Forget drugs – the Lotus Elan is the ultimate anti-depressant and it should be available on prescription

If you’re trying to find a classic that’s guaranteed to put a smile on your face every time you open the garage door, then look no further. Forget drugs – this is the ultimate anti-depressant and it should be available on prescription. With its light weight, zesty engine and virtually unparalleled handling, there’s no wonder this Lotus has taken its place in the iconic cars hall of fame. But the best bit is that you can buy one of these four-wheeled wonders without having to break the bank – for just £8000 you could have your own usable Elan.

This was the car that saved Lotus, the company having made a loss on every Elite it sold. When the Elan was first shown at the 1962 Earls Court Motor Show it featured a 1499cc Ford-based engine, but it wasn’t long before the classic 1558cc unit took its place – a motor that was to power the Elan until its demise just over a decade later.

Although there was relatively little development of the Elan throughout its decade of production, there are a surprising number of variants on offer. You can choose between convertibles and coupés as well
as the rather ugly +2 derivatives that aren’t as sought after but are more practical. Not that the Elan is about practicality in the load-lugging sense…

The same engine powered all Elans, but it was available in varying states of tune. The standard Elan’s 105bhp is ample because the car is so light, but if you want more there’s always the Special Equipment (SE) which offered 115bhp. If this still isn’t enough you’ll be looking at a Sprint, complete with 126bhp and two-tone paintwork. However, it matters not which version you opt for – you are guaranteed to find every journey a blast. Elan +2s are worth less than a two-seater example, but otherwise there’s no variance in values across the models – apart from at the very top, where S1s and S2s
are typically worth around £3000 more.

A +2 restoration project is £2000 – two-seater Elan equivalents are double this. A usable example of the latter is £8000-9000; similar +2s are £7000. The best +2 is worth £18,000 while the nicest Elans cost £25,000 – but to command this latter sum it has to
be very special indeed.