Targa Elan?

[tweetdriver63]

I used to have a Porsche 914 (two actually). I was just wondering if anybody has ever converted an Elan to a targa. Maybe using one of those hardtops. I'm not planning anything, just imagining. I don't know what effect it would have on top-down aerodynamics, either. The Elan's lines are so beautiful with the top down, it might be sacreligious, but maybe somebody good with photoshop (Geoff) could do a rendering, if they're bored?

These are the best I can do. I'm wasting time at work, and only have Microsoft Paint to work with.

[F1 LOTUS]

I reckon Kuchings latest project (hood cover 'bumps') could probably stretch to this - given the tooling he has for his hardtop, if there are enough parties interested?...

[tweetdriver63]

God knows how much such a thing would end up costing. When I started modifying Simon's pre-production artwork, I didn't expect it to come out looking as good as it did. I love the Elan's lines. Like most convertibles, though, the top-up look isn't nearly as pretty as the top-down.

What I came up with in those drawings, I actually like better than the real Elan (top-up), but not as much as the real Elan (top-down).

My experience with the Porsche 914's I had made me really like the targa design. If you haven't ever had one, it's like having a hard-top that's as easy to remove/replace as our convertible top is to put up/down. When it's removed, it's just like having a convertible with an amazingly effective windblocker. I even drove one of my 914's through a moderate rain for about 10 minutes once (top off) without a single drop of water landing inside the car. I saw the rain ahead, but decided just to keep going until I felt a drop, which never happened. (The people on the Greyhound bus I passed were all pointing. They must've thought I was nuts.)

[addict]

i have to say i preffer the over all look of my car more when the roofs up.
roof down it looks unfinnished
the taga thing looks verry good a tad mr2 or perhaps the honda thing with a lift out roof ?

[addict]

[abmunro]

Somebody could photoshop this!

[tweetdriver63]

i have to say i preffer the over all look of my car more when the roofs up.
roof down it looks unfinnished
the taga thing looks verry good a tad mr2 or perhaps the honda thing with a lift out roof ?

Curious that you should say it looks a tad MR2. Guess what the MR2 was originally supposed to be? (All the old guys know this)
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That's right! It was the original design for the Lotus Elan! That is, before GM bought Lotus and forced them to start over with their own Japanese subsidiary -- Isuzu.

It does look a little like the MR2, but the MR2, as you see in that picture, didn't have a waist, or any real curves like the Elan does.

[Mike_H]

Here are some pictures of what Kia were planning to do with the Elan.

[tweetdriver63]

A targa with a back seat....very unusual. The 911 targa was like that, but the back seat was a complete joke.

That Kia would have sold well in the U.S. In fact, I think it would now. Those looks are right in with the current style. Very much like the Nissan Z350 and the Mitsubishi Eclipse.

[Kuching]

Coincidentally, I did investigate this idea just recently – even as far as building a mock-up.

To make it a practical solution, it needs to be possible to take it on or off during a journey and stow it in the car. The snag is that it won’t fit behind the seats and it needs to be surprisingly small to be able to get it in the boot (okay, trunk). In this case the remaining ‘targa’ bit ends up protruding so far forward it overhangs the driver’s head, detracting from the sense of open-air motoring and making entry and exit to the car perilous.

Another option may be to divide the removable panel into two or more sections, or maybe even make it flexible, but the engineering and development that would be required to get this to work reliably is likely to exceed what is feasible for a very limited production run.

I don’t want to disparage what after all is a great idea, but I do have some experience of how difficult it was to get the basic hardtop to work effectively.

[tweetdriver63]

Isn't the Elise top like a soft top panel? Something like that would work, would it not?

[F1 LOTUS]

This is what we'd really like I'm sure - Kerching!

[GeoffSmith]

Brian. That looks silly!

[tweetdriver63]

This is what we'd really like I'm sure - Kerching!

Hey! This looks silly!

[GeoffSmith]

Silly!

[rip]

i have to say i preffer the over all look of my car more when the roofs up.
roof down it looks unfinnished

I think you need your eyes testing.

[ailwyn]

The non-hot linked version

[rip]

The non-hot linked version

IMHO that is starting to look more like an Elise than an Elan.

[F1 LOTUS]

Pic' was posted purely for the sliding roof concept

[surfboardfiller]

IMHO All these designs look like they are intended for a mid mount engined car!?
Why design and build something that makes your car look like it's trying to be a MR Poo. This isn't a mid mount so why the compromise? Follow the curves, make a blend and keep the style.

The biggest challenge in this is the aesthetic one.

I looked into this last year but sadly I just don't have a workshop to build anything.