From The Classifieds: 1969 Lotus Elan

The lightweight, front-engined fibreglass two-seat Lotus Elan is widely recognised as the inspiration for Mazda’s minimalist MX-5 sports car introduced in 1989.

If the Mazda MX-5 adheres to a minimalist philosophy, the original Lotus Elan was rather more innovative for its time with a steel backbone chassis that provided a much more solid basis for the body than its more fibreglass-dependent predecessor, the Lotus Elite.

The flyweight Elan tipped the scales at less than 700kg, which proved little problem for the Cosworth-fettled twin-camshaft version of a widely used Ford 1498cc four-cylinder engine. Bored out to 1558cc, it produced 78kW and was progressively bumped up to as much as 94kW in the later Elan Sprint and +2 four-seat variants.

The Elan’s light weight and forceful engine were backed up by fully-independent suspension and four-wheel disc brakes which made it one of the most assertive sports cars of its type. Although it tended to be more expensive and exclusive than its then-contemporaries, it was widely praised by the motoring press.

Perhaps the most lingering memories of the original Elan are the lines, which were penned by designer Ron Hickman: Well proportioned and restrained, it made the best use of simple lines to create a pure shape that never really aged and was familiar enough to draw instant references when Mazda introduced the MX-5 close to 30 years later.

The original two-seat Elan was produced in from 1962 to 1973, while the later four-seat variant was produced through to 1975.

Original Elans are a rare sight today, particularly in Australia.

The 1969 model featured here lives in the Melbourne bayside suburb of Brighton and is at the top end of the price scale for an Elan these days. That is justified, according to the owner, by an extensive ground-up restoration that has taken great pains to keep it as close to original as possible, with improvements “restricted to those which enhanced the Elan's original, brilliant design.”

The engine was rebuilt at the Lotus factory and has been given a power boost that claims to have taken power close to 200kW. Not surprisingly, the owner says the Elan is “seriously quick”.

The restoration also added a solid drive-shaft conversion, Spyder 2.25 rear springs and inertia-reel seatbelts. The owner says that while the Elan is “tractable enough for street use it is ideally suited to historic track day events.”

Complete with a roadworthy certificate this black Lotus looks about as good an example as you are likely to find. At an asking price of $45,000 it is possible to find an Elan for less – but it is unlikely you would find a better one.