Tallest Elan driver?

PostPost by: 1owner69Elan » Thu Dec 05, 2019 4:49 am

Myself, as an average height person below 6 feet, but not short, have no problem fitting into an Elan. Admittedly the pedals are still too close such that I sometimes remove my right shoe on my LHD S4.

Met a fellow tonight, much taller at 6?7? (over 2m) who claims he fits just fine in his 69 S4. Seems hard to believe. Says he does remove his right shoe as well but otherwise ok.

Others out there of substantial height that fit into their Elans?
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PostPost by: gherlt » Thu Dec 05, 2019 6:13 am

My best friend is 1.92m (6'3"), with quite wide shoulders, is always very pleased with space in the Elan, but has to wear narrow shoes too,
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PostPost by: Bombay Racing Green » Thu Dec 05, 2019 7:25 am

6?2?, 188cm. The seat isn?t all the way back in my S4 Elan DHC. Yes to narrow shoes. Passenger?s always comment favorably about the interior space.
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PostPost by: elanfan1 » Thu Dec 05, 2019 10:12 am

Elan in the Forest - Mark your thread is here.
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PostPost by: pharriso » Thu Dec 05, 2019 11:21 am

elanfan1 wrote:Elan in the Forest - Mark your thread is here.


That's what I was thinking!.... :lol:
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PostPost by: Bits » Thu Dec 05, 2019 11:56 am

]I'm 6'4" an no way can I fit in with the standard seats in my S4 FHC. Even without the headlining.

I have bought some Elise seats and can now get my wrist between the roof and my head. :D

img_2512.jpg and


The black seat is out of my Elise. The others are the ones going in the Elan.

Regards,

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PostPost by: Bombay Racing Green » Thu Dec 05, 2019 1:15 pm

Very interesting Mark. How are you fixing them to the car? Cheers.
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PostPost by: 1owner69Elan » Thu Dec 05, 2019 2:02 pm

The 6?7? fellow?s Elan is a DHC. He doesn?t fit if the top (hood) is up. He says he looks over the windshield (windscreen) when driving.
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PostPost by: tedtaylor » Thu Dec 05, 2019 2:25 pm

I'm 6'6" and.....uh.....uh.....290 lbs! Shoesize 12 I wear narrow driving shoes.
I fit very comfortably in my Elan Sprint. It came with a rollbar that I had to remove since I couldn't push the seat all the way back.
I also fit well in my M100 Elan. I previously owned and fit well in my JPS Europa. I fit well in a V8 Esprit. Fit well in my Elise (however getting in and out with top on was interesting)

HOWEVER, it was a tight fit for my S2 Europa, S2 Esprit, Seven S4.

Little guys love BIG cars....big guys love little cars..... I say it's because we do not need to compensate for (you know what) :)
img_3659.jpg and
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PostPost by: The Veg » Thu Dec 05, 2019 3:09 pm

I'm 6'4", 275 lbs, size 12 shoe, broad shoulders and hips.

A couple of months ago while in Colorado I sat in Ross Robbins' Elan, which I forget which series it is, and found enough room for me but my shoes were too chunky to safely negotiate the pedals so I moved to the passenger seat for our ride around the neighbourhood. Plenty of room there too and it was the most fun I've had in a passenger seat in longer than I can remember.

I do recall seeing a Wheeler Dealers episode in which Edd (6'7") drives an Elan, although it was a DHC with top down and I don't recall any commentary about his feet and the pedals. Juxtapose that with the episode in which he struggles to get into am Esprit and says that his dream is crushed. :lol:
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PostPost by: Elanintheforest » Thu Dec 05, 2019 4:36 pm

I'm 6'5'' and have had my S3 Coupe since the mid 1970s. No problem with fitting in, although the feet are a bit large for the pedals with normal shoes on, and I wouldn't want to be driving it for many hours on end as I used to.

There's more room in the Coupe that there was in my old E Types or Healey 3000, and trying a fiends DB5, I couldn't drive that for more than a few miles. I have driven a wide body Caterham, but only on a track for 20 minutes, and that was uncomfortable, and I sold my Type 14 Elite a few years back realising that I really didn't fit in that.

The only sports cars I've found that I really fit into comfortably was my old TVR Griffith. I don't think that it was a coincidence that the TVR chairman at the time, Peter Wheeler, was 6'6'', and he really didn't mind that small blokes (under 5'10'') had to have a booster seat fitted to be able to drive his cars!

But there are very few cars where I can fit inside the engine bay to work on it. OK, I have to remove the rolling chassis first, but I do fit!

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PostPost by: 69S4 » Thu Dec 05, 2019 4:58 pm

Blimey, at 5' 8" I'm starting to feel like Gulliver amongst the Brobdingnagians. :shock:
At least, being the same build as ACBC, I have the consolation of feeling the car was designed around me :lol:
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PostPost by: el-saturn » Thu Dec 05, 2019 6:37 pm

i guess im lucky: im 6"3, weigh 190lbs and wear shoe sz 9 (42,5 EU) and get in there as if it wuz a cadillac - and use my smallest shoes - fits as taylor made!!!! sandy
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PostPost by: ericbushby » Thu Dec 05, 2019 7:49 pm

Hi guys,
Nearly everyone on this thread has commented about the pedals being close together.
It is not such a difficult job to alter the spacing to your liking (or your shoes).
If you type `pedal spacing ` in the search box at the top of this page, the first entry is my description of how I did it six years ago.
It is not difficult, the pedals are only mild steel sheet and bend fairly easily with a vice and large hammer. No heat needed.
I moved the brake pedal 1/2" and the clutch 1"
If you think of doing it, I now think 3/8" and 3/4" would suffice.
On a RHD car try not to disturb the RH bearing as that was the most difficult to get right afterwards.
The only downside is that I can no longer slide my left foot down the side of the clutch pedal. It has to come back and under to rest position.
Hope this is useful to someone
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PostPost by: Spyder fan » Thu Dec 05, 2019 7:59 pm

Elanintheforest wrote:I'm 6'5'' and have had my S3 Coupe since the mid 1970s. No problem with fitting in, although the feet are a bit large for the pedals with normal shoes on, and I wouldn't want to be driving it for many hours on end as I used to.

Mark


Mark,
Was it you who told me the story about someone selling an Elan because they found it too cramped for their long legs. He had the seat runners bolted to the forwards position and didn?t know it?
Kindest regards

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