1973 Lotus Elan Coupe

During the Lotus Elan's 11 years of construction, about 9,000 Elan roadsters and coupes were built. When it was introduced in 1962, it stunned the world with the application of the composite monocoque construction of the revolutionary Formula One Lotus 25 to a tiny two-seat sports car. Its GRP body was bonded to a backbone frame and weighed only 1,498 lbs. Power was from a 1558cc Ford engine fitted with a Lotus-designed twin-cam cylinder head capable of carrying the car to a top speed of 112 mph.

In 1971, Lotus introduced the Sprint with its 'big-valve' engine and 126 available horsepower. It could race from zero-to-sixty in just 6.6 seconds with a top speed of 125 mph. Just 845 roadster and 562 coupes were built.

This Lotus Elan Sprint Coupe was delivered on November 21st of 1972 and was the last Lotus Elan received by Lind Bros. Motors in Waterloo, Iowa, and it has since remained in the care of the dealership's proprietor.

This car is believed to be one of just two cars specially ordered in solid colors by the Lotus distributor in Toronto. The car is finish in plain white, instead of two-tone Sprint colors, and is fitted with a sunroof. The car was heavily optioned with Lotus 'knock-off' wheels, Audiovox stereo, Maserati air horns, and Lucas 'tripod' headlights, adding to its original $6,427 purchase price.

The car was initially used as a demonstrator. When Elan production ceased in 1973, it was sparingly driven and finally stored under a cover at the dealership in 1974.

In May of 2007, the car was treated to a mechanical freshening at a cost of $5,730.

By Daniel Vaughan | Feb 2014