Lotus Elite is by many considered to be one of the most beautiful British sports cars ever made. Now an Elite S2, sold as new in Sweden in 1961, is up for bidding at Bilweb Auctions.
The Lotus Elite was more expensive than a Jaguar E-Type in the early Sixties. In combination with an advanced glass fibre monocoque body and a fire pump engine under the hood that might have scared a few potential buyers off. But Swedish motor sport profile Bo Elmhorn, head of the BMC Sweden racing team, knew what he wanted and ordered a new Elite. Being a tuning expert, he also upgraded his white LHD car for racing purposes.
The 1.2 litre engine from Coventry Climax got its twin SU carburetors replaced by Webers, a ZF gearbox, a racing cam and an electric fuel pump. This set up was quite common among Elite owners at the time. In combination with a weight of only 500 kilos, the Swedish Elite was very competitive on the tracks.
In 1974 a new owner took over, a Lotus enthusiast who still owns it but now puts it up for sale at Bilweb Auctions. It has been regularly driven for the last 48 summers and recently received a new paint in British Racing Green. A new and very elegant interior has also been fitted a couple of years ago.
The beautiful wire wheels are of classic knock-off type. Original SU carburators comes with the car, as well as the cylinder head and cam shaft.
The auction of this unique Lotus Elite - only 1030 cars made - is ongoing and ends 1 September.
The value is estimated by Bilweb Auctions to between 750 000 and 850 000 SEK.
31 AUG 09:20 PER-ÅKE FRÖBERG
Lotus Elite with Swedish racing history on Bilweb Auctions´ first September listing
Lotus Elite is by many considered to be one of the most beautiful British sports cars ever made. Now an Elite S2, sold as new in Sweden in 1961, is up for bidding at Bilweb Auctions.
