Only 69k miles with 19 service stamps; recent new cam belt and water pump; a pampered example of the world's best handling front-wheel drive sportscarLaunched in 1987 when Lotus had the deep pockets of General Motors behind it, the Elan SE Turbo M100 was the first and only front-wheel-drive production car Lotus ever built.Purists were initially sceptical, but Lotus engineers proved that FWD could deliver world-class handling.

Using a rigid composite body on a steel backbone chassis, the M100 eradicated traditional front-drive issues like torque steer through clever suspension geometry, with power steering as standard equipment.Power came from an Isuzu-sourced 1.6 turbocharged inline-four engine, co-developed with Lotus tuning.

Delivering 165bhp it could launch the Elan from 0 to 60mph in 6.5 seconds with a top speed of 137mph.

In true Lotus tradition, it was highly rated by the automotive press who declared it to be the finest handling front-wheel-drive sports bar none, Autocar call...