With all the other recent posts I’ve been shamed into posting some pics of my new Sprint.
The pics are pretty much as the car was when collected although in reality it is a much deeper red than in appears in the photos. The rear end is also considerably tidier now as the rear silencer turned out to stainless steel and has polished up rather well. The rear lights have also responded well to bit of TLC.
I’ll post some pics of the new airbox/filter assembly if I can manage to wangle enough time in the garage to get it all fitted!
It was built in Feb 72 and has been in my possession since September. I bought it from Paul Matty, who also sold it to the previous owner.
Originally it was a FHC, but was converted to a DHC at some point in it’s past. The conversion appears to have been done well as it has the D-type hood frames which I am told is unusual?
The last major rebuild was in 1991, since when it’s done about 5k miles. It’s not concours, but it is pretty tidy. The main problems - that I know of - are some micro blistering on the nose and bonnet and the crash pad which is warped.
The previous owner had it from 2000 and based on the MOT certificates was only doing around 200 miles a year. I think it’s been a garage queen for while …
It was leaking petrol from the O-rings on the carbs when I got home after collecting it so I’ve replaced them along with the Thackaray washers (courtesy of PM who offered to do the work but I wanted to do it myself).
Since then I’ve somehow ended up buying a new airbox back plate, airbox and filter assembly as well! I just couldn’t bring myself to put the old bent back plate and lashed up airbox back on again … If I spent as much time and money on the rest of the car it’ll never be on the road and I’ll be broke!
That is the worst I’ve ever seen. It’s hard to believe that it wasn’t done as a joke, but can you imagine someone ‘doing up’ that car in the 1980s, standing back and admiring the finished result?
There was a Scandinavian Plus 2 on here a year or so ago that was a pretty good candidate for worst Elan…and some folks liked it!
For some odd reason I am strangely drawn to that Elan … it looks like a cross between an Elan and a TR7 rally car I had for my Scalextric in the seventies!
PS - it’s not a patch on old swampie that was at Stoneleigh though! I bet I wasnt the only one who had a good look at that +2, although unlike some others I did hold back from taking photos!
We used to take it to classic car shows and it ALWAYS attracted more attention than the near-perfect examples parked nearby, just like ‘Swampy’… Kept getting offers to buy it too - people think they can offer you ‘a few quid to take it off your hands’…
The flag on the front was a ‘decoration’ painted on for a local village show celebrating the Queen’s golden jubilee (it has a gold border)!
like that blue car - if watertight and reliable it must be a great daily driver - and you wouldn’t have to be too afraid of some cat ruining your 2000 pound paint job…
Well, it’s fairly watertight-ish and mostly reliable-ish…
The ‘distressed paintwork’ is a bonus. No worries when leaving it in the supermarket car park, and I often use it as a workbench when sawing wood… This would make a good photo/caption competition as it is parked next to my original B&D (Ron Hickman-designed) Workmate!
Matthew, your car doesn’t begin to compare with the green horror. What I hate about mucked-about Elans is any sort of flaired out arches, formed from a corn flake packet, with wheels that are then too small to fill the arches. The other sins on the green car are easily fixable, but those arches would take a lot of work.
Your car looks like an old family friend…but I’d have to, at least, take that bumper off and paint it! Having said that, I bought the yellow S4 that was in the ‘for sale’ on this forum a couple of moths ago. A few gel coat cracks…no problem, and hand painted silver bumpers. Hand painted with a toothbrush by the looks of it, and it’s too cold to paint them for a while…but they will be done.
Have you seen Brian Buckland’s S3 Coupe? It doesn’t look like it’s done 650,000 miles…more like 250,000 But he is getting it painted soon…
Mark
The S3 Coupe is a RHD and had a monster roll bar when I bought it. It also came with 6 inch front and 7 inch back JAP Magna wheels. I bought it in Canada from Brian Robinson. Brian had it stored at Ken Mason’s shop. When I picked it up Ken asked if I wanted a Plus2, I assume it may be the same car that was recently bought in Calgery.
the S3 came with a rather unique engine out of a Lotus Cortina, the 4 bolt crank was modified to except a lip seal and had a new rear seal holder machined from billit Aluminum and the Pan had a machined steel piece welded to it. All real nice work.