Lotus Elan

Yesterday morning (Sunday [or is it “Sin-day], November 5), as I was delivering the Sunday Demagogue & Comical (Rochester Democrat & Chronicle [Rochester D&C] — we get the Messenger) to the 93-year-old nosy neighbor across-the-street, I heard an ailing four-banger wheezing up Route 65 from the kink at the motorbike-store.
I put his Sunday-paper on his front-stoop so he won’t have to totter after it — although he uses one of his many lawn-tractors any more.

Elan S4.

As I was walking back down his driveway, a yellow Lotus Elan wheezed by. The poor guy could hardly keep it running — it sounded like it had minimal spark.
He had to keep it on the shoulder. It almost stalled once. It sounded like my Vega when I got the ignition-coil wet.
The Lotus Elan was the car I lusted after my senior year at Houghton when I had The Beast.
Not only did it have the cachet of the Lotus name, it was engineered the Chapman way, which meant minimal weight.
Even though it had an engine-displacement much smaller than a ‘Vette, it could put the ‘Vette on-the-trailer thanks to light weight.
As I recall, the Elan had a fiberglass body on a minimal chassis (with IRS), powered by a souped-up Ford four-banger.

The Keed.

Clark in a Lotus-Climax at the 1965 U.S. Grand Prix at Watkins Glen.

In fact, the motor had a double-overhead-cam conversion-kit, although it was still only two valves per cylinder; making it comparable to the fabulous Alfa-Romeo twin-cam four of the time.
Lotus was dominating Formula-One racing then; a tiny cigar-shaped car that was incredibly light; although they had Jimmy Clark, one of the best race-drivers of all time (I still favor Mario). Clark was eventually killed in a Formula-Two Lotus.
Not many Lotus Elans were sold in this country; they were better-suited for the narrow byways of England. American roads needed the V8 — particularly out west.
So the Elans fell into the hands of quirky collectors, one of whom was nursing his wheezing example by out front.
Later the Elan roared by, revved to about seven-grand.
Obviously the problem had cleared up — maybe the ignition dried out.
Not too long ago Mazda brought out the Miata sports-car; made to look a lot like the Elan.