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THE OTHER ELAN

Who would have thought that you could own a Lotus Elan for less than the price of an MGB? But it’s possible. There is a catch, of course, and that’s because we’re talking about the 1990’s replacement called the Elan SE, or M100. But what it lacks in classic status it more than compensates with its reliability and usability. In fact, this Lotus makes a great alternative to the original Elan clone, the Mazda MX-5, and is a lot rarer. Front-wheel drive, you could say that it’s a GTi sports car as its character is so different to the original. Prices start from £4000 but some parts are becoming scarce. The 165bhp turbo SE is the one to have; only a handful of normal aspirated ones were produced and most avoid them like the plague – read our Backpage Bargain article in last month’s issue (back issues are still available) for more info