For starters it's got a brand new chassis. The design does away with some of the sheet metal that was used in the original X-frame design and replaces it with box section tubing. Proper rustproofing means we'll all be driving around in electric cars before it'll need replacing. The company responsible for both car and chassis is Spyder Engineering. Over the years the company has supplied more than 2000 chassis to Elan owners whose original Lotus chassis has corroded away. Fortunately, the DVLA regard the Elan as a monocoque body on two extensive (and linked) subframes, so there are no Q-plate worries. Now they're doing whole cars.

The Spyder Elan is virtually a new car. If you followed our rebuild series, you'll know this, but here is a summary of what Spyder's car offers. It has slightly redesigned suspension geometry based on the original Elan but with Spyder wishbones, uprated springs and adjustable dampers. The brakes are vented discs at the front, solid at the back, all from Ford's 21st century parts bin. 6J x 14 Minilites and 185/60 tyres make contact with the tarmac. And they really need to because there's a 2-litre Ford Zetec engine and MT75 five speed box putting down up to and over 200bhp (depending on state of tune), which would make life scary if the rest of the car wasn't sorted. Chapman would have built it if the equipment had been available, and loved it. Spyder occupies a corrugated iron factory on the outskirts of Peterborough. Chapman would have loved this too. Engineering ingenuity, and the pioneering spirit supplied by a workforce who all know each other on a first-name basis. Andy Widnall is the gaffer and he greets me with a smile. So he should, the Elan he has created is an absolute corker. I want a go right now, but there are a few surprises in store. The first surprise is when you look at it. With the exception of slightly wider wheels the  Spyder Elan looks completely original. A  good thing.

However, the biggest surprise arrives when the Zetec is sparked up. I'm expecting it to whirr into life with the whisper of a reps Mondeo, but no. It sounds like a proper engine. The sports exhaust and twin weber carbs have conspired to produce the cacophonous blat of a Sixties racer. High-lift cams makes the modern lump burble unevenly; blip the throttle and there's 'drive me now' urgency as the webers suck air and the exhaust disturbs the neighbours. Time to go. It's no surprise to learn that business is good at Spyder. There's a ready supply of tired and unwanted Elan Plus 2s to play with and plenty of customers for a sports car with all the style and performance but none of the hassle. The production line is busy. So busy, in fact, that as we leave, customer Peter Cunningham turns up to pick up his new Elan. Andy tells him we're off to Lotus. Guess what? Suddenly there is a cavalcade of two Plus 2s.

Zetec power - classic looks. All fun, no hassle

Which is where i am as Norfolk flies by outside the window. Passing Her Madges Sandringham estate, the rhododendron bushes ablaze with colour and the two Elans turn each flower into a deep pink blur.