Beschreibung
ANOTHER FANTASTIC & TRULY UNIQUE ''GARAGE FIND'' BY DAVID BRADLEY CLASSIC & SPORTS CARS
WE ARE DELIGHTED TO CONFIRM THAT WE HAVE DISCOVERED & PURCHASED THIS TRULY UNIQUE, INTERESTING & HISTORICALLY IMPORTANT PIECE OF LOTUS HISTORY AFTER BEING IN THE SAME OWNERSHIP FOR NEARLY 40 YEARS!!!
A 1972 LOTUS ELITE COUPE PROTOTYPE CHASSIS 0001A WITH THE REGISTRATION NUMBER OVF 191M WHICH HAS SUCH A WONDERFUL & DOCUMENTED UNQUESTIONABLE PROVENANCE!!!
THIS ELITE COUPE PROTOTYPE IS THE 3rd GENERATION OF LOTUS CARS DESIGNED TO REPLACE THE LOTUS ELAN+2 AND AFTER YEARS OF PLANNING AND DESIGNING THE CAR THIS IS THE VERY FIRST PROTOTYPE CAR TO BRING A DREAM INTO REALITY AND WOULD CERTAINLY HAVE BEEN AHEAD OF ITS TIME AND VERY FUTURISTIC WHEN PRODUCED IN 1972
THIS ELITE COUPE WAS USED AS A PERSONAL & TEST CAR BY BOTH COLIN & HAZEL CHAPMAN, OLIVER WINTERBOTTOM & SENIOR LOTUS STAFF & WAS EVEN DRIVEN ACROSS THE U. K AND THROUGHOUT EUROPE BY COLIN CHAPMAN & OLIVER WINTERBOTTOM FINISHING IN MONACO AND AT A LATER DATE IN THE 1970'S THIS ELITE COUPE WAS REPAINTED IN J. P. S JOHN PLAYER SPECIAL BLACK/ GOLD COLOUR SCHEME AND BELIEVED TO HAVE BEEN USED BY TEAM MEMBERS & DRIVERS OF THE VERY POPULAR F1 J. P. S LOTUS TEAM BEFORE BEING REGISTERED FOR ROAD USE IN 1974!!
IT IS BELIEVED THAT 4 ELITE COUPE PROTOTYPE MODELS WERE PRODUCED BUT SADLY AFTER TESTING THE 3 REMAINING CARS WERE DESTROYED BUT REMARKABLY THIS CAR CHASSIS 0001A THE VERY FIRST CAR PRODUCED WAS NOT DESTROYED AS WE ARE INFORMED THAT IT WAS A MUCH LOVED CAR BY NOT ONLY COLIN & HAZEL CHAPMAN & OLIVER WINTERBOTTOM BUT THE MAJORITY OF THE LOTUS TEAM AND IT WAS OFFERED FOR SALE BY LOTUS CARS INTERNALLY BY TENDER TO GIVE MEMBERS OF STAFF AT LOTUS A CHANCE TO BID AND OWN THIS WONDERFUL & UNIQUE MOTOR CAR AND WAS LUCKILY SECURED BY A VERY ENTHUSIASTIC MEMBER OF THE TEAM & THEN SOLD TO THE SECOND CUSTODIAN ANOTHER MEMBER OF THE LOTUS DESIGN TEAM WHO ACTUALLY HELPED OLIVER WINTERBOTTOM IN THE INITIAL PROCESS OF DEVELOPING THE CAR AN HAS NEVER LEFT THE COUNTY OF NORFOLK SINCE BEING BUILT IN 1972!!
THIS ELITE COUPE HAS ONLY EVER BEEN OFFERED TO THE OPEN MARKET ONCE IN THE EARLY 1980'S WHEN IT WAS LISTED IN A LOCAL NORFOLK MOTORING NEWSPAPER AND THE ADVERTISMENT SIMPLY STATED ''LOTUS PROTOTYPE FOR SALE'' AND THE CURRENT CUSTODIANDS JOE & JEAN WHO ARE A LOVELY COUPLE QUICKLY ENQUIRED & PURCHASED THE CAR TO GO ALONGSIDE THEIR JENSON INTERCEPTOR AND HAS REMAINED IN THE SAME FAMILY OWNERSHIP SINCE AND ONLY A FEW YEARS AFTER PURCHASING THE CAR DID THEY REALLY UNDERSTAND AND ACKNOWLEDGE THE HISTORICAL IMPORTANCE OF THIS VERY SPECIAL & UNIQUE LOTUS AND ALL CREDIT MUST GO TO BOTH OF THEM FOR THEIR HARD WORK & DEDICATION TO THIS WONDERFUL CAR WHICH HAS BEEN TREATED LIKE A MEMBER OF THE FAMILY AND WE HAVE NEVER MET ANYBODY SO PASSIONATE AND DEDICATED TO A MOTOR CAR!!
THIS LOTUS ELITE PROTOTYPE HAS BEEN INVITED TO MANY PRESTIGIOUS MOTORING EVENTS OVER THE LAST 30+ YEARS ACROSS THE COUNTRY INCLUDING THE NEC & LONDON CLASSIC MOTOR SHOWS AS WELL AS BEING FEATURED ON TV & IN MAGAZINE FEATURES AND COMES COMPLETE WITH A MAGNIFICENT HISTORY FILE DOCUMENTING THIS TRULY UNIQUE AND RARE MOTOR CAR INCLUDING LETTERS FROM THE LOTUS ARCHIVES CONFIRMING THE PROVENANCE
DUE TO AGE & POOR HEALTH THIS CAR HAS REMAINED IN STORAGE FOR A NUMBER OF YEARS AND WILL NOW BE SUBJECT TO A THROUGH RECOMMISSIONING AND WE LOOK FORWARD TO SEEING THECAR DISPLAYED AT THE UP COMING 50th ANNIVERSARY CELEBRATIONS OF THE LOTUS ELITE/ ECLAT IN 2024!!
A TRULY UNIQUE & UNREPEATABLE MOTOR CAR IN EVERY RESPECT AND A VERY SPECIAL OPPORTUNITY TO ACQUIRE CHASSIS 0001A WHICH IS THE FIRST & ONLY REMAINING LOTUS ELITE PROTOTYPE COUPE WHICH IS A HISTORICALLY IMPORTANT PIECE OF LOTUS MOTORING HISTORY AND WE WILL ENSURE THIS CAR FINDS A WORTHY CUSTODIAN WHO APPRECIATES THE RARITY AND IMPORTANCE OF THIS VERY SPECIAL CLASSIC LOTUS!!!
