• Original UK-spec car exported in 2008

 • Now in Belgium 

 • Smart and usable example with room to improve further

 • Newly remanufactured engine

 • Runs well

 • Low reserve

Now here’s an unusual one – a UK-spec Lotus Elan +2 currently residing in Belgium. 

It’s a tidy and usable example, but the vendor is very keen to point out it’s not a concourse example – instead, it’s the ideal example to improve for track or motorsport use or use as the basis for a concours restoration. Whatever floats your boat, basically. 

It’s largely complete, fully roadworthy, has a good chassis and has just been newly fitted with a remanufactured engine after the original blew its head gasket. 

Although it has lived in Europe since 2008, the registration is still known to the DVLA and if reimported it would be very easy to re-register on its original plates, as documentary evidence comes with the car.

 • UK owned until 2014

 • Exported to Germany and kept there until 2020, with one owner

 • Bought as a non-runner by Belgian enthusiast in 2020, now fixed up and for sale

 • German registration documents and export papers only

The +2 was last used on the road in the UK in 2008, before being exported to Germany in 2014 by an enthusiast there who kept it until 2020. 

Early in 2020, just before the Covid-19 pandemic, the Lotus blew its head gasket and as a result the engine had to be fully rebuilt – work carried out by the Belgian garage that is now offering it for sale.

 • New bucket seats

 • Wood veneers

 • Three-spoke sports wheel

 • Period radio

This is a fairly smart example of the +2, though it does lose one of the +2’s USPs, as the base of the rear seats is missing. 

That’s no issue if you plan to use it as purely a two-seater (and the +2 seats really are only suitable for very small and non-complaining people) but you should be aware before bidding. 

Otherwise the cabin is very smartly presented, with a wood veneer dash that’s very smartly presented and a brand new sports bucket seats up front.

 • Tidy but not perfect

 • Excellent chassis 

 • Mostly original paint

 • Correct alloy wheels

The vendor reports that the Lotus is in generally good condition but with a few small cosmetic areas on the body that are imperfect – notably a few stone chips and areas where the paint isn’t perfectly matched. 

It’s perfectly presentable, though, and would make a great basis for improvement if you wanted to take it to the next level.

According to the seller, the chassis is in perfect order and is free of rust. Original OEM-spec alloys are fitted.

 • Engine fully rebuilt

 • New head gasket

 • Four-speed manual

 • Starts and runs well 

The vendor bought the Lotus as a non-runner and he has fully rebuilt the engine from scratch, so it’s essentially a new unit that has been fully remanufactured (not just reconditioned). 

It runs well and has a full stainless steel exhaust system. The seller reports that it drives very well indeed.

Mechanically, this is a great example backed up by the fact it has had the engine completely remanufactured by the vendor – a classic car specialist in Belgium. He’s also happy to hold the vehicle for anyone who wants to re import it to the UK or help with export elsewhere in Europe. 

This is a great opportunity, then, to get a good but not perfect Elan +2 to use for historic motorsport or as a track car, or alternatively as the basis for a next-level restoration.


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