by Jackonicko » Sat 02.05.2009, 00:04
I went over to Didcot a couple of nights ago to see the red Elan on Autotrader at £4,495 ono (H286YFL).
It's being sold by a serial car trader who operates from his own house. He is Mr Tony Anchors, 01235 819745 or
07768 422886
I've never seen a car quite like it for mixing very good with really quite ordinary.
The bad:
She's externally tatty (pink in places, orange peeled in others), with near-matt (but completely uncurbed) alloys and poor A-pillar seals.
Internally she's better, with a postage stamp sized patched hole in the driver's seat (which is half leather) but otherwise pretty unmarked, and with uncracked, unchipped escutcheons (if you want to donate the driver's side one as a thank you when you buy it, that would be great).
The driver's side mirror adjusts up and down, but not in and out.
There's a small slit (2-in) on the passenger's side of the hood, behind and above the window. It would be easy to patch.
The good:
She has a comprehensive and full service history, latterly with Sportmotive in Salisbury. This proves the low mileage (72,000 miles). She comes with 12 months MoT and six months tax.
Everything else works fine - mirrors, lights, fogs, wipers, washers, hazards, the lot.
The rear screen is clear.
There's no sign of damp, so she doesn't seem to leak badly, and I suspect that the carpets would clean up a treat.
She has a dry boot, and everything's present and correct in it - including the toolkit with penknife, and an aftermarket breathable waterproof whole car cover..
There are two alarm/immobiliser fobs.
The great:
The car pulls like a train - she must be the most eager unchipped Elan I've driven. She accelerates rapidly, and has not the faintest sign of overboost or boost creep.
Though the brakes are standard, they're very good by Elan standards.
Steering is fine, and the ride is good.
She's a very useable, driveable car as she is, though I'd refurb the wheels and bung a set of Toyo T1Rs on, and I'd buy a pot of Bostik 2402 and patch the hole in the roof. I'd get new A-pillar seals, and get a good respray some time down the line. None of the lacquer is peeling.
The seller will take a significantly lower offer than the asking price - if anyone's interested in the figure mentioned, drop me a PM.
After the Cullompton car on eBay (130k miles and with carpeted elbow recesses and escutcheons reached £1,750) there's every indication that prices are edging upwards, and I have to say that at the price you could get this car for, it's a tatty beaut!