1999 Xanthos 23B Sports Roadster

Colin Chapman was truly a genius of sports car racing, and his legacy was re-enforced in 1962 with the introduction of the Lotus 23. The inaugural race for the Lotus 23 was at the Nurburgring 1000KM where Jim Clark drove the car skillfully around the difficult course, lapping up to 30 seconds faster than the more powerful Porsche and Ferrari competition. Unfortunately, his exhaust failed and he crashed out of the race.

In 1994, the Lotus 23 was re-introduced in a continuation series created by Xanthos Cars of Britain. The U.S. agent was located in San Diego, CA, and in 1997, Mr. John Moir traveled to California to purchase one of the two examples he had available. One example was fitted with a Toyota engine while the other had a rebuilt Lotus-Ford engine. Mr. Moir put a deposit down on the Lotus-Ford example and was informed that it would take two years to get it. In 1999, the agent called and stated the car was in California. Mr. Moir, living in New Hampshire, had the suspension set as high as possible.

The Xanthos 23B was delivered with turn signals and a horn, but without windshield wipers. The engine is a 1599cc overhead-valve four-cylinder engine offering 150 horsepower. There is a four-speed manual transmission with four-wheel disc brakes. The body is made from fiberglass.

By Daniel Vaughan | Nov 2014