1972 Lotus Elan Sprint Fixed Head Coupe *Sold £38,000*

Description

• Full restoration 
• Good provenance / history 
• Photographic history of resto 
• New Tony Thompson Chassis 
• New Tony Thompson Driveshafts 
• Thousands spent on new parts 
• Completely rebuilt by Twin Cam expert 

First shown at Earls Court in 1962, the Elan is significant in Lotus history for being the first of their road cars to combine a fibreglass body with a steel backbone chassis. It was a much easier car to ‘productionise’ than the earlier (glassfibre monocoque) Elite. 

Equipped with the recently developed Lotus Ford Twin-Cam four-cylinder engine and built in the company’s new factory, the two-seater Elan would quickly establish Lotus as a serious and more mainstream contender in the sports car market. 

The Elan was light, but, with that backbone chassis, still rigid. And the Lotus-designed independent suspension gave the car almost legendary road-holding and handling. 

Launched as the Elan 1500 (nicely timed with Lotus Formula 1 success), the new car was priced at £,1095 as a home-build kit or £1,499 factory-built. 

This was followed by the S2, S3 and S4. In January 1971, probably the best Elan of all was announced; the Elan Sprint. It was fitted with the ‘Big Valve’ version of the Twin Cam engine developed under Tony Rudd. With 126bhp on tap, it gave the diminutive Sprint a 0-60mph time of 6.7sec and a top speed of over 120mph. 

The Sprint, set the performance and handling parameters that every small sports car tried to emulate. 

This particular Sprint comes to market fully restored. Countless new part, a wonderfully presented body and a very tidy mostly original interior make it the Elan stand out. 

First registered on 1st October 1972 being the last fixed head coupe to leave the factory in Cirrus White with Black Vinyl. 

• Delivered from the factory on the 19th September 1972 to Grange Motors in Brentwood Essex. 
• The Sprint was then invoiced directly to Mr MJ Clack on the 20th September 1972 under invoice 5766 from Lotus Car (Sales) Ltd with the Powertrain in invoice number 4122 from Racing Engines Ltd.  This allowed it to pass the tax exemption process that was available at the time. 
• The powertrain was fitted by MJ Clark and just prior to registration the car would have been inspected by the DVLA followed by a safety inspection by the Lotus Dealer. 
• The car then changed hands with the second owner currently unknown.
• On 10th October 2015 Mr JG Robinson acquired the vehicle after it had sat in storage for an unknown amount of time.  Having had full intentions of restoring the car he realised after two years that he just would not be able to spend the time on it. 
• It was at this point in 2017 the Evoke Classics purchased the vehicle and started the extensive restoration. 

Supplied with the V5 will be:

• The certificate of provenance 
• A statement from Lotus outlining the history of the Sprint from when it left the factory (a wonderful piece of history if we do say so ourselves)  
• A handful of paperwork showing most of the parts purchases
• A photographic account of the full restoration in digital format 

Exterior 

Lotus Elans have a range of colours they look good in, but they have a couple of colour schemes in which they look spectacular.  

All Cirrus White as the certificate says, and you cannot fail to have noticed the bronze bumpers front and rear – ‘joined’ as it were by the Elan Sprint stripe down the side.  A possible nod to the Benson and Hedges Formula One car colours of the time.  

The ”paintjob”, who says that? is just so much more than just a “paintjob” on these cars.  Anyway the “Body restoration” on these composite bodies really does need to be done properly and this has had just that, “a proper job”.  Does that term work better? 

• Starting with a strip back to highlight any cracks or areas of concern.  
• Fully prepared and repaired prior to the gel coat being applied correctly 
• Then completely primed 
• And then finally re-coated with copious amounts of LO4, the Cirrus White Paintcode, until it reached the stage you now see.
• The front and rear bumpers were checked and painted in the correct Bronze colours 
• Then carefully stored whilst the chassis was rebuilt, we’ll come back to that. 

The chrome fittings are in great condition and only really needed a clean up. OK they are not perfect but are completely original and present really well for a car that is now over fifty years old. They are only original once. 

All the glass looks to be original and in great condition, the gaps are never going to be of the quality of its modern equivalents due to the chunky composite components but have a look in the gallery and you will see that this particular example holds up as well as any on the road now. 

A genuinely super cute car when it left that factory and literally no different now. 

Interior 

The Lotus Elan’s cabin was always designed with the driver in mind, providing an intimate and focused driving experience.  

The interior is purposeful, with a minimalist approach that prioritises essential controls and a driver-centric layout.  You’ll appreciate the simplicity and uncluttered nature of the Elan’s cabin as it just implores you to drive a little quicker than you actually should, well it does us anyway…  

This particular interior manages the very tricky balancing act of maintaining the gentlest patina while looking fresh – and not allowing the new parts to have that barley sugar-coated glow that over-restored cars can have.  

The original wooden gear knob is still in place and has that same slightly worn look that all wooden gear knobs have, perfection in our eyes. The original Colin Chapman steering wheel is bound in the cloth that was fitted when we purchased it and adds a little extra grip so we left it as is to give it an air of 70s charm. 

The original black vinyl seats are in great nick with just the slightest area on the drivers seat where the stitching has let go.  The black carpets are all new with the matching door pads presenting just as well.  The decision to keep the interior as original as possible was in fact deliberated over for weeks during the restoration. We believe the correct decision was eventually made.   

The only thing of real importance to note is that the dash did need to be renewed during this process as it was just too far gone and delaminating. 

The carpets in the cabin and the boot area are new along with the boot board and corner cards.  

Essentially the whole “cockpit” has a very ‘authentic’ feel and will transport you straight back to the Lotus heydays. 

Engine 

Remove the bonnet and marvel at how clean and tidy the engine bay is. It almost does look like it’s just been installed it at the Hethel factory. The Sprint is fitted with electric headlight motors. A very welcome addition if you want reliable headlights. 

The engine is almost spotless – the ‘Big Valve’ rockers covers are a lovely touch – and its attendant equipment looks as you would expect from a full rebuild and restoration. 

The entire engine work is actually too long to list but we’ll have a go anyway: 

• Engine stripped completely 
• Polished Crank and new seals fitted 
• Head skimmed and rebored 
• New pistons and rings fitted 
• Cut and lapped valves with new lifters 
• New head gasket 
• New cam gears 
• New Timing chain and kit 
• The correct Dellorto were ultrasonically cleaned before receiving fresh carb kits. 

As you can see the spectacular engine has received a serious overhaul and is now “as new”, the gearbox has received the same fastidious attention and is as tight and taught as it should be. 

We’d make two recommendation to the new lucky owner. 

The Elan needs miles put into in order that is settles. Not too many, but just enough.  

Then we would have it set up on a rolling road, under load. As with all Lotus Elans they are notoriously quick and smooth when set up right. This needs that final 1% of setting up to make it not just super to drive but actually spectacular.  Maybe we are just being picky but that is just how we are. 

Wheels, Tyres and other

The 13 inch original Lotus Elan “knock on” wheels have been fully refurbished and wrapped in brand new Dunlop 155/80 R13’s all round and look brand new, these are connected to the legendary Lotus Elan Chassis that became Colin Chapmans legacy. 

You will see in the image gallery that this Sprint has been assembled with a brand spanking new Tony Thompson chassis and running gear purchased from the renowned Mick Miller Lotus, with invoices in the pack that show:  (Please note this list below, although very detailed, is not everything.) 

• Tony Thompson Lotus Chassis  

• Full Superflex Bushes all round 
• Adjustable front Tony Thompson Shock absorber and spring units 
• Tony Thompson racing rear shock absorber inserts 
• 2 rear Locotones 
• Girling brake master cylinder 
• Goodrich Brake hoses 
• Front and rear Brake pads 
• Brake Calliper repair kits 
• Track rod ends and mounting brackets 
• Engine and gearbox mountings 
• Girling Clutch, master and slave cylinders 
• Full Stainless Steel exhaust and clamps 
• And a myriad of other parts that would just take too long to list. 

Take a look at the extensive images in the Gallery. We do have a many more photos of the rebuild. If you’d like to see any of them just give one of us a shout. 

Our View 

The Elan is one of the cars that cemented the Lotus name as a true road-going sports car builder. The model became an icon. 

This Elan Sprint (definitely the best version) gives the true Lotus enthusiast virtually everything they could ask for; stunning concours-eligible looks, an expert-sorted, very drivable chassis, and the most desirable (big valve) engine options. 

And with the restoration work being very recently finished, it probably isn’t going to cost much more to own (bar petrol and oil changes) for quite some time to come. 

This much quality does not come around very often so don’t let it pass you by. We expect this will be a very popular auction and to add to that it will be available for viewing in Essex, see below. 

Vehicle Location: with Evoke Classics in Dagenham, Essex RM10– it’s the responsibility of the winning bidder to make collection / transportation arrangements directly with the vendor.

Would like to arrange a viewing or have a question about this Lotus Elan? Please contact us at team@evoke-classics.com 

Guide Prices?

We’re different. But you know that. And we’re always honest. In a sector where no two classics are same, how does anyone put a ‘guide’.

Well, everyone knows the broad value of classic, let’s all be honest. So we don’t need to tell you what you already know, do we.

The ‘market’ decides and the old cliché that ‘it’s worth what someone wants to pay’ is no less true. So why kid everyone!

But, because we are different, if it really does matter to you, that’s fine, we want you to be happy. Just drop us a line at team@evoke-classics.com and one of us will be delighted to ring you back and discuss, it’s what we do.

Tedious but it’s vital you read this, please.

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As with all vehicles of a certain age, localised paint repairs are common. This specifically applies with classics.

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