A one-piece, bespoke foam and plastic-skinned dashboard. A quick-fold hood that didn’t leak and which stowed beneath its own lid. Electric windows good for more than five consecutive rises and falls.

A front-wheel drive Lotus? Sacrilege! Whatever next; a diesel engine? That was the verdict of many Lotus traditionalists when the covers were pulled off an all-new Elan in 1989 – one propelled by a ...

The reaction of the Caterham driver said it all, really. There we both were, travelling in opposite directions in our spritely British sports cars, making the most of a clear (if chilly) day to enjoy ...

John Miles, ex-Formula One racer, engineer and once Autocar road tester, led the development to produce a chassis of extraordinary capabilities. The Elan’s absorbency and resistance to being knocked ...