More vehicles to come...

1991 Lotus Elan

E-mail to a Friend

"What ever would have Colin Chapman have thought about this?" might a devoted Lotus-phile have thought when the 1991 Elan was unveiled over a decade ago. While the original Elan was by Mazda's own admission the inspiration for its MX-5 Miata, this new Elan was hardly following Lotus' original tried and true formulae. This Elan had an Isuzu engine (turbocharged no less) driving its front wheels, for goodness sake!

In addition, in contrast to the fast-but-minimalistic Lotuses (Loti?) of yore, this Elan was decidedly upscale, replete with leather, AC, and power-everything. Indeed, the interior was rather boring and uninspired--the dash could have come straight out of an Isuzu as far as we could tell--and at the time, at over $40k, the car was just too expensive.

Ah, but how times have changed. Lotus has returned to its roots and its minimalistic approach with its incredible Elise (another hi-mpg.org Hot Green Machine), and depreciation has made the 1991 Elan less expensive than a new Miata. Yet its looks has remained as fresh as it was back in 1991... thoroughly modern, with a handsome front-end resemblance to Lotus' weathered Esprit; and very exclusive, even exotic.

And despite the detractors who exclaimed that no vehicle with front-wheel drive could possibly be a real sports car, this was, after all, a Lotus--making it perhaps the finest-handling front-wheel drive car in the 1990s. The turbocharged Isuzu engine is spirited and reliable enough... and unlike British iron of the 1960s, 70s, and even 80s, it is not prone to leaking oil. It gets approximately 31 mpg on the highway.

We think the Elan is a great value and lots of fun. In fact, we think it is better looking, despite being slightly more conservative, than the Elise that would follow it a decade later. And the Isuzu drivetrain makes it all the more serviceable (even though there are less Isuzu dealerships than, say, Honda dealerships, there are FAR more Isuzu dealerships than Lotus ones.) Our last search of Craigslist (August 2004) in the San Francisco Bay Area turned up a couple of Elans with just over 100k miles for approximately $13,000-22,000. Not a bad deal for an exotic. Not a bad deal at all for a Lotus.