1972 Lotus Elan +2 photographed in Colgone, Germany.

    An international group of journalists was milling about the cobblestone courtyard of Bensberg Castle in Cologne, Germany, shooting photos of the new 2011 Porsche Cayenne and Panamera V6 when something unexpected happened.
    A middle-aged German couple drove into the castle grounds, not to have a peek at the new Porsches but because they wanted a nice backdrop to photograph their new car – a 1972 Lotus Elan.
Such is the appeal of old autos that the journalists quickly forgot about the Porsches and happily began to line up shots of the Lotus, with the castle in the background.
    The car’s owners seemed a little nonplussed at first – it wasn’t exactly the reception they had expected – but quickly recovered their composure and began fielding questions in both German and excellent English.
    This was one of their first outings in their new acquisition, freshly imported from Great Britain. Their Lotus is a right-hand drive model and appears to be in excellent original condition. Except for the pop-up headlights its styling still looks fresh.
    The first fibreglass-bodied Elans were engineered by company founder Colin Chapman, and went on sale in 1962 as roadsters weighing just 680 kg. Initially you could order one built by the factory in Norfolk, England or as a do-it-yourself-kit car. The roadster soon was followed by a hardtop model (which the British call a fixed-head coupe) that also seated two.
    A coupe with longer wheelbase and 2+2 seating was introduced in 1967 and weighed 889 kg. About 5,200 were sold and it’s estimated that despite their rust-proof fibreglass bodies, less than a quarter of those cars still exist.
    The Elan +2 belonging to the couple at the castle is a 1972 model. It has a 4-speed manual transmission, 4-wheel disc brakes, fully independent suspension and is powered by a 1,558-cc Ford engine with Cosworth twin-cam head. The inline four makes 118 hp and produces 108 lb.-ft. of torque. This gives the lightweight coupe a top speed of about 118 mph and the ability to sprint from 0-60 in 8.2 seconds – excellent performance for the day and still not bad by modern standards.
    Lotus enjoyed great sales success with the Elan, which led directly to the company’s success on the track. Team Lotus won the Formula One constructors’ championship seven times from 1963-78 and the Indianapolis 500 in 1965 with factory driver Jim Clark behind the wheel.
    Production of the Elan roadster ended in 1973 but the +2 carried on until 1975.
    Along with the Triumph Spitfire and Austin-Healey Sprite, the Elan was one of the templates used by Bob Hall and Mark Jordan at Mazda’s California design studio when they reinvented the roadster with the Miata (now the MX-5) in 1989.
    Lotus cars still are built in Hethel, Norfolk, on the site of a World War II Royal Air Force base. The company has changed hands several times since being sold to General Motors in 1986 and now is owned by Malaysian automaker Proton.
    Under GM ownership, a new M100 Elan was developed and sold from 1989-95. It featured a fibreglass body and front-wheel drive and was powered by a 1,588-cc inline four that originated with GM-owned Isuzu but was extensively modified by Lotus.
    Today the company has three aluminum-frame/composite-body sports cars available in Canada – the Elise (base MSRP $57,575), Exige ($80,500) and Evora ($85,880).

Write to Glen at glenwoodcock@canoemail.com