✦ Shifty Estimate
$8,200
- 12 months median
- $7K
- Market cap
- $8.2M · 1,000 built
- Sales, 12 months
- 2
- Original MSRP
- $1,499 · ▲ 447% since
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1962 Lotus Elan Series 1
1962 to 1964 · Roadster · 1,000 built
Price history
Recent sales
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More sales on file
The full sale history lives in the app.
Every sale for this exact market, with the chassis behind each number. Drop your email and you are first in.
Specifications
- Engine
- Ford Kent Twin-Cam, 1.6L
- Power
- 105 hp
- Torque
- 108 lb-ft
- 0 to 60
- 7.1s
- Top speed
- 115 mph
- Transmission
- Manual
- Drivetrain
- RWD
- Curb weight
- 1,500 lb
- Production
- 1,000 units
- Original MSRP
- $1,499
- Designer
- Ron Hickman
Common questions
How much does a Lotus Elan Series 1 cost?
A 1962 Lotus Elan Series 1 cost $1,499 new. Over the past 12 months, 2 have sold publicly at a median of $6,703. The Shifty Estimate for a well-kept example is $8,200. Cars have changed hands anywhere from $6,593 to $16,330, depending on mileage, color, and history.
What is a 1962 Lotus Elan Series 1 worth today?
The Shifty Estimate is $8,200. That sits above the $6,703 median of actual sales because the median counts every car that sold, including high-mileage examples, while the estimate describes a clean, low-mileage one bought today. We rate confidence medium: 2 public sales in a year is a thin market, and the spread between them is wide.
Is a Lotus Elan Series 1 a good investment?
It has appreciated 447% against its $1,499 list price. Only 1,000 were built. The caution is spread, not direction: across the sales we have on file, prices ran from $6,155 to $62,500, and mileage explains most of that.
What has a Lotus Elan Series 1 sold for at auction?
The 3 most recent public sales we have on file:
- $7,250Feb 16, 2026Red · 114,400 mi
- $6,155Nov 28, 2025Red · 109,000 mi
- $7,800Apr 30, 2025Red · 68,000 mi
The Series 1 Elan launched Lotus into the modern era, introducing Colin Chapman's revolutionary backbone chassis and fiberglass body construction that would influence sports car design for decades. Ron Hickman's elegant styling perfectly captured the early 1960s zeitgeist, while the Ford Kent twin-cam engine delivered genuine 115 mph performance from just 1,558 pounds. Only 1,000 Series 1 cars were produced between 1962-1964, making them the most coveted Elan variant. The pop-up headlights, distinctive side vents, and minimalist interior epitomized Chapman's 'simplify and add lightness' philosophy. These early Elans established the template for the modern lightweight sports car, influencing everything from the Mazda Miata to modern Lotus models. Pristine Series 1 examples command premium prices among collectors who appreciate both the model's historical significance and its pure, unfiltered driving experience that remains compelling six decades later.