15k: Almost A Lotus: 1997 Kia Elan M100

 The Lotus Elan M100 was a wedge shaped convertible penned by Peter Stevens (Jaguar XJR-15, McLaren F1, Lotus Esprit, MG ZR, ZS, ZT & TF) and built in the UK from 1989 through 1995…and later produced by Kia in South Korea under the name Kia Elan (and Kia Vigato).  The Elan used a lightweight chassis and a name borrowed from the historical Lotus archives…but it was powered by an Isuzu (and later Kia) 4-banger mated to the front wheels.  Find this 1997 Lotus Kia Elan M100 offered for $17,900 CAD ($14,061 USD at time of printing) in Walkerton, ON, Canada via kijiji.ca.  Tip from Gianni.

Discussion of the M100 Elan came up in the comments about the Isuzu Stylus/Impulse and Gianni was kind enough to find the only one (or as close as you’ll get to it!) for sale in North America right now (I did a search and couldn’t find any, but there are probably a few lurking out there). 

This is not the 1.6 liter Isuzu 4XE1 engine used in the Stylus/Impulse, this is a 1.8 liter T8D “Hi-Sprint” inline-4 built by Kia and pushing out 151 horsepower.  The end result is performance about on par with the Lotus built Elans and potentially better build quality…but who really knows.

See another odd ball version of an odd ball car? tips@dailyturismo.com