Photo: Lotus
When talking about the swinging sixties, most people remember the dancing boots and the minidresses. However, if you’re a car guy, your recollections tend to be a bit different but equally exciting.
The Lotus Elan was launched 50 years ago in 1962 at the British Motorshow. The little roadster came one year after Jaguar had launched the E-Type, but the AC Cobra and Ferrari GTO all belong to the same year of greats.
In the swinging sixties, this was a car ahead of its time. It was technically innovative with the first backbone tube chassis of any road car, a fiberglass body, four-wheel independent suspension, 670kg with a peachy power-to-weight ratio. You could also have some decent creature comforts - electric windows, carpets, a heater, and in vogue wooden fascia.
The revival of the Lotus Elan is on Lotus’s agenda, as a concept was shown at the 2010 Paris Auto Show. Still, with the way things are going, we wouldn’t sell the classic just yet.
In the swinging sixties, this was a car ahead of its time. It was technically innovative with the first backbone tube chassis of any road car, a fiberglass body, four-wheel independent suspension, 670kg with a peachy power-to-weight ratio. You could also have some decent creature comforts - electric windows, carpets, a heater, and in vogue wooden fascia.
The revival of the Lotus Elan is on Lotus’s agenda, as a concept was shown at the 2010 Paris Auto Show. Still, with the way things are going, we wouldn’t sell the classic just yet.
Google News