checked and adjusted as it is now 8 months after the full suspension rebuild. I have to say the car has never felt better with everything spot on.

The number plate (D19 TUS) is included though I won't make a big thing of it being a personalised plate. After a few beers, in dim light while squinting through the Mrs reading glasses at 50 yards it could read D LOTUS. I wonder who has D10 TUS?

As I'd spent a small fortune on it I was looking for any offers above £10k last year but now looking at £8,250. If someone is looking for a car to just jump in and drive with all the major expenses covered in the past 6 years and all the mods worth having then this is for you. I'll also get it serviced and MOT'd for the new owner.

Happy to post further pics if required.

Andy

I wish that had been the asking price when you first advertised it, I would have snatched your hand off!

[Artaban]

(Click on the photo and you go to Andy's Photobucket page, go left and there it is in all it's glory.)

You are all too clever

For those who are thick like me, here's a pic


Circa 20k miles on the clock when I sold it. Apparently the guy who bought it didn't look after it much. Fantastic colour though and scary on the Cornish roads as it was as wide as most of the lanes.

However A-B on a windy A road I'd take the Elan over either of them. It may not have the presence of the Ferraris but is more dynamic and rewarding to drive and you can't beat top down fun. The 550? well that was trying to kill me. Too much power for the real world.

Now back on topic. Who's going to buy my car?

Andy

[lotusflasherman]

(Click on the photo and you go to Andy's Photobucket page, go left and there it is in all it's glory.)

However A-B on a windy A road I'd take the Elan over either of them. It may not have the presence of the Ferraris but is more dynamic and rewarding to drive and you can't beat top down fun. The 550? well that was trying to kill me. Too much power for the real world.

Andy

One of my friends was the Financial Director (a.k.a.'Company Bean Counter') of Jardine Motors Group / Lancaster who were the Ferrari concessionaire for SE England in the late 80's and he normally used a 'dealer demo' Testarossa, red of course, as his 'tax free' company car. I was running my Eclat Rivera at the time and if I followed him round the Suffolk lanes he was holding me up, if he followed me he became a tiny speck in the rear view mirror. Told him Lotus built for English country lanes, Ferrari for the autostrada... Next time he tried a Porsche 911 Turbo (even smaller speck), then a big BMW (out of sight). Then he turned up in an Audi 200 Quattro and almost kept up but complained it was a boring 3 box shape so went back to the Testarossa. Eclat is a brilliant '4 wheel drifter' but the M100 Elan is 'the next level up'..

Good luck with the sale of an outstanding M100.

[Saltire]

For those who are thick like me, here's a pic

Andy

Well done, fooled me. I was forgetting that the Testarossa (unlike the later 512TR) had retractable headlamps.

I would agree over the Elan comparison though. The issue with so many TR-like cars is width. The best point-to-point car in UK B-road conditions is always going to be a narrow one. The late lamented Mk 1 Scirocco springs to mind.

And no, it isn't better on a motorcycle - or "donor carrier" as my medical friend calls them

And if only you'd been selling the Elan last May, I'd have snapped it up like a shot. As it is, I'm busy reproducing a lot of those mods on the Green Monster GLWTS

[Artaban]

Just popped it on Pistonheads at £7,850 so we'll see who bites.
Andy

[Artaban]

The car is still available though I haven't made much of an attempt to sell it.

In the past few months I've had the steering rack and pump refurbished, new steering column bushes and UJ, oil leak fixed with new rubber cam cover gasket which also meant the cambelt had to be done again. New clear indicator lenses and I acquired an original steering wheel which I've now put on. Misc bits have been added as well taking the grand total of receipts for work done in the past 6 years to just under £20k. I'd be sorry to see it go which is why I haven't tried too hard to sell it but looking around the price (£7,850) is pretty good for all that work and you'd be hard pushed to find one in this condition at any mileage.
Andy

[Saltire]

Still deeply tempting. Why is it that you always see a car in far better condition just after you've bought one of the same make and model (OK, mine's an S2, but you know what I mean)?

[lotusflasherman]

oil leak fixed with new rubber cam cover gasket which also meant the cambelt had to be done again. Andy

Was that because oil had leaked onto the cambelt? Can think of any other reason why the two things are associated.

[Rambo]

I thought it odd too

[Artaban]

This is the pic SJ's sent me. Apparently the oil had got all over the cambelt on its way down to my garage floor. Only had it done a couple of years ago.

[par]

Really surprised to see this car still for sale at a very reasonable price.

The pictures of your front suspension rebuild were what inspired me to go the extra mile when doing mine. Many of the low mileage high price examples that have appeared on the market recently wont be to the same standard, it is a pity so many people only look at mileage when judging the value of cars such as these!

Good luck with the sale but I suspect you havent put the same effort into selling the car as you have looking after it for a reason

[lotusflasherman]

This is the pic SJ's sent me. Apparently the oil had got all over the cambelt on its way down to my garage floor. Only had it done a couple of years ago.

Well that explains why the cambelt change thanks, but that's a very strange failure of the cam cover gasket. Wondering if it wasn't seated properly when cover replaced.

[Artaban]

Not seated properly when the cambelt was done previously. Difficult to prove categorically and I left it too long to go back to the garage (now a 5 hour drive away). Initially it was just tiny spots on the garage floor so I just lived with it but more recently it got worse so it had to be done. Still you can't gamble with a cambelt. Had one fail in the past on an Audi and thankfully it wasn't an interference engine; I presume the Elan is?
Moral of the story is don't ignore oil leaks.
Andy

[lotusflasherman]

Not seated properly when the cambelt was done previously. Difficult to prove categorically and I left it too long to go back to the garage (now a 5 hour drive away). Initially it was just tiny spots on the garage floor so I just lived with it but more recently it got worse so it had to be done. Still you can't gamble with a cambelt. Had one fail in the past on an Audi and thankfully it wasn't an interference engine; I presume the Elan is?
Moral of the story is don't ignore oil leaks.
Andy

Yes, I believe the Elan is, though I haven't personally experienced it - I have on the 912 engine in my Eclat - teeth came off so belt slipped and 16 bent valves, but Elan Manual EC4 Cambelt : Precautions (Page 17) says "Do not rotate the crankshaft or camshaft with the drive belt removed, or damage may be caused to the valves and pistons".

A good clue is always whether the piston has valve cutouts. If valve lift and correct timing gets them so close a cutout is needed its virtually certain that wrong timing will cause 'interference'.

[clemo]

BUMP

Hello , clemo doing a bit of house keeping .

Have you sold your elan yet ?

All the best .. Us at LEC .