Ignoring the front-wheel-drive M100 series that launched in 1989 when Mazda produced a better sports car than Lotus in the form of the rear-drive Miata, the original Elan is often mentioned in the same breath as other great sports cars. The first generation, which ran from 1962 to 1973 for the two-seater variant, was designed specifically for driving fun.
Internally referred to as Type 26, the gorgeous-looking Elan was introduced in October 1962 at Earls Court as the heir apparent to the Elite. Its predecessor didn’t sell great, with a little over 1,000 examples believed to have been produced in glass-reinforced plastic for the monocoque and load-bearing structure. Codenamed Type 14, the first-generation Elite rocked a rather underpowered engine: the SOHC Coventry Climax FWE.
Built around a steel chassis dressed in fiberglass body panels, the Elan 1500 launched with a very different powerplant under the hood. Essentially a modded Kent 116E sourced from the Ford Motor Company, the Twin Cam is a DOHC affair with around 100 horsepower on tap. Most of the first-generation Elans, however, feature the pokier 1.6-liter version.
Production of the two-seat Elan came to a screeching halt after a little over 12,200 units were finished, although exact numbers aren’t available. No fewer than 7 of those rarefied machines are heading to auction at the Race Retro Show on February 25th, and every single one of these lightweight thrillers is special. Without further ado, these are the vehicles in question:
Ex-Peter Sellers 1966 Lotus Elan S3 SE
Photo: Silverstone Auctions
Richard Henry Sellers, better known as Peter Sellers, lives rent-free in our heads for his role as Inspector Clouseau in The Pink Panther series. Delivered to the actor on June 22nd, 1966, the white-painted roadster was enjoyed by Sellers and his wife, Swedish actress Britt Ekland, until 1969.
First registered in July 1966, “SAR 57D” was last auctioned in 2015 with 65,611 miles (nearly 105,590 kilometers) on the clock. Thoroughly restored beyond concours condition, the car was checked over and started after said restoration, although it was never driven. How about that, huh?
Presented in a superb white dubbed Cirrus White, this fellow retains the original chassis, body, and engine. Excluding the buyer’s premium of 15 percent including value-added tax, chassis number 455897 is expected to hammer for £80,000 to £120,000 (approximately $98,000 to $146,000).
Ex-Jochen Rindt 1969 Lotus Elan S4 FHC
Photo: Silverstone Auctions
Given that you’re currently reading a story on a motoring website, you certainly know this name. German-born Karl Jochen Rindt was an Austrian racing driver who racked up a world drivers’ championship title in Formula 1 back in 1970, when he drove for Lotus. Of course, Colin Chapman’s team also snatched the world constructors’ championship title.
On offer from the Piddington Collection, the blue-painted S4 Fixed Head Coupe was presented to Rindt by none other than Chapman in August 1970, after his win in the marvelous Lotus 72 at the German Grand Prix. Unfortunately for motorsport fans and Rindt’s family and friends, that would be his final victory before his death at Monza a few weeks later.
The only driver to be posthumously awarded the Formula 1 world drivers’ championship title enjoyed this left-hand-drive Elan for way too short of a time. Chassis number 700102003F indicates 80,652 kilometers (50,115 miles), and the pre-auction estimate mirrors that of Sellers’ Elan S3 SE.
The Avengers' Diana Rigg 1966 Lotus Elan S3 Drophead Coupe
Photo: Silverstone Auctions
Dame Enid Diana Elizabeth Rigg became a bonafide sex symbol after playing Emma Peel in The Avengers TV series, which ran between 1961 and 1969. She would leave the show prior to its conclusion due to a lot of friction with the show’s producers. For example, during her first series, Diana learned that she was earning less than the cameraman.
She wouldn’t leave empty-handed, though. Finished in Jaguar Opalescent Blue, chassis number 456114 was gifted to her by ABC Television. Considering that her character drove a white 1964 and this very car in The Avengers, the blue-painted car perfectly matched her on-screen persona.
SJH 499D was featured in 19 episodes, and only a few years into her ownership, 456114 was sold to her sister in America. Sometime between 2013 and the present day, the numbers-matching Drophead Coupe was refurbished to remarkable standards. Equipped with a Westminster radio transceiver in the glove box to recreate those memorable moments when Peel contacted Steed, the car now shows 2,552 miles (4,107 kilometers).
Ex-Ron Hickman 1971 Lotus Elan Sprint Drophead Coupe
Photo: Silverstone Auctions
South African-born Ronald Price Hickman was a Jersey-based designer and inventor, best known for working at the Ford Motor Company and Lotus. He kicked it off with FoMoCo as a clay modeler. A few months during his three-year stint at the Dearborn-based automaker, he helped Ford UK finalize the exterior styling of the very popular 105E Anglia.
Hickman met Chapman at Earls Court during a motor show, and he gave in to Chapman’s desire to work for him. The first order of business was the aforementioned Elite, after which Hickman oversaw the design of the Elan and first-gen Europa. He would leave the British company in 1967.
Also credited with creating the Black+Decker Workmate portable workbench, Hickman purchased this Lagoon Blue and Cirrus White-painted Sprint Drophead Coupe in 1996. Purchased from his family in 2021, the car had been restored prior to Hickman’s purchase. Lightly recommissioned upon its return to the United Kingdom, chassis number 7108180446G retains the original chassis, body shell, and four-pot lump.
Ex-Rob Walker 1968 Lotus Elan S3 SE
Photo: Silverstone Auctions
Founded by Johnnie Walker heir Rob Walker in 1953 and folded in 1970, the Rob Walker Racing Team accumulated no fewer than 10 pole positions, 9 fastest laps, and 9 victories over the years. It’s also the only entrant to win a Formula 1 Grand Prix without ever building their own car, the most successful privateer in Formula 1 history as per these numbers.
In recognition of his Scottish roots, Rob liked his cars dark blue. That’s why JFX 20F is wearing Ford Midnight Blue, a finish that was specifically commissioned by Walker to commemorate Stirling Moss’ 1961 Monaco win behind the wheel of a Lotus 18. The legendary racer carried race number 20 on that day, hence the 20 in the vehicle’s registration number.
Presented with 58,371 miles (93,939 kilometers) on the odometer, this blast from the past is offered with a history file that contains a picture from 1967 with the first owner’s wife standing alongside. Ordered by Rob Walker through his Rob Walker Garages, this car was acquired by the second owner a few years ago. Subsequently restored at no expense spared, 457415 is worth at least £50,000 (approximately $61,000). At the other end of the spectrum, it carries a high estimate of £80,000 ($98,000).
Cosworth’s Keith Duckworth 1968 Lotus Elan S4 Coupe
Photo: Silverstone Auctions
Estimated to fetch the same kind of money as Walker’s S3 SE and the Sprint Fixed Head Coupe below, this S4 Coupe has a brilliant history to it. Keith Duckworth, who founded Cosworth in 1958 with Mike Costin, was presented with it by Lotus as a thank-you for the first win by a DFV-engined Grand Prix racing car at the Dutch Grand Prix in 1967. More specifically, Jim Clark won that GP in the Gold Leaf-liveried Lotus 49.
Co-founder Mike Costin was also insured on the car and used it occasionally. A Series 4 prototype rather than a series-production model, chassis number 367932 retains the factory-issue Radiomobile push-button radio unit, as well as the Colin Chapman-monogrammed steering wheel.
It indicates 19,892 miles (32,013 kilometers), but the true mileage remains unknown. When the car changed hands in 1998, it used to show 15,030 miles (32,013 kilometers). Pictured in British Racing Green, the car is offered with a letter penned by Keith Duckworth to the second owner.
1975 Lotus Elan Sprint Fixed Head Coupe
Photo: Silverstone Auctions
Wait, wasn’t the two-seater Elan discontinued in 1973? It certainly was, but LRP 301P was originally supplied in kit form, so that explains why it’s a 1975. Based on the Series 4, the Sprint was conceived by Lotus sales director Graham Arnold with one purpose in mind: to improve Elan sales.
The two-tone paintwork harks back to the Gold Leaf Team Lotus livery from the good ol’ days when Big Tobacco was heavily involved in the sport. Engineering director Tony Rudd is credited with the big-valve cylinder head, high-lift camshafts, and the higher compression ratio, which improved the engine to 126 horsepower and 113 pound-feet (153 Nm).
Described as possibly the best Fixed Head Coupe in existence, chassis number 72100565E is the last Elan Sprint to be registered in the United Kingdom. The guide price for it kicks off at £50,000 (roughly $61,000) sans the aforementioned premium, and it balloons to £80,000 ($98,000).
After a 1:43 scale model of a Ferrari 250 GTO sparked Mircea's interest for cars when he was a kid, an early internship at Top Gear sealed his career path. He's most interested in muscle cars and American trucks, but he takes a passing interest in quirky kei cars as well. Full profile
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