Elite Ethusiasm

Lotus was the star of the 1957 London Motor Show, which was remarkable since prior to that Lotus only made competition cars. Every year, the organizers donated a stand to a company which had flown the flag and Lotus had taken two class wins at Le Mans, plus a 1-2 in the Index of Performance. On the stand were the Elite and the Seven and, 50 years on, the Elite remains one of the prettiest cars ever made, while versions of the Seven are still in production.

The Elite caused a sensation, but the hood remained closed because it hadn’t yet gotten an engine. Colin Chapman declared that it was the first car in the world with a glass-fiber monocoque and the press bought the line because he was the “Golden Boy.” Chapman himself knew that it wasn’t true. The previous year had seen the launch of the Berkeley B60, a pretty little sports car fitted with a 322-cc Anzani engine.