This informative book tells the story of restoring an Elan +2 and Elan Sprint to concours condition. In it you will find first-hand advice on how to purchase a suitable car for restoration plus detailed practical information on preparing bodywork, trim, chassis, suspension, wheels, hydraulics, engine, electrics, wiring and more.
The author, Gordon Lund’s passion for restoring these classics is what inspired the book following his being in-between assignments as a professional engineer . He says: “I just set about it. I am an avid photographer so I had a large collection of photographs I had taken of my two Lotus cars as I restored them. These photographs represented the basis of the book. I wrote a little for each chapter as inspiration took me.”
It’s funny, given Gordon’s engineering background, he tried never to become personally attached to cars, but he would naturally become interested in what made them tick. “When I first started out, I learned a lot having to do it the hard way. As I got older I decided I could now afford a nice sportscar and the kids were getting older as well. I bought the Lotus Elan +2, the one I have now, in 1981. The lads grew up in it and it became part of the family. The yellow over white two seater Elan Sprint came later which I bought as a ‘basket case’ and fully restored it to concours condition. It won many prizes at Classic Car Shows up and down the country until it was written off by a German truck on the M6 Motorway!”
Despite the unfortunate accident, Gordon’s love for working on and restoring this classic brand remains true to this day, in fact, his Elan +2 has (at the time of writing – January 2013) just topped 270,000 miles on the odometer; Gordon completed 2,000 miles this past year while touring in France! He comments on people’s perceptions of the Elan, proudly reflecting on how well it runs today. “The old Lotus Elans always attract attention where ever we go as they are timeless in their styling. They look so beautiful,” he says. “They are a really good ride, and the road holding is still pretty good even by today’s standards.”
The book itself is 24 chapters of useful info, plus appendices, giving advice on chassis changing, body restoration, including Elan +2 sills, alongside rebuilding the Lotus/Ford Twin Cam engine, electrics (including fitting a new loom), insight to tuning and running in, Elan developments, a remarkable Elan +2 Estate, and the storied rebirth of an accident damaged Sprint.
This book has Gordon’s sweat and tears embedded in the narrative (though, not literally!). He says that the mission with this book is purely to educate and inform those with a solid interest. “I hope that a little of my enthusiasm rubs off on the people who read it, and that they can learn from the many mistakes that I have made over the years. I really want to dismiss many of the myths that Lotus cars are such fragile things that are always going out of tune and bits falling off all the time!”
The Lotus Elan Restoration Guide by Gordon Lund is out now priced £21.95 – available from Brooklands Books and Amazon). Click the links for more information.