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I had 40 or more sports cars from Alfa to Ferrari and Porsche . I never had so much fun or got more bang for my buck as I did with my Lotus Elan M100 Turbo . Period
Most annoying thing is “back in the day” we had MX5, MR2, Elan, MG-F, Barchetta, Golf Cabriolet, 205 and 305 Cabriolets… and before that X1/9, Montecarlo, Spitfires, MGB’s etc… so lots of small, performance oriented if not actually fast “affordable sports cars”…. Now basically zip, zero, nada. Everything I now mega bucks £80k plus… 🤷🏻♂️
SO the great AI decided to edit my post for no reason - so let's try again: THE ELAN 1990 was a great car. Brilliant Peter Stevens styling. Its scarcity means people today still ask, What is it? I should know as I own one. (Thanks AI so well done)
The problem with this car was the price and front wheel drive, if it was cheaper and rear wheel drive it would be an astonishing car. This car at the time,was the best handling front wheel car in the world.
When these were new I used to deliver car's for a prestige car dealer I took one of these home once it was one of the best handling confidence inspiring car's I've ever driven.
The Elan had drifted out of my consciousness until a nice red one appeared in the pub car park last Friday - looked like an ideal classic for this sunny weather.
What really killed it was the Mazda MX5. I can't find any other launch than the M100 Elan that could've been more mismatched in time. Here was the launch of a beautiful roadster, inspired by the real Lotus Elan from the sixtiea, it was light, peppy, had actuallly enjoyable driving dynamics, and it was real wheel drive. And the real killer, it was half the price than the Lotus. Why would anybody wanting anything else than the Mazda that year? Lotus lost confidence in itself and strayed from its mission and it was so obvious there was no way to hide it. And it was all Mazdas gain....
The name didn't help either. People when a new car has the same name as the old one, they expect (rightfully so) a direct evolution of the older car. Look what happened recently with the new NSX and Supra.
Agree with others here: the name conjuring up the Elan of old and, of course, premium Lotus pricing due to lower volumes, meant that the MX-5 soaked up the market. If the M100 was christened the Elise, for example, if might have faced quite a different future. I’ve driven both and the irony is that the Elan M100 out performs and out handles the MX-5.
I've racked up around 100,000 miles in mine. Used it as a daily driver for a few years. Several coast to coast trips, USA. Holdes a huge amount of luggage. It has had a few track days in its life time. More of a small GT car in my mind. Incredible bargens.
I remember seeing a very young guy driving one of these round my hometown in Essex. This had to be 1991ish and the driver looked to be around my age (I was only 17) I pointed it out to my mate and he recognised the Elans driver. It was Liam Howlett of The Prodigy! This was early on in their career (maybe after Charlie had made it big or after they'd had another hit? But well early in The Prodigys time) so he obviously was already doing quite well. Around the mid 90s and you'd see Keith Flint (RIP) in his bright yellow TVR. I even raced him through town one night haha!
Thanks for reviewing one of these rare beasts. Back in the day Performance Car pitted this against a TVR Chimaera 4.0 V8 which just shows what it was up against. The TVR won the test but the Elan was praised for its immense roadholding and handling.
I remember it well! I was at Lotus at the time and did the type approval. The IP and steering column switches are all from the Cavalier if memory serves me correctly. It was a lardy little beast too as you say. Got a bag load of tales from those days..
@@chandrab I did! I was at Lotus from 1987 to 1992 (The early demise of the M100 Elan saw me made redundant) so I was involved with the end of the Excel, the intro of the X180 and its development including the GMP4 and the Intercooled version. I also did the Carlton and a few engineering programmes.
@@johnchettleburgh6055 you must have some great stories about lotus at the time. I would love to chat with you about them if your willing. I’m part of the lotus esprit owners group on FB. I am very interested to hear about all things SE related.
I had a long test drive in the turbo when it first came out and it was a very rapid car for its day, but utterly, utterly soulless. It sounded like a washing machine and for me it was just totally uninvolving to drive. On the plus side it could go down a country road faster than anything else, but there was no sensation of speed or what the car was doing. The strap-line at the time was that 90% of drivers would be able to drive it at 90% of its capability, 90% of the time. That felt about right but the result was that you would likely be driving it so fast without realising it that you would eventually either cause an accident and/or lose your licence. And without the compensation of, up to that point, having actually enjoyed the experience. The extensive use of Cavalier bits in the cockpit didn't help matters either. I ended up with a '79 carb 308 for about the same price as a new M100; not as quick overall but every drive was memorable!
I think that the 308 was much faster! I had ordered the Elan at the motor show to replace my Eclat. After the test drive, I could see why I’d want to change my car that handled so much better with a front wheel drive that was going to cost 3 times as much. I then bought my first Ferrari 308 1980 carb and never looked back. Still got a 456. 🙂
Always liked these Elans. VERY rare nowadays in the US. Front end looks a little bit like a Diablo. Also similar to the 2nd Gen Toyota MR-2 and Fiero GT. Fun cars back then!
what most people forget or don't realise is that torque was very prevalent in front wheel drive (FWD) cars - especially turbo charged ones. Lotus demonstrated how and even manufacturer of FWD cars bought an Elan and stripped it down to see what Lotus had done. Most of the criticism is just snobbery - this is a real Lotus and that is evident in how it drives down a poorly surfaced British B road. Staggering to think it's 30 years old and still feels so modern.
I sold these as new/used cars in 1994-95 at a Lotus dealer. The 'Flan' is the best car Lotus ever built. Superb fun to drive, fast, economical, reliable thanks to the Japanese input (well, water leaks from the hood apart) and easy to live with. Yes it was expensive compared the MX5 but if you want the best...... The original Elise was a vicious little bastard with dubious reliability thanks in no small part to that BL K Series thing. It had a place as a track car but it was nowhere near as nice as the M100. One of the main reasons the Elan 'didn't sell' is because Lotus were not geared up for the demand. Even in '95 as it was ending (not 1992!) late secondhand examples were selling for list. With a queue of buyers.
It certainly has one of the most polished interiors of a Lotus and if my memory serves me right it has a conventional convertible roof not unlike an MX5 or MGF. That in itself is a million lightyears better than the 'build it yourself' roof of the S1 Elise. Let us not forget the Kia Elan that came after when they acquired the rights to produce the car after Lotus stopped.. Now that is surely a very rare car indeed.
@@davidorama6690 I've got one. The interior is plastic, nasty and not at all robust. I'll take the plywood, leather wrapped interiors from the esprits in the preceeding years any day. The hoods all leaked from factory. If it wasn't for the driving points, I'd long be shot of it, but drivability, reliability, sheer smile factor - it's brilliant.
The later version of the Elise roof doesn't leak. The Elise interior is also better really especially later S2s onwards, much of it is brushed aluminium and English leather or alcantara.
As someone who owns an elan for more than 8 years and drove it to work everyday for 6 of them. ifind this a Fair Review, although the brakes are not quite as suitable as the review suggests. it is indeed a usable car everyday, which may be surprising for a lotus, But then again. its the only lotus ever built with a budget worthy of developing a whole car. One thing that was not mentioned and i think its really important is the boot size. You CAN go to the golf club with this car bring your own clubs to do the 18 holes. and still stop for a picknic on the way back home with your passenger. the boot is not only volumous, but also properly designed unlike other FWD convertibles (alfa spider and peugeot 206cc)
I owned one of these for 7 years and loved it. I had it chipped to 200 BHP and that really helped. From standstill it would leave most things behind up to 60 because of the low weight. The roof did leak a little but it was a very comfortable car. The roof design was brilliant and I was surprised that it was not shown in the video. Oh, and those pop up headlights!!! loved them.
It's a nice enough looking car; it just lacks drama for a Lotus. Not as low as an Elise, not as swoopy and curvaceous as an Evora, not in the same galaxy as an Esprit.
I've owned an M100 for 6 years, and this video is a good review. I also own an early MGF. The Elan feels like an effective tool for a job, if that job is getting somewhere quickly. It's not completely soulless as has been suggested in the comments, but it's character is quite well hidden. In every area the Elan is a better car than the MGF (even build quality, but then the bar is quite low!!), but somehow the F has such character and the k-series is a great (if flawed) engine (and of course Lotus used it in the Elise). As mentioned, the problem the Elan had was that it was up against the MX5. The original design studies of the M100 (type 90) were front engine rear wheel drive, but they found that front wheel drive was far more effective at getting from point A to B quickly, and that because it was a Lotus it had to be ground-breaking in some way - re-hashing front engine/rear drive wasn't really going to be an option. Making a clever front wheel drive sports car was actually a very Lotus thing to do. And don't forget that Lotus offered an engineering consultancy, and as an advert for their services offering a clever front wheel drive solution would have brought them lots of work. For the project to pay for itself Lotus needed to sell 3,000 a year, so building 2,800 in 3 years wasn't great. However the development money was spent and I don't think they weren't losing money on actually building the cars. And apparently it wasn't GM that canned it, I imagine the real reason is in Barrie Wills book (!!!). Ultimately trying to build a high volume (by Lotus standards) sports car that could compete with the MX5, and everything that followed, wasn't something that Lotus could or should have been doing, whereas the Elise perfectly captured what Lotus was about.
Great post. I've owned several 2 seat convertibles including an MGF and a Porsche Boxster, both great to drive with lots of character. I can credit the MGF for boosting my mental health, bought it for €550 in good condition back in 2013 after some extremely austere years losing my job and having simply nothing since the start of the Great Recession. Was thinking of getting an MX-5 next but then an Elan popped up for very reasonable money. Flying over from Ireland to the UK tomorrow morning to go collect "Colin" as the current owner affectionately calls him, and bring him home. Can't wait! And thanks to Jack for his lovely channel.
I'm a fan, have one out here in CA and it's the perfect car. I love the Elise and so wanted one when they came out but getting in is tough and out is even harder! The Elan is a much easier car to live with on a day to day basis. It has a proper boot! Couple of mods that make it more interesting, they are easy to chip if you can get one and there is a short-shift kit which transforms the gear change. It's said that the Elan is FWD because at the time Lotus did some comparative tests and found that in most circumstances, most drivers could get from AtoB faster in a FWD car than a RWD. I believe there are a bunch of Lotus patents which came out of their development of the FWD suspension. Turn in is impressive as is the speed you can carry through corners.
I believe you 100% As an owner of a B16 Honda Del Sol, the Elan seems to me very similar not only on spec but also on the impression I got from the video. The Del Sol is a real blast to drive, a baby supercar, I got the impression that the Elan is nothing less.
I remember going in one of these when I was 10, I went to Merry Hill and the lady who was driving it treated me to a Sega Master system with Hang on and a gun game. I never forget getting out the car when we arrived at the shopping mall suggesting the roof be put on to find when we arrived back at the car it had rained for a while....happy memories!!!
I had one and loved it. You left out that at the same time the Mazda Miata/mx5 came out - for 1/3 the price it was nearly as good if not better in some ways.
the elan was quicker and just as capable in the corners but it was from lotus and not a major manufacturer and it was almost 10 grand more than the mx5. Also front wheel drive which was unheard of for a sports car but was def becoming all the rage with saloons and hatchbacks.
The mx5 was everything the Elan should have been but wasn't from the purists point of view and it was cheaper. I think it was the Elans biggest stone in its shoe.
Im 27 years late to the Party. Always loved the coke bottle plan view look of this car, and just this year managed to buy an S2. Really not even had much chance to drive it now the weather has gone rubbish. I genuinely think it holds its own in looks even today. Nice honest review.
Interesting facts about this car from the time. Peter Stevens design ( later of McLaren F1 fame, split subframe/raft with clever bushings that eliminated torque steer and maintained compliance, again to later feature on the F1) - the Lotus philosophy at the time was to offer upgrade young people ( I was one back then!) from their FWD hot hatch ( think 205 gti or golf) and give them a sports car experience they could relate to. The mantra was 90% of drivers could extract 90% of its performance 90% of the time. A pal of mine went from HPC Caterham to FWD Elan turbo and was quicker point to point on the average road.
.. And another interesting fact is that Peter Stevens must have liked those front indicators as he went on to use them on the aforementioned F1 as well as the Jaguar XJR-15
I rented one as a treat to myself just over 30yrs ago and it was absolutely astonishing for the time! The most impressive feature was its grip and handling - so as a test I went round one very familiar corner.... At 50mph.... In a glorious, yet totally controlled 4-wheel drift! Then, for comparison on the following day I went round the same corner in the same conditions in my Audi 100 CC Avant at 20-25mph - and the tyres squealed loudly all the way round the corner whilst approaching terminal understeer!! Totally blew my mind!!!
The problem there was….the Lotus name and naming it an Elan. Had they marketed it under an independent brand name, I think it might have been more successful .
I recall the praise it got as being one of the best front drive chassis ever. I think the Isuzu engine put some folk off though and purists couldn't get past the loss of rear wheel drive. I always liked the wide hips in the styling myself and I always thought the turbo version was pretty quick to 60mph at 5 and a bit seconds? Maybe my memory is letting me down though? It was the MX5 that really did for this incarnation of the Elan though.
This car had a tough time in the US for sure. It was not a pure sports car like the Miata (Mx-5) which was still hugely popular, being FWD and being very expensive in comparison. And cars in it's price segment such as the 300ZX, Rx-7, Corvette and 944S2 were far higher performance and more serious. This car was on an island by itself.
All of the people with an opinion are usually the ones that haven’t owned one. Get a “mountain chip” and some upgraded front brakes and the thing flies…
Without having seen the whole video yet: Because it looks like a 90s Toyota. Which is not a bad thing in my book, but I am a middle-aged German in 2022, and for a Lotus fan in the early 90s, that may or may not have been a problem. Edit after seeing the whole video: Yeah, the front wheel drive may have been a problem as well 🙂
I continue to enjoy this series of interesting cars and so far it's been a great selection. I do remember when this first came out and thinking how pretty it looked and then promptly forgot all about this car until now!
Car magazine reckoned that the Elan, Lancia Delta Integrale and Porsche 911 Carreras 4 were the fastest real world cars when they tested them in the early 90s.
Personally I do not feel FWD is an issue, I would wager the vast majority of people reading this comment cannot exploit RWD/MR, certainly not on the public roads. I've had all 3 and in regular driving there essentially is little to no difference.
I’m currently driving one of these as a courtesy car whilst my Indy mechanic is fixing my aircon on S2 Exige. I think you’re short shifting in 2nd. In his Turbo in 2nd you only need to hover on the accelerator and the turbo cuts in about 3500 and gives a real boost.it’s an old school turbo so you have to give it revs to get the turbo effect.
In '92 I looked at the Elan, but went with an MX5 instead. The front wheel drive killed it for me, and the price, but looks wise I still like it, it has aged well but as you say it's the one Lotus that people don't recognize.
One of the greatest regrets in my motoring life was passing up on a bright blue S2 M100, cheap as chips back in the day, because I was shocked by insurance premium quotes. I was an idiot. It’s a fabulous car.
When you think of the models this car inevitably invites comparison with it will, of course, suffer from the comparison. On its own though (front drive notwithstanding) the lack of obvious turbo lag alone would recommend it. I was always curious about this car. That you for another entertaining and informative ride!
Nice one Jack. I've always had a soft spot for the little Elan, especially the turbo. Love your videos. Just FYI even though I subscribe to other car channels, I watch your videos as soon as I can after receiving the notification. There's a humble honesty to your work that is much appreciated. Many thanks & Stay well Jamie 👍
I’ve never driven one , but I’ve never been minded to, The styling isn’t canon for lotus . I’d rather have an eclat or an excel if we’re talking about lesser known cars from the Marque . FWD doesn’t bother me too much as I’ve owned several 916 Alfa’s..( and would rather have one than an Elan ) Also 10-12k gets you into a Maserati 4200 /3200 or a 996/ 997 Boxster or Cayman..
Great video! My neighbour has an Elan and loves it, he also has a VW Corrado VR6, he never shuts up about it. You should try get your hands on one of them to film, it got some great stories behind it's design
A lot of cars that may be considered as competitors to the Elan (at least in some form) have aged pretty well too …. perhaps better than this form of the Elan…..VW Corrado in top spec…. Vauxhall Calibra convertible by bertone ….. MX5 in top spec …. MR2 mark 1 andor 2…. BMW 325i ……. Golf GTI mark2 16V …… etc. There were many real cool decently priced coupes (usually available in convertible form) that still turn heads.
The Elise, I had a series 1 which I loved but my wife hated…..should have kept the Elise, was really the mark 3 elan and should have been called an Elan …IMHO
Interesting. So it’s a good car in it’s own right (as was recognised at the time), but falls short of praise because it’s a Lotus! Great entertaining content as always Jack 👍🏻
I came so close to buying an Elan M100 in 1999, my friend had one and I loved it. Then I saw the Elise and bought that new instead. At the time a decent Elan was around £22K, well used high mileage were around £6K. My Elise new was circa £24K and looked amazing and fresh. I don’t regret buying the Elise but I would still have an Elan in a heart beat. A little trivia, when Lotus finished Elan manufacturing they sold the design to Kia who produce it for a little while with a few changes that weren’t quite as good.
I really like these. I had a toy one a a kid and remember playing with it all of the time. Someone in our village had one a few I always admire it when I pass by walking the dog. I’ve never driven one admittedly, but I still like them.
My mate has the turbo model, had it for years now, he loves it. Some spares can be expensive and rare so be careful what car you buy. For me it’s MX5 every time, get the alignment set up and its great fun on country roads.
Whoever's car that is, please tell them they have the wrong coolant in it. It should be BLUE not PINK. Pink OAT coolant will corrode the brass fittings in cooling system.
4:02 I owned three of these as my daily driver from 2001 to 2012. Lotus purposely strangled the exhaust to keep power down so it wouldn't compete with the Esprit. That's why the boost builds slowly and as you said, unturbo-like. There was a guy who made 2.5" mandrel-bend turbo-back exhausts which *completely changed both the power-level and delivery.* I had that exhaust on every one of mine. The wastegate opening had to be enlarged to 21mm or else you'd experience boost-creep.
Thanks Jack for another interesting test run and insight of another historic car. I think you, or someone, ought to put a homemade sign on that bend and call it 'Jacks Bend, to immortalise your efforts. Looking forward to more interesting content. Best wishes, Bob M.
Another great video Jack, like you i have a soft spot for Lotus but the Elan never really did it for me as it looked a bit bland and dare i say "normal".
When I was a kid working YTS in a Citroen dealership one of those Elan's was taking as a trade in against... Wait for it.... An XM estate!🤣 I never understood such a dramatic change in car ownership! Cracking stuff as always Jack 👍
Pure and simple - the MX-5 Miata took the market by storm because of how good of a roadster it was. And while I don't think many people cross shopped the Elan with the Miata, the Miata's base price only being 1/3rd (USD) of the Elan surely didn't help things.
Love the look of these, agreed they have aged well. Only criticism is that the rear wheel arch is too big ! If you pause@ 7:02, that rear wheel looks lost in there - could be 3 inches wider. Being FWD I guess rules out a wider rear wheel/tyre combo.
PS I also owned a 1990 Miata from new and yes it is a brilliant wonderful car. I loved it. Two sets of tires, two brake jobs and the cars alignment was still good. That didn't happen with the Spitfire, TR7 or TR8 I owned. However this comparison between Miata and Elan m100 that every journalists repeats doesn't really hold water. They are really very different things.
“It’s not a speed monster,” sure in a straight line, but it was the best handling front driver ever made at that point. I think it looks quite smart as a wedge and it is a convertible. I would very much love to import the Kia version with the N/A 1.8 DOHC 4-cylinder. Sure that will be less of a speed demon but again the handling is there, It looks like nothing else, is fairly low cost to keep on the road, won’t shake your fillings loose with a harsh ride, a bit like a MX-5 but not a Miata. I admire something different that I can drive daily, have fun in, and is more of a momentum car than an speed demon.
The thing about Elans is how fast they CAN go round corners. If you're prepared to experiment on your favourite road just to see how hard it's possible to push, you'll run out of bravery or talent before the car gets to its limit. Oh, and the other big reason they quickly faded into obscurity is that the top brass at the time tried to engineer a management buy-out of the company by de-valuing the Elan but it failed, leaving the Elan being the victim. If they'd stuck with it, as Mazda did with the MX-5, it could have gone onto so much better things. A 4WD transmission and a 1.8 already existed; they would have been awesome!
I'm lucky enough to have driven Elan (my mate had one) and the S1 Elise (a test drive of a new one in '96, I think). The Elise is the technically superior drivers car granted, but compromised day to day and I couldn't get on with the MGF gearbox. The M100 Elan, I think, is unfairly maligned. Yes, it's FWD, but does allow more day to day use, the gearchange is more to my taste and it's quick enough. The average driver could probably get more from it at 7/10. I love them both, but I think the M100 S1 cars (with a bit more power than the S2's) will have their day in the sun.
You really can't write a review of a convertible without taking the top down. You're only experiencing half of the vehicle. Sort of like if you only ever put the accelerator halfway down., you don't know the car. The Elan -90 was a great car - brilliant Peter Stevens styling. its scarcity means people today still ask what is it? -- I should know I own one
Can still remember the reviews in the motoring press when they were released. Something along the lines of "flawed but brilliant". They had absolutely remarkable handling though
This model Lotus Elan failed because of two letters and a number, MX5. For a third of the price you could get a convertible sports car that evoked some of the old school British sports car charisma but with modern Japanese reliability, air conditioning that worked and good build quality. Plus at the time the original Lotus Elan prices were not crazy so it was possible to own both a modern MX5 and an original Elan for less then the price of the new car.
As I recall, Lotus felt theMX5 was backward looking, while the Elan was highly advanced with highly polished front wheel drive (patented I think)and they claimed zero troque steer (I tried one and found that was the case relative to an XR3 for example!). Sad, as they then had to rescue the company with the Elise...and the rest was history with MX5 and Elsie doing very well and the Elan forgotten. I recall at the time they also claimed it was the fastest car from A-B including the Esprit. I have another lost Lotus, the Excel SE !!
I remember driving one with a BBR conversion giving it about 250 BHP. I think it looked good, it was very fast and it was quick through the corners, but still didn’t feel special and not much fun to drive. The opposite of the Elise!
I think the issue was it was set-up to deliver from 7/10ths upwards, and given how competent the chassis was you had to be going too blooming quick on most roads to feel the car working under you. It took me ages to appreciate this after buying an Elan almost 30 years ago! By comparison the Elise felt alive and more fun at much lower speeds, but it was certainly not always the superior handing car. On a damp twisty B road the Elan was most probably the safer and quicker car.
Dunno why Lotus didn't slot that Isuzu powertrain in behind the seats rather than up front. It would have produced a sort of MR2 Spyder before Toyota got round to it and would have silenced a lot of the critics. Love the channel and keep up the good work. And @Number_27 - you've gotta train yourself to keep your palms outside the steering wheel 👍
I used to have this one on a poster in my room as a kid! I’ve been dreaming about driving it! I haven’t seen one from ages though! I guess they are quite rare now…
Three reasons for its failure - front wheel drive, front wheel drive, and front wheel drive. Fitting the same engine and box behind the seats would have changed the perception of the car completely.
Great to see an M100 on the channel - the way it changes direction through corners is really good, and down to innovation in the 'raft' front suspension that Lotus developed for the M100. The short shift kit to improve the gear change is one of the top 3 modifications worth doing (brakes being another).
I remember when this came out. A friend of mine was in the market for this type of car. He test drove one of these and also the newly launched [at the time] MX5. He said the MX5 was a far better experience and he bought one of those. I imagine that this is what most people who were similarly placed to him did at the time. The Elan just couldn't compete with the MX5 and history bears out what an amazing car the MX5 turned out to be.
MX5 was a much safer consumer option with mass produced Japanese reliability and without Lotus' reputation for poor build, with unacceptable niggles such as leaky roofs, cheap trim/fixings and broken gear-shifters etc. That said having spent time in both cars the Elan was (in my opinion) in a different league when it came to speed and handling and its composure on undulating roads would easily leave the MX5 in its wake. Elan was really a car for special drives on summer afternoons and best kept under cover most other times! ;)
I've always liked the looks of these, don't know if my mind is playing tricks with me but I think I drove one in 1996 when it was p/x'd against a SAAB 900 Turbo
I don’t agree that it was a flop. It sold good numbers for a lotus (not a GM but it’s a lotus). I have a turbo from new and it was quick good looking , really good with the roof down. Got lots of looks as you drove by and early track days proved it was fast and handled well. Plus the engine was strong. If GM through the it was going to shift 500,000 units that’s there fault. Also, in the day, I had people say oh it’s not a lotus or is not got a lotus engine etc etc. many lotus cars never had a full lotus engine, lotus head yes, ford block yes - exactly what this car got, a strong bottom end with some lotus magic up top. I wish I never sold mine 😩
M100 Elan trivia: Peter Stevens who designed the Elan moved from Lotus to McLaren where he designed the legendary F1. If you look carefully he reused the front indicators for the M100 on the F1 :) The cars also share the same door mirror centre console switchgear..although I suspect that might have been a standard GM part of the time.
While Mazda was copying the original Elan to make the MX-5 Miata, Lotus considered that to be a step backwards so they produced this M100 Elan and priced it the same as 2 Miatas. 2:01. The original Elan cost as much as a Corvette at that time as well!
When i mentioned the m100 elan in the mx5 and elan video i was kinda hoping you would cover it. Thanks for covering this car, not many people do. Two cars im currently considering as a next purchase are the Noble m12 and an Ultima. Any chance of you covering either of these in a future video?
If you can/want to support the channel I now have a Patreon account. I am resisting having those pesky 🥴informercial style product placements so any contribution helps me keep them at bay! Additionally I send a monthly update to Patreon members with extra insider information. 😋www.patreon.com/number27
I had 40 or more sports cars from Alfa to Ferrari and Porsche . I never had so much fun or got more bang for my buck as I did with my Lotus Elan M100 Turbo . Period
I love mine , had it 10 years.
Cheap to run and insure , not as common as an mx5 .
Great little car .
Most annoying thing is “back in the day” we had MX5, MR2, Elan, MG-F, Barchetta, Golf Cabriolet, 205 and 305 Cabriolets… and before that X1/9, Montecarlo, Spitfires, MGB’s etc… so lots of small, performance oriented if not actually fast “affordable sports cars”…. Now basically zip, zero, nada. Everything I now mega bucks £80k plus… 🤷🏻♂️
SO the great AI decided to edit my post for no reason - so let's try again: THE ELAN 1990 was a great car. Brilliant Peter Stevens styling. Its scarcity means people today still ask, What is it? I should know as I own one. (Thanks AI so well done)
The problem with this car was the price and front wheel drive, if it was cheaper and rear wheel drive it would be an astonishing car. This car at the time,was the best handling front wheel car in the world.
When these were new I used to deliver car's for a prestige car dealer I took one of these home once it was one of the best handling confidence inspiring car's I've ever driven.
The Elan had drifted out of my consciousness until a nice red one appeared in the pub car park last Friday - looked like an ideal classic for this sunny weather.
What really killed it was the Mazda MX5. I can't find any other launch than the M100 Elan that could've been more mismatched in time. Here was the launch of a beautiful roadster, inspired by the real Lotus Elan from the sixtiea, it was light, peppy, had actuallly enjoyable driving dynamics, and it was real wheel drive. And the real killer, it was half the price than the Lotus. Why would anybody wanting anything else than the Mazda that year? Lotus lost confidence in itself and strayed from its mission and it was so obvious there was no way to hide it. And it was all Mazdas gain....
The SA30 Front wheel drive Ford Capri (Mercury Capri in USA) was launched at same time in 1989 and pretty much slaughtered by the MX5.
The name didn't help either. People when a new car has the same name as the old one, they expect (rightfully so) a direct evolution of the older car. Look what happened recently with the new NSX and Supra.
@@aftastosk6016 Good point.
Agree with others here: the name conjuring up the Elan of old and, of course, premium Lotus pricing due to lower volumes, meant that the MX-5 soaked up the market. If the M100 was christened the Elise, for example, if might have faced quite a different future. I’ve driven both and the irony is that the Elan M100 out performs and out handles the MX-5.
ironic the mazda mx5 girls car was based on the elan
I've racked up around 100,000 miles in mine. Used it as a daily driver for a few years. Several coast to coast trips, USA. Holdes a huge amount of luggage. It has had a few track days in its life time. More of a small GT car in my mind. Incredible bargens.
Not in Australia! 35K these days.
I just thought about it, I've had my M100 for 26 years.
@@deangiacopassi1951Keep it!
@@deangiacopassi195133 years with mine, I took delivery in July 1991 having placed the order at the launch Earls Court Motor Show in 1989 :-)
I remember seeing a very young guy driving one of these round my hometown in Essex. This had to be 1991ish and the driver looked to be around my age (I was only 17) I pointed it out to my mate and he recognised the Elans driver. It was Liam Howlett of The Prodigy! This was early on in their career (maybe after Charlie had made it big or after they'd had another hit? But well early in The Prodigys time) so he obviously was already doing quite well. Around the mid 90s and you'd see Keith Flint (RIP) in his bright yellow TVR. I even raced him through town one night haha!
Thanks for reviewing one of these rare beasts. Back in the day Performance Car pitted this against a TVR Chimaera 4.0 V8 which just shows what it was up against. The TVR won the test but the Elan was praised for its immense roadholding and handling.
I remember it well! I was at Lotus at the time and did the type approval. The IP and steering column switches are all from the Cavalier if memory serves me correctly. It was a lardy little beast too as you say. Got a bag load of tales from those days..
Please share them!!
Did you work on the Esprit SE project also? I have a 91 SE....built Aug 1990. Great car!
@@chandrab I did! I was at Lotus from 1987 to 1992 (The early demise of the M100 Elan saw me made redundant) so I was involved with the end of the Excel, the intro of the X180 and its development including the GMP4 and the Intercooled version. I also did the Carlton and a few engineering programmes.
@@johnchettleburgh6055 you must have some great stories about lotus at the time. I would love to chat with you about them if your willing. I’m part of the lotus esprit owners group on FB. I am very interested to hear about all things SE related.
I had a long test drive in the turbo when it first came out and it was a very rapid car for its day, but utterly, utterly soulless. It sounded like a washing machine and for me it was just totally uninvolving to drive. On the plus side it could go down a country road faster than anything else, but there was no sensation of speed or what the car was doing. The strap-line at the time was that 90% of drivers would be able to drive it at 90% of its capability, 90% of the time. That felt about right but the result was that you would likely be driving it so fast without realising it that you would eventually either cause an accident and/or lose your licence. And without the compensation of, up to that point, having actually enjoyed the experience. The extensive use of Cavalier bits in the cockpit didn't help matters either. I ended up with a '79 carb 308 for about the same price as a new M100; not as quick overall but every drive was memorable!
I think that the 308 was much faster! I had ordered the Elan at the motor show to replace my Eclat. After the test drive, I could see why I’d want to change my car that handled so much better with a front wheel drive that was going to cost 3 times as much. I then bought my first Ferrari 308 1980 carb and never looked back. Still got a 456. 🙂
To me it feels like a light Audi TT, a much newer car.
Always liked these Elans. VERY rare nowadays in the US. Front end looks a little bit like a Diablo. Also similar to the 2nd Gen Toyota MR-2 and Fiero GT. Fun cars back then!
From some angles the front looks very Esprit to me
A front wheel drive Lotus puts you in a niche, in the back of a niche. Make it expensive and it's on the top shelf of that niched niche.
what most people forget or don't realise is that torque was very prevalent in front wheel drive (FWD) cars - especially turbo charged ones. Lotus demonstrated how and even manufacturer of FWD cars bought an Elan and stripped it down to see what Lotus had done. Most of the criticism is just snobbery - this is a real Lotus and that is evident in how it drives down a poorly surfaced British B road. Staggering to think it's 30 years old and still feels so modern.
I sold these as new/used cars in 1994-95 at a Lotus dealer. The 'Flan' is the best car Lotus ever built. Superb fun to drive, fast, economical, reliable thanks to the Japanese input (well, water leaks from the hood apart) and easy to live with. Yes it was expensive compared the MX5 but if you want the best......
The original Elise was a vicious little bastard with dubious reliability thanks in no small part to that BL K Series thing. It had a place as a track car but it was nowhere near as nice as the M100.
One of the main reasons the Elan 'didn't sell' is because Lotus were not geared up for the demand. Even in '95 as it was ending (not 1992!) late secondhand examples were selling for list. With a queue of buyers.
I have had mine for 26 years. I could never part with it.
It certainly has one of the most polished interiors of a Lotus and if my memory serves me right it has a conventional convertible roof not unlike an MX5 or MGF. That in itself is a million lightyears better than the 'build it yourself' roof of the S1 Elise. Let us not forget the Kia Elan that came after when they acquired the rights to produce the car after Lotus stopped.. Now that is surely a very rare car indeed.
Yep, the top did leak a bit, but it was light years ahead of the Elise soft top in daily use.
@@davidorama6690 I've got one.
The interior is plastic, nasty and not at all robust. I'll take the plywood, leather wrapped interiors from the esprits in the preceeding years any day.
The hoods all leaked from factory. If it wasn't for the driving points, I'd long be shot of it, but drivability, reliability, sheer smile factor - it's brilliant.
The later version of the Elise roof doesn't leak. The Elise interior is also better really especially later S2s onwards, much of it is brushed aluminium and English leather or alcantara.
As someone who owns an elan for more than 8 years and drove it to work everyday for 6 of them. ifind this a Fair Review, although the brakes are not quite as suitable as the review suggests.
it is indeed a usable car everyday, which may be surprising for a lotus, But then again. its the only lotus ever built with a budget worthy of developing a whole car.
One thing that was not mentioned and i think its really important is the boot size. You CAN go to the golf club with this car bring your own clubs to do the 18 holes. and still stop for a picknic on the way back home with your passenger. the boot is not only volumous, but also properly designed unlike other FWD convertibles (alfa spider and peugeot 206cc)
I owned one for a couple of years, chipped to 210bhp and with upgraded callipers. Great car with a big boot but roof leaked.
I owned one of these for 7 years and loved it. I had it chipped to 200 BHP and that really helped. From standstill it would leave most things behind up to 60 because of the low weight. The roof did leak a little but it was a very comfortable car. The roof design was brilliant and I was surprised that it was not shown in the video. Oh, and those pop up headlights!!! loved them.
It's a nice enough looking car; it just lacks drama for a Lotus. Not as low as an Elise, not as swoopy and curvaceous as an Evora, not in the same galaxy as an Esprit.
I’ve had two of these , handled so well… definitely miss them
I've owned an M100 for 6 years, and this video is a good review. I also own an early MGF. The Elan feels like an effective tool for a job, if that job is getting somewhere quickly. It's not completely soulless as has been suggested in the comments, but it's character is quite well hidden. In every area the Elan is a better car than the MGF (even build quality, but then the bar is quite low!!), but somehow the F has such character and the k-series is a great (if flawed) engine (and of course Lotus used it in the Elise). As mentioned, the problem the Elan had was that it was up against the MX5. The original design studies of the M100 (type 90) were front engine rear wheel drive, but they found that front wheel drive was far more effective at getting from point A to B quickly, and that because it was a Lotus it had to be ground-breaking in some way - re-hashing front engine/rear drive wasn't really going to be an option. Making a clever front wheel drive sports car was actually a very Lotus thing to do. And don't forget that Lotus offered an engineering consultancy, and as an advert for their services offering a clever front wheel drive solution would have brought them lots of work. For the project to pay for itself Lotus needed to sell 3,000 a year, so building 2,800 in 3 years wasn't great. However the development money was spent and I don't think they weren't losing money on actually building the cars. And apparently it wasn't GM that canned it, I imagine the real reason is in Barrie Wills book (!!!). Ultimately trying to build a high volume (by Lotus standards) sports car that could compete with the MX5, and everything that followed, wasn't something that Lotus could or should have been doing, whereas the Elise perfectly captured what Lotus was about.
Great post. I've owned several 2 seat convertibles including an MGF and a Porsche Boxster, both great to drive with lots of character. I can credit the MGF for boosting my mental health, bought it for €550 in good condition back in 2013 after some extremely austere years losing my job and having simply nothing since the start of the Great Recession. Was thinking of getting an MX-5 next but then an Elan popped up for very reasonable money. Flying over from Ireland to the UK tomorrow morning to go collect "Colin" as the current owner affectionately calls him, and bring him home. Can't wait! And thanks to Jack for his lovely channel.
I'm a fan, have one out here in CA and it's the perfect car. I love the Elise and so wanted one when they came out but getting in is tough and out is even harder! The Elan is a much easier car to live with on a day to day basis. It has a proper boot! Couple of mods that make it more interesting, they are easy to chip if you can get one and there is a short-shift kit which transforms the gear change.
It's said that the Elan is FWD because at the time Lotus did some comparative tests and found that in most circumstances, most drivers could get from AtoB faster in a FWD car than a RWD. I believe there are a bunch of Lotus patents which came out of their development of the FWD suspension. Turn in is impressive as is the speed you can carry through corners.
Agree and also remember the thing about most drivers being able to get from A to B quicker in a front driver!
I believe you 100% As an owner of a B16 Honda Del Sol, the Elan seems to me very similar not only on spec but also on the impression I got from the video. The Del Sol is a real blast to drive, a baby supercar, I got the impression that the Elan is nothing less.
I remember going in one of these when I was 10, I went to Merry Hill and the lady who was driving it treated me to a Sega Master system with Hang on and a gun game. I never forget getting out the car when we arrived at the shopping mall suggesting the roof be put on to find when we arrived back at the car it had rained for a while....happy memories!!!
Nice review, as always. That is the same road that Harry's Garage uses to drive on his videos.
Deep blue purple drove past me. Was shocked how good looking still is on the move
I had one and loved it. You left out that at the same time the Mazda Miata/mx5 came out - for 1/3 the price it was nearly as good if not better in some ways.
Yes, very good point!!!
the elan was quicker and just as capable in the corners but it was from lotus and not a major manufacturer and it was almost 10 grand more than the mx5. Also front wheel drive which was unheard of for a sports car but was def becoming all the rage with saloons and hatchbacks.
In '92, from CAR magazine,
£20 370 - Lotus Elan
£22 940 - Lotus Elan SE
£15 449 - Mazda MX5
The mx5 was everything the Elan should have been but wasn't from the purists point of view and it was cheaper. I think it was the Elans biggest stone in its shoe.
@@lewis72 in the USA the elan was $45k and the mx5 was $14k
Im 27 years late to the Party. Always loved the coke bottle plan view look of this car, and just this year managed to buy an S2. Really not even had much chance to drive it now the weather has gone rubbish. I genuinely think it holds its own in looks even today. Nice honest review.
Interesting facts about this car from the time. Peter Stevens design ( later of McLaren F1 fame, split subframe/raft with clever bushings that eliminated torque steer and maintained compliance, again to later feature on the F1) - the Lotus philosophy at the time was to offer upgrade young people ( I was one back then!) from their FWD hot hatch ( think 205 gti or golf) and give them a sports car experience they could relate to. The mantra was 90% of drivers could extract 90% of its performance 90% of the time. A pal of mine went from HPC Caterham to FWD Elan turbo and was quicker point to point on the average road.
.. And another interesting fact is that Peter Stevens must have liked those front indicators as he went on to use them on the aforementioned F1 as well as the Jaguar XJR-15
I rented one as a treat to myself just over 30yrs ago and it was absolutely astonishing for the time! The most impressive feature was its grip and handling - so as a test I went round one very familiar corner.... At 50mph.... In a glorious, yet totally controlled 4-wheel drift!
Then, for comparison on the following day I went round the same corner in the same conditions in my Audi 100 CC Avant at 20-25mph - and the tyres squealed loudly all the way round the corner whilst approaching terminal understeer!! Totally blew my mind!!!
The problem there was….the Lotus name and naming it an Elan. Had they marketed it under an independent brand name, I think it might have been more successful .
I recall the praise it got as being one of the best front drive chassis ever. I think the Isuzu engine put some folk off though and purists couldn't get past the loss of rear wheel drive. I always liked the wide hips in the styling myself and I always thought the turbo version was pretty quick to 60mph at 5 and a bit seconds? Maybe my memory is letting me down though? It was the MX5 that really did for this incarnation of the Elan though.
This reminds me of the Triumph TR7 convertible, cars loved more today than when they were new , but I’ve a real soft spot for both 🚙👍🏻
This car had a tough time in the US for sure. It was not a pure sports car like the Miata (Mx-5) which was still hugely popular, being FWD and being very expensive in comparison. And cars in it's price segment such as the 300ZX, Rx-7, Corvette and 944S2 were far higher performance and more serious. This car was on an island by itself.
All of the people with an opinion are usually the ones that haven’t owned one. Get a “mountain chip” and some upgraded front brakes and the thing flies…
Without having seen the whole video yet: Because it looks like a 90s Toyota. Which is not a bad thing in my book, but I am a middle-aged German in 2022, and for a Lotus fan in the early 90s, that may or may not have been a problem.
Edit after seeing the whole video: Yeah, the front wheel drive may have been a problem as well 🙂
I continue to enjoy this series of interesting cars and so far it's been a great selection. I do remember when this first came out and thinking how pretty it looked and then promptly forgot all about this car until now!
I remember the motoring press at the time hailing it as the best handling FWD car ever.
Car magazine reckoned that the Elan, Lancia Delta Integrale and Porsche 911 Carreras 4 were the fastest real world cars when they tested them in the early 90s.
Personally I do not feel FWD is an issue, I would wager the vast majority of people reading this comment cannot exploit RWD/MR, certainly not on the public roads. I've had all 3 and in regular driving there essentially is little to no difference.
I like these and actually prefer the fit ,finish and practicality of the design of these over the Elise tbh.And POPUPS!
My favorite British car brands are Lotus and Triumph...I enjoy it!
I’m currently driving one of these as a courtesy car whilst my Indy mechanic is fixing my aircon on S2 Exige. I think you’re short shifting in 2nd. In his Turbo in 2nd you only need to hover on the accelerator and the turbo cuts in about 3500 and gives a real boost.it’s an old school turbo so you have to give it revs to get the turbo effect.
In '92 I looked at the Elan, but went with an MX5 instead. The front wheel drive killed it for me, and the price, but looks wise I still like it, it has aged well but as you say it's the one Lotus that people don't recognize.
One of the greatest regrets in my motoring life was passing up on a bright blue S2 M100, cheap as chips back in the day, because I was shocked by insurance premium quotes. I was an idiot. It’s a fabulous car.
When you think of the models this car inevitably invites comparison with it will, of course, suffer from the comparison. On its own though (front drive notwithstanding) the lack of obvious turbo lag alone would recommend it. I was always curious about this car. That you for another entertaining and informative ride!
Thanks for watching Phil, glad you enjoyed it!
A yellow Elan runs around my neighborhood every so often. I love it, especially in yellow!
Nice one Jack. I've always had a soft spot for the little Elan, especially the turbo. Love your videos.
Just FYI even though I subscribe to other car channels, I watch your videos as soon as I can after receiving the notification. There's a humble honesty to your work that is much appreciated.
Many thanks & Stay well
Jamie 👍
Humble honesty. I like that. Well said.
I’ve never driven one , but I’ve never been minded to, The styling isn’t canon for lotus .
I’d rather have an eclat or an excel if we’re talking about lesser known cars from the Marque .
FWD doesn’t bother me too much as I’ve owned several 916 Alfa’s..( and would rather have one than an Elan ) Also 10-12k gets you into a Maserati 4200 /3200 or a 996/ 997 Boxster or Cayman..
Great video! My neighbour has an Elan and loves it, he also has a VW Corrado VR6, he never shuts up about it. You should try get your hands on one of them to film, it got some great stories behind it's design
Love the design of these. I had no idea these cars were front wheel drive 🤯
A lot of cars that may be considered as competitors to the Elan (at least in some form) have aged pretty well too …. perhaps better than this form of the Elan…..VW Corrado in top spec…. Vauxhall Calibra convertible by bertone ….. MX5 in top spec …. MR2 mark 1 andor 2…. BMW 325i ……. Golf GTI mark2 16V …… etc. There were many real cool decently priced coupes (usually available in convertible form) that still turn heads.
The Honda Del Sol is the closest competitor in dimensions, power, weight and overall philosophy.
Great review, always intrigued by the Elan. Those roads would terrify me especially with bikes and blind corners and hills.
It had fwd like the FIAT Barchetta,and the motoring press always made that excuse for both cars,yet they were very good.....
Really like the wedge shape of this Lotus, very clean classic lines. The fwd set up and Isuzu engine are nice odd features
The Elise, I had a series 1 which I loved but my wife hated…..should have kept the Elise, was really the mark 3 elan and should have been called an Elan …IMHO
nice set of reviews recently, keep up the good work!
Thanks, will do!
Interesting. So it’s a good car in it’s own right (as was recognised at the time), but falls short of praise because it’s a Lotus!
Great entertaining content as always Jack 👍🏻
I’ve always liked these Elans, in British racing green with a tan interior please.
I came so close to buying an Elan M100 in 1999, my friend had one and I loved it. Then I saw the Elise and bought that new instead. At the time a decent Elan was around £22K, well used high mileage were around £6K. My Elise new was circa £24K and looked amazing and fresh. I don’t regret buying the Elise but I would still have an Elan in a heart beat.
A little trivia, when Lotus finished Elan manufacturing they sold the design to Kia who produce it for a little while with a few changes that weren’t quite as good.
I really like these. I had a toy one a a kid and remember playing with it all of the time.
Someone in our village had one a few I always admire it when I pass by walking the dog. I’ve never driven one admittedly, but I still like them.
100 percent agree with your thoughts. It was great but not thrilling.
My mate has the turbo model, had it for years now, he loves it. Some spares can be expensive and rare so be careful what car you buy.
For me it’s MX5 every time, get the alignment set up and its great fun on country roads.
There were three problems with the Elan back in the day. Two you mentioned one you have previously covered:
1: Too expensive
2: FWD
3: It isn't an MX5
Whoever's car that is, please tell them they have the wrong coolant in it. It should be BLUE not PINK. Pink OAT coolant will corrode the brass fittings in cooling system.
4:02 I owned three of these as my daily driver from 2001 to 2012. Lotus purposely strangled the exhaust to keep power down so it wouldn't compete with the Esprit. That's why the boost builds slowly and as you said, unturbo-like. There was a guy who made 2.5" mandrel-bend turbo-back exhausts which *completely changed both the power-level and delivery.* I had that exhaust on every one of mine. The wastegate opening had to be enlarged to 21mm or else you'd experience boost-creep.
Thanks Jack for another interesting test run and insight of another historic car. I think you, or someone, ought to put a homemade sign on that bend and call it 'Jacks Bend, to immortalise your efforts. Looking forward to more interesting content. Best wishes, Bob M.
Another great video Jack, like you i have a soft spot for Lotus but the Elan never really did it for me as it looked a bit bland and dare i say "normal".
Thanks old chap!!
When I was a kid working YTS in a Citroen dealership one of those Elan's was taking as a trade in against... Wait for it.... An XM estate!🤣 I never understood such a dramatic change in car ownership! Cracking stuff as always Jack 👍
Probably had a kid. I had to do similar, going from a 205 GTI 1.9 to a Rover 214. A sad day!
@@dannyholder1359 ha ha! Yeah excellent point!
Excellent video, very underated car in my opinion.
Pure and simple - the MX-5 Miata took the market by storm because of how good of a roadster it was. And while I don't think many people cross shopped the Elan with the Miata, the Miata's base price only being 1/3rd (USD) of the Elan surely didn't help things.
Always loved the look of the Elan, such a perfectly formed and pretty little car. You're right about its looks, it'd still look great today!
Love the look of these, agreed they have aged well.
Only criticism is that the rear wheel arch is too big !
If you pause@ 7:02, that rear wheel looks lost in there - could be 3 inches wider.
Being FWD I guess rules out a wider rear wheel/tyre combo.
PS I also owned a 1990 Miata from new and yes it is a brilliant wonderful car. I loved it. Two sets of tires, two brake jobs and the cars alignment was still good. That didn't happen with the Spitfire, TR7 or TR8 I owned. However this comparison between Miata and Elan m100 that every journalists repeats doesn't really hold water. They are really very different things.
Can you add a walk around on your reviews please
“It’s not a speed monster,” sure in a straight line, but it was the best handling front driver ever made at that point. I think it looks quite smart as a wedge and it is a convertible. I would very much love to import the Kia version with the N/A 1.8 DOHC 4-cylinder. Sure that will be less of a speed demon but again the handling is there,
It looks like nothing else, is fairly low cost to keep on the road, won’t shake your fillings loose with a harsh ride, a bit like a MX-5 but not a Miata. I admire something different that I can drive daily, have fun in, and is more of a momentum car than an speed demon.
The thing about Elans is how fast they CAN go round corners. If you're prepared to experiment on your favourite road just to see how hard it's possible to push, you'll run out of bravery or talent before the car gets to its limit. Oh, and the other big reason they quickly faded into obscurity is that the top brass at the time tried to engineer a management buy-out of the company by de-valuing the Elan but it failed, leaving the Elan being the victim. If they'd stuck with it, as Mazda did with the MX-5, it could have gone onto so much better things. A 4WD transmission and a 1.8 already existed; they would have been awesome!
I'm lucky enough to have driven Elan (my mate had one) and the S1 Elise (a test drive of a new one in '96, I think). The Elise is the technically superior drivers car granted, but compromised day to day and I couldn't get on with the MGF gearbox. The M100 Elan, I think, is unfairly maligned. Yes, it's FWD, but does allow more day to day use, the gearchange is more to my taste and it's quick enough. The average driver could probably get more from it at 7/10. I love them both, but I think the M100 S1 cars (with a bit more power than the S2's) will have their day in the sun.
You really can't write a review of a convertible without taking the top down. You're only experiencing half of the vehicle. Sort of like if you only ever put the accelerator halfway down., you don't know the car. The Elan -90 was a great car - brilliant Peter Stevens styling. its scarcity means people today still ask what is it? -- I should know I own one
Can still remember the reviews in the motoring press when they were released. Something along the lines of "flawed but brilliant". They had absolutely remarkable handling though
This model Lotus Elan failed because of two letters and a number, MX5.
For a third of the price you could get a convertible sports car that evoked some of the old school British sports car charisma but with modern Japanese reliability, air conditioning that worked and good build quality. Plus at the time the original Lotus Elan prices were not crazy so it was possible to own both a modern MX5 and an original Elan for less then the price of the new car.
I can’t disagree. I have an MX5. I toyed with the idea of this Elan….but went for the MX5.
As I recall, Lotus felt theMX5 was backward looking, while the Elan was highly advanced with highly polished front wheel drive (patented I think)and they claimed zero troque steer (I tried one and found that was the case relative to an XR3 for example!). Sad, as they then had to rescue the company with the Elise...and the rest was history with MX5 and Elsie doing very well and the Elan forgotten. I recall at the time they also claimed it was the fastest car from A-B including the Esprit. I have another lost Lotus, the Excel SE !!
Very good call and one i totally forgot about!!
The Elan is by far the better handling car than a Mazda
After all its a Lotus marque
I remember driving one with a BBR conversion giving it about 250 BHP. I think it looked good, it was very fast and it was quick through the corners, but still didn’t feel special and not much fun to drive. The opposite of the Elise!
I think the issue was it was set-up to deliver from 7/10ths upwards, and given how competent the chassis was you had to be going too blooming quick on most roads to feel the car working under you. It took me ages to appreciate this after buying an Elan almost 30 years ago! By comparison the Elise felt alive and more fun at much lower speeds, but it was certainly not always the superior handing car. On a damp twisty B road the Elan was most probably the safer and quicker car.
really love the Elan. Remember seeing one during a schooltrip to London in 1990: it was love at first sight
Dunno why Lotus didn't slot that Isuzu powertrain in behind the seats rather than up front. It would have produced a sort of MR2 Spyder before Toyota got round to it and would have silenced a lot of the critics. Love the channel and keep up the good work. And @Number_27 - you've gotta train yourself to keep your palms outside the steering wheel 👍
I used to have this one on a poster in my room as a kid! I’ve been dreaming about driving it! I haven’t seen one from ages though! I guess they are quite rare now…
Three reasons for its failure - front wheel drive, front wheel drive, and front wheel drive. Fitting the same engine and box behind the seats would have changed the perception of the car completely.
Great to see an M100 on the channel - the way it changes direction through corners is really good, and down to innovation in the 'raft' front suspension that Lotus developed for the M100. The short shift kit to improve the gear change is one of the top 3 modifications worth doing (brakes being another).
I remember when this came out. A friend of mine was in the market for this type of car. He test drove one of these and also the newly launched [at the time] MX5. He said the MX5 was a far better experience and he bought one of those. I imagine that this is what most people who were similarly placed to him did at the time. The Elan just couldn't compete with the MX5 and history bears out what an amazing car the MX5 turned out to be.
MX5 was a much safer consumer option with mass produced Japanese reliability and without Lotus' reputation for poor build, with unacceptable niggles such as leaky roofs, cheap trim/fixings and broken gear-shifters etc. That said having spent time in both cars the Elan was (in my opinion) in a different league when it came to speed and handling and its composure on undulating roads would easily leave the MX5 in its wake. Elan was really a car for special drives on summer afternoons and best kept under cover most other times! ;)
I got one of these about 15 years ago. Love driving it. If you can keep it on the turbo it's really nippy.
I've always liked the looks of these, don't know if my mind is playing tricks with me but I think I drove one in 1996 when it was p/x'd against a SAAB 900 Turbo
I don’t agree that it was a flop. It sold good numbers for a lotus (not a GM but it’s a lotus). I have a turbo from new and it was quick good looking , really good with the roof down. Got lots of looks as you drove by and early track days proved it was fast and handled well. Plus the engine was strong. If GM through the it was going to shift 500,000 units that’s there fault. Also, in the day, I had people say oh it’s not a lotus or is not got a lotus engine etc etc. many lotus cars never had a full lotus engine, lotus head yes, ford block yes - exactly what this car got, a strong bottom end with some lotus magic up top. I wish I never sold mine 😩
M100 Elan trivia: Peter Stevens who designed the Elan moved from Lotus to McLaren where he designed the legendary F1. If you look carefully he reused the front indicators for the M100 on the F1 :) The cars also share the same door mirror centre console switchgear..although I suspect that might have been a standard GM part of the time.
While Mazda was copying the original Elan to make the MX-5 Miata, Lotus considered that to be a step backwards so they produced this M100 Elan and priced it the same as 2 Miatas. 2:01. The original Elan cost as much as a Corvette at that time as well!
Thanks, Jack, for doing this test. always wondered what it was like. It's definitely on the list...
Cheers chap!
When i mentioned the m100 elan in the mx5 and elan video i was kinda hoping you would cover it. Thanks for covering this car, not many people do. Two cars im currently considering as a next purchase are the Noble m12 and an Ultima. Any chance of you covering either of these in a future video?
I'd love to try a Noble but i'm not sure i'm going to get access any time soon!
Another fine video, I have to say the Elan is the only Lotus that I never liked the look of, clearly a decent car but not a true Lotus for me,
From a Classic Car Owners point of view "Its is a GEM and a bargain." (One in my garage, chipped to 200bhp, 0-60mph