Sprint

Lotus Elan Sprint

First Registration 1971, Lotus Elan Sprint, S4 with Lotus Big Valve engine with 126hp

21’000 kms since full restoration

Swiss Road Registration with „Veteran“ entry

Rare colour sceme “Gold Leaf“ in red/gold/white from the Lotus 49 Formula 1

Gordon Murray owns one. A Lotus Elan Sprint. In an interview with the British car magazine “EVO”, he was asked which he thought was the best car he had ever driven. Without hesitation he fired back: „The Lotus Elan. I’ve never driven anything better. Including the McLaren F1.“ Gordon Murray is one of the most successful constructors in Formula 1, is the „father“ of the super sports car McLaren F1 from the nineties and is currently outperforming all hyper sports cars with his new GMA T.50.

The Lotus Elan was built from 1962 onwards and was improved over the years to four series. This Elan Sprint from the fourth series is fitted with the most powerful production engine. The Ford engine was reengineered by Lotus with an in-house developed cylinder head, with two overhead camshafts and big valves. The Elan Sprint with an power output of 126hp and less than 700 kilograms, accelerated faster from 0-60mph than a Lamborghini Miura of that time.

The full restoration of this Lotus Elan Sprint by a well-known Lotus specialist was completed in 1999 and is documented in detail with many photos. Since then, it has been very carefully driven and regularly maintained. Most recently, the clutch was also replaced and extensive maintenance worth a total of CHF 8’000 was carried out. This Elan Sprint is in excellent condition and is extremely rare to find in this “Gold Leaf” livery. Gold Leaf was a brand of tobacco that sponsored Team Lotus. It became the first commercial Formula 1 sponsor in 1968.