1968 Lotus Elan Plus2 Manchester UK ?17,000

PostPost by: john.p.clegg » Sat Feb 04, 2017 9:28 am

Dear All

1968 Lotus Elan Plus2
Purchased 1997
50/0813
VWW 965F
Mot April 2017
Mileometer 57,853 at Nov 2016

I do not want to let her go till after Castle Combe ,May 2017,unless someone starts waving silly money in my face , till then one has plenty of time to peruse , ask , think , ask the wife or even ask me for further details ,and she will have a new 12 month MOT.

Classic good looking car, puts a smile on my face whenever I drive her, reason for selling, I have an urge for a Sleeper Morris Minor ( senile dementia setting in. )


After Combe I want to remove the Fuel Injection ( for my Moggie Sleeper ) and refit the original Dellortos , at that time you have the choice of retaining the 5-speed box or re-fitting the original Ford 4-speed gearbox ..
Likewise original seats or MR2 your choice
Choice of uprated 4.25 or original 3.0:1 Servo.

Bullet points:-
Fitted with ABS
Good chromework
Re-veneered lettered dash.
Paintwork..good from 5 yards, could do with a respray, chips, microblisters, battlescars, photos don?t do the car justice, really need to see in the flesh.
Many bulbs replaced by LEDs
Most nuts/bolts replaced with Stainless
Full Stainless exhaust system with Custom re-packable silencer
Stainless steel wheel-trims
Electric Aerial
Michelin Energy 175/70x13 Tread fl 6.5mm,fr 7mm,rl 4.5mm,rr 4mm.
Lockable petrol cap
All matching keys petrol, boot, doors, glove-box and ignition.
All electrics working as they should, custom loom with 8 Relays 16 Fuses.
Hi-level rear/brake lights
15? wooden C Chapman steering wheel ( original available )
Philips four channel short-case radio/tape ( door speakers and parcel shelf )
Twin floor mounted fire extinguishers
Aluminium/basketweave doorcards
Security./Safety Battery cut off switch
15? speedblades with intermittent wipe and electric wash pump
Removeable/tilt tinted sunroof
MX5 motorised headlamp pods
Full width re-cored ( 3 cores) radiator
Kenlowe fan with thermo swith and manual over ride
Recent heater re-build ( Toasty )
Craig Davies heater pump ( please ask )
Red top starter solenoid
Twin front spot lamps fitted in nosecone
Galvanized chassis
Foam filled uprights
Adjustable platform rear springs
Adjustable handbrake linkage rods
Up-rated stainless handbrake cable
Up-rated stainless handbrake tree
Stainless front disc shields
Lots of poly bushes
Removable diff ducts
Removable A frame covers
Pedal box access plate
Wheel arch covers
Front and rear spring/damper covers
Custom Performance Unlimited sliding-spline solid drive-shafts
Good engine, AKS front cover ( spare pump capsule ), has the usual oil leaks, long-stroke,polished,ported,blueprinted, with swinging oil-pickup,high capacity oil pump ,Inlets 1.625,exhausts 1.4, electric fuel pump, Sprint camshafts.Co-axial hi torque starter motor.

Workshop Manual,, all bills, MOTs,Photos.

Model History
From humble beginnings working from a little lock up in North London during the 1950s Chapman and his Lotus cars had a meteoric rise both on and off the track. The original baby Elan was launched in 1963 and was an instant success. Its design for a road car was like Chapmans race cars - way ahead of the competition. It was light, nimble with good power for a small car and the handling as we know, was sublime. Whilst sales of the baby Elan were excellent, Chapman, never one to sit still, was looking to the future and bigger markets for his road cars. Chapman wanted a more up market model and one that could cater for the family man with young children in mind. And so, by 1964 the Lotus Elan +2 was on the drawing board. The principles were the same as the baby Elan, steel back bone chassis with independent suspension and disc brakes all round and a fibre glass body. However to cater for the extra rear seats and the more luxurious interior the chassis was lengthened by 12 inches, the track widened by 7 inches and the body length was increased by 23 inches.
With two, Formula One World Championships under his belt by now, Chapman launched the Elan +2 in 1967. Whilst the +2 was a little heavier than the baby Elan it was surprisingly similar in performance, thanks to an increase in power and the excellent aerodynamic shape of the body that had a very impressive drag coefficient of just 0.3. What perhaps Lotus themselves had not envisaged was the +2 was in some ways a better handling car than the baby Elan. By catering for the family man and widening and lengthening the original design Lotus had inadvertently produced a beautifully handling car that was more sure footed and in some was easier to drive than the original Elan. The Elan +2 carried on in production until 1974 by which time various improvements had been made to the excellent original design.

Driving experience
Modern day car manufacturers involved in current F1 say that their technology from this cutting edge sport finds its ways onto its road cars which I have no doubt to some degree is true. Looking back now, what is without question is back in 1964 when Colin Chapman started to design the Elan +2 he was at the cutting edge of race and road car design. He had just won his first Formula One World Championship with Jim Clark in the Lotus 25 and would go on to win his second a year later in 1965. The cross over from the track to road cars was quite obvious in his design input and it shows to this day when you drive a Lotus Elan + 2.
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