£9,9951990 Lotus Elan M100 SE Turbo

This Elan has a turbo-charged Isuzu 1600cc engine and 5 speed gearbox

Extensive history folder and workshop manual

A very well maintained example, recently serviced in March

Viewing highly recommended

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The Lotus M100 series Elan was launched in August 1989, reviving the iconic Elan name after a 14 year hiatus. The M100 is a two-seater convertible sports car with front-wheel drive, designed in-house by Lotus.

It featured an engine and manual transmission supplied by Isuzu and was built with the aid of the development and testing resources of General Motors. Around £35 million was invested in its development, which was more than any other car in Lotus history to that point.

The choice of front-wheel drive is unusual for a sports car, but according to Lotus sales literature of the time, "for a given vehicle weight, power and tyre size, a front wheel drive car was always faster over a given section of road. There are definite advantages in traction and controllability, and drawbacks such as torque steer, bump steer and steering kickback were not insurmountable."

Two variants were available at launch, the 130 bhp Elan 1.6 and the 162 bhp Turbo SE. Altogether just 3,855 Elans were built between November 1989 and July 1992, including 129 normally aspirated (non-turbo) cars.

Today the cars provide an engaging and enjoyable driving experience and still represent excellent value for money.