Welcome to uksportscars.com, for used/secondhand Lotus Cars. We specialise in buying and selling the following cars:
I love Lotus cars - my first was a Lotus Elan Plus Two, bought a couple of years after my brother had owned one. I then went on to a baby Elan two seater, after much searching. I decided to start a small business selling classic Lotus cars and placed various wanted ads in various publications. I soon had a thriving business, exporting cars abroad, especially to Japan. The Japanese were particularly looking for classic models, including Lotus Europa, Elan and occasionally the Lotus Esprit/Espirit and Lotus Excel.
There was also a big demand for Caterham Sevens, these being a derivative of the original Lotus Seven. We were regularly shipping cars to Japan and supplied some superb examples, as the customers were very particular about the condition of the cars. Some of the cars required restoration, resprays and servicing to a high standard before shipping.
The business continued to expand into the late Eighties, where we diversified into Ferrari, Jaguar, Porsche, Aston Martin and other British marques including MG. Since the early Nineties we have gone back to the roots of the business and concentrated on our original passion for Lotus and Caterham. We operated from a showroom and workshop premises on a busy village high street near Canterbury in Kent. We also supply new cars to order, but our main business is selling secondhand or previously enjoyed classic models from the sixties to date; from a restoration project to a pristinely rebuilt example.
We buy all classic cars and sell other more exotic machines on a commission basis. We have had a successful website running for over two years now, which attracts an average of 800 visitors per week. We also advertise in the major classic car magazines and thus get worldwide exposure from these various mediums. Our aim is to steadily expand, with more and more emphasis on internet sales, thus reducing the cost of expensive advertising.
We have been to many specialist car shows over the years, selling anything from parts and automobilia to an extensive range of Lotus models. The Lotus Elise has become a firm favourite at the shows and is attracting the Caterham Seven owner, as this model is more practical, but retaining the sheer exhilarating fun of a car designed for sheer driving pleasure. Lotus Cars have recently redesigned the Elise shape, creating a true future classic for the decades to come.
I decided to enter a race series in 1999, opting for the Caterham Scholarship Challenge. This involved 30 likeminded wannabee racing drivers, all with varying talent, determination and sheer dare-devil bravado. I thoroughly enjoyed the experience and was getting better and better towards the end of the series of races. A very enjoyable experience and many new friends were made in the process. I have since gone on to do various business deals with some of the ex-scholars, buying their racing Caterhams or selling them on their behalf. I feel that I have gained a better and safer driving style as a result of this competition and a greater mechanical "feel" for the sports cars that we sell for a living.
I used to travel the country looking for classic Lotus cars, but nowadays employ a firm that operates a collection network throughout Great Britain. I also use a small company for local collection in southern England and in and around London.
I have thoroughly enjoyed my association with the marques of Lotus and Caterhams over the 30 years of continuous ownership of these fine cars. I intend to be associated with these cars for many years to come and look forward to many new models being designed to generate an even wider appeal to these much sought after supercars.
Paul Clugston