The Lotus Elan was one of the defining sports cars of the 1960s.

Internally known as the Type 26, the Elan was a revolution in small sports car design. Where the earlier Lotus Elite had introduced the fiberglass monocoque, Chapman opted for a more practical approach with the Elan, featuring a steel chassis clad in a fiberglass body. This design offered the perfect balance between weight, cost, and durability. The backbone frame—a narrow, Y-shaped steel structure—ensured exceptional stiffness relative to weight, while the fiberglass body kept the total weight around 680 kilograms. The result was a car that combined structural strength with the featherlight agility that would become a hallmark of Lotus.

The power source was the legendary Lotus Twin Cam engine, an engine that would define the brand for decades. Based on Ford's 1558 cc Kent block, Lotus fitted it with an aluminum cylinder head featuring double overhead camshafts, designed by Harry Mundy. In the early street versions, the engine produced 105 hp, later rising to 115 and even 126 hp in the SE and Sprint versions. With so little weight, the Elan was extremely fast for its time, accelerating from 0 to 100 km/h in less than 7 seconds and reaching a top speed of 193 km/h. More importantly, the power delivery was smooth, flexible, and eager, perfectly tuned to the car's light and responsive character.

On the road, the Lotus Elan was downright revolutionary. It handled like no other car of its era: light, agile, and lively in the driver's hands. Even modern drivers accustomed to much more powerful cars find the Elan's stability and suppleness astounding.

Chapman's obsession with weight reduction was evident in every aspect of the design. The car's doors were so light that they could be lifted with a single finger, and even the seats and upholstery were kept minimalist. The Elan's reputation was quickly established, both on the road and on the track. It became a favorite among private drivers and excelled in club races and international competitions. The factory-produced Elan 26R racing version, introduced in 1964, featured widened wheel arches, wider wheels, and up to 160 hp from a heavily tuned Twin Cam engine. It dominated its class for years, beating many larger and more powerful machines through sheer agility and efficiency. On public roads, the Elan gained fame among both car enthusiasts and celebrities—most famously as Emma Peel's car.

The Lotus presented here is a true race car and was developed for the SCCA class. The Lotus is constructed to the 26R type. It is equipped with a roll cage, a racing tank, dual fuel pumps, and a twin-cam engine that delivers approximately 190 hp in this case. This was combined with very tight handling. This power in a super-light car of about 600 kg makes for a lightning-fast car. The Lotus has already proven itself on the track where the previous driver celebrated triumphs and was well-known in the Dutch classic car class. An almost genuine 26R for a very competitive price.

Lotus Elan R SCCA1558/ M1134

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Metropole Classics

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