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1965 Lotus Elan S2

The British automakers, in the post-War era, had built a respectable resume for building high-performance open two-seaters and coupes. Each were different in character from each other, and each were destined to become a valuable classic. One sophisticated little jewel was produced by Colin Chapman. His Lotus Elan featured a welded steel backbone chassis supporting a fully independent suspension incorporating the ingenious Chapman strut layout at the rear. Nestled comfortably between two front arms of the chassis, the powerplant was basically a ford block with Lotus's own aluminum twin-overhead camshaft cylinder head. Originally, it displaced 1498cc. Later, it was enlarged, reaching a size of 1558cc. Since the Elan weighed a mere 1526 lbs., this proved more than adequate to propel the sports car to high speeds.

The Elan had molded fiberglass bodywork. Aided by well-chosen close ratios, the Elan had a top speed in the neighborhood of 120 mph.

The Elan was a capable driver, having a light and direct steering, and powerful and progressive braking. The Elan soon became the company's best seller by a wide margin.


by Daniel Vaughan | Jan 2012

Related Reading : Lotus Elan History

Recalling Sixties spy-fi show The Avengers, the first thing men of a certain age remember is Mrs Peels black leather cat suit. But the characters object of desire was her cute-as-a-button Lotus Elan. The Elan was launched in October 1962 at the British Motorshow, just as the Sixties started swinging. Jaguar had launched the E-Type the previous year, and AC had the Cobra and Ferrari the GTO. Big,....
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Related Reading : Lotus Elan History

The Lotus Elan was the first modern roadster. That may sound like quite a claim, especially considering that novel cars like the MGB were also around for 1962. The Elan, though, had something no other cars of its time had, or rather it had a combination of traits that none of its contemporaries could match. The Elan was purposeful and cohesive. While a car like the MGB used advanced unitary construction,....
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1965 Lotus Elan S2 Vehicle Profiles

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Performance and Specification Comparison

Price Comparison

1965 Elan S2
$4,200-$24,400
1965 Lotus Elan S2 Base Price : $4,200

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Other 1965 Lotus Models

Elan

Specification Comparison by Year

Year
Production
Wheelbase
Engine
Prices
84.00 in.
4 cyl., 95.08 CID., 105.00hp
$4,190 - $4,200
84.00 in.
4 cyl., 95.08 CID., 105.00hp
4 cyl., 97.52 CID., 195.00hp
$4,100 - $4,200
84.00 in.
4 cyl., 95.08 CID., 105.00hp
$4,200 - $4,200
84.00 in.
4 cyl., 97.27 CID., 115.00hp
$4,200 - $4,200
84.00 in.
4 cyl., 95.08 CID., 105.00hp
4 cyl., 95.08 CID., 118.00hp
$4,550 - $4,600
84.00 in.
4 cyl., 95.08 CID., 105.00hp
4 cyl., 95.08 CID., 118.00hp
4 cyl., 95.08 CID., 118.00hp
$4,800 - $6,000
84.00 in., 96.00 in.
4 cyl., 95.08 CID., 105.00hp
4 cyl., 95.08 CID., 118.00hp
4 cyl., 95.08 CID., 118.00hp
$4,800 - $5,990
84.00 in.
4 cyl., 95.08 CID., 105.00hp
$4,895 - $4,895
84.00 in.
4 cyl., 95.08 CID., 105.00hp
$4,890 - $6,850
84.00 in.
4 cyl., 95.08 CID., 105.00hp
4 cyl., 95.10 CID., 126.00hp
$4,890 - $4,890

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