French registration papers as a historic vehicle

- Restored car
- Reliable, high-performance mechanical specification
- Fitted with roll bar and seat-belts.
“Light is right” was Colin Chapman’s credo when he founded Lotus Cars and he applied it to all the models built in his workshop in Norfolk. In the late nineteen-fifties, the little MGA and the Triumph TR were the most popular sports cars and this new generation of British ‘rag-top’ cars even achieved success in competition. Chapman realized the potential of this market and, his Elite not having achieved the commercial success for which he had hoped, he had to think again. Design of the new Elan was put in hand, with maximum weight reduction being one of the main criteria. The Lotus Elan, launched in 1962, was the firm’s first real commercial success. It was the first Lotus road car to be built around a hyper-rigid steel backbone chassis. From the first Elan S1 in 1962 to the S4, whose production ended in 1972, the low weight of the vehicle, combined with the vigour of the Ford 4-cylinder engine, first 1498 cc, then 1558 cc, gave it impressive performance and brought competition successes. The simplicity, low cost and high performance of the Lotus Elan gave it all the qualities to make it the perfect small sports car.
The car in our sale is a Lotus Elan S3 supplied new in 1967 by Lotus Midwest USA, as is shown by the Lotus Heritage certificate. Owned by an architect until 2016, the car was brought to France by the current owner, a knowledgeable enthusiast who had been familiar with classic cars since his childhood. As soon as the car arrived in France, a full restoration was undertaken, including stripping back to the fiberglass body and repainting in the original colour of British Racing Green. The paint job is of good quality and the appearance is highly satisfactory. The mechanics were overhauled in 2017 : new brake pads and brake hoses, front and rear, ignition, clutch, fuel pump, prop-shaft, all fluids and filters replaced, 4 new tyres. Our road test showed that the mechanical elements of the car function very well. The well-tuned engine and the precise and firm gearbox make the car easy and pleasant to drive. The hood is in very good condition and does not have any tears. The upholstery is well preserved. A roll bar and seat belts have been fitted to ensure road safety. The car is fit and ready for the road.

This car will be sold by auction by AGUTTES Auction House, in Paris, at the Espace Champerret, France, on June the 23th, 2019.
The digital catalog will be available soon on our website
https://www.aguttes.com/en/sale/96063
Please contact us for any further details.
Phones numbers:
+ 33 616 914 228
+33 147 459 301