GTP Cool Wall: 1962-1973 Lotus Elan

1962-1973 Lotus Elan

  • Total voters
    113
  • Poll closed .
GranTurismo916

GranTurismo916

15,465
United States
Orange County, NY
GTP_GT916
Nii916
1962-1973 Lotus Elan nominated by @GTP_Ingram
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Engines: 1.6L I4 (Lotus-Ford Twin Cam)
Power: 105-126 hp
Torque: 108-113 lb-ft.
Weight: 585-688 kg
Transmission: 4-speed manual
Drivetrain: Front engine, rear wheel drive
Body Styles: 2-door coupe, 2-door roadster​
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The Elan... Now that's a case of "simple-minded, but good old fashioned fun" in a car. It's simple, lightweight and very entertaining. Just make sure you find a good-cherished one; these cars can be quite the money pits if they had a rough life...

I'll give it a Sub-Zero, mainly because it's neat-looking, and it does not have rubber bumpers! Thank god for that...
 
Real wood.
Green.
Pop-up headlights.
Lightweight.
RWD.
2 seater.
Sports car.

Cool
 
Low weight, screaming twin cam, amazing handling, unassuming looks.

SZ.
 
The definitive sports car. In its day, the Elan Sprint could embarrass an E-Type Jag despite having less than half the power. These are the driver's car. Sure, things break almost every time you drive one, but as an instrument of driving joy, I can't think of anything purer. It's pretty but no more so than most of its period competitors, yet this car offers an incredible driving experience.

If you have time, read this article: http://www.roadandtrack.com/car-culture/classic-cars/news/a21126/the-allure-of-the-lotus-elan/

If not, here's an excerpt:
The light and tactile steering, combined with supple suspension and a weird, physics-defying sense of zero weight transfer in corners, provides a sensation akin to flying just over the ground. I'm convinced there's a powerful pleasure center in the brain that remains untapped until you drive an Elan. It's almost a drug.
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Sub Zero, by the widest of margins.
 
I really want a go in an Elan Sprint. But even a slightly lesser model would be alright. On most levels it's just such a lovely...thing.
Sub-zero.
 
niky
How so? Considering nobody here owns an Elan.

They were mostly owned by racing drivers and champions... and Emma Peel... Which pretty much guarantees an SZ vote from me.
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I forgot about that! How could anyone vote a car driven by Diana Rigg anything less than Sub Zero?

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niky
How so? Considering nobody here owns an Elan.

They were mostly owned by racing drivers and champions... and Emma Peel... Which pretty much guarantees an SZ vote from me.
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It's not as bad as the Miata, which is why I went with just an uncool and not SU.

And I don't care who owns/owned one.
 
Better at being a Miata than a Miata was at being a Miata nearly 30 years before the Miata existed.

Just a fun, simple, twin cam featherweight British sports car.

Cool.
 
Legro
How does the forum make a car uncool, if it's mentioned far less often than many other cars, and by the Members Rides section the members don't own any?
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Small 2 seat roadsters like this and the Miata seem to generate a lot of (too much?) hype around here. The Miata more so with all the "Answer is always..." nonsense. And since this is pretty much the Granddaddy of the Miata...

Plus, again, I don't care who owns one.
 
Adamgp
And since this is pretty much the Granddaddy of the Miata...
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Wat?

This is just one of many, many British 2 seaters.

Quite overpriced nowadays too. Still cool for performance though.
 
Dennisch
Wat?

This is just one of many, many British 2 seaters.

Quite overpriced nowadays too. Still cool for performance though.
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See above...

Jet Badger
The MX-5 20 years before the MX-5. Awesome little thing.
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AudiMan2011
Better at being a Miata than a Miata was at being a Miata nearly 30 years before the Miata existed.
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Plus the original Miata was heavily inspired/influenced by this very car, the Elan.
 
There's only one way I can picture this car in my mind, and that is with an old, retired man driving it around the countryside on an autumn evening with golden leaves covering the road ahead.

Sub-Zero.
 
Adamgp
Small 2 seat roadsters like this and the Miata seem to generate a lot of (too much?) hype around here.
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I admit that the MX-5 is bit overhyped, but old British/Italian/whatever roadsters don't seem to get any of it most of the time. Well, maybe some, but definitely not as much as late 60s muscle cars, 90s "JDM" cars, and anything that is BMW M or Mercedes AMG.
 
Adamgp
Like the Miata, this forum had made this car uncool.
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When I nominated the Elan, I was surprised that it hadn't been polled already. Given that it has taken so long for what many people would consider to be an iconic car to crop up in a Cool Wall poll, while countless minor variations of other cars have appeared numerous times, I fail to see how the members of this site have made the Lotus Elan uncool.
 
Plus I'd say part of why the Elan specifically is referenced in response to the Miata (instead of British/Italian roadsters in general) is that Lotus coincidentally attempted to reuse the Elan name at the same time the Miata debuted.
 

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