Today, we welcomed a beautifully little 1990 Evante in to the workshops.
From the factory, the interior of the Evante is best discussed as ‘fits where it touches’ so the current owner is looking for us to spend a little time inside the car tidying up where we can and adding a few finishing touches that were perhaps left off when new.
This will be a lovely project to be involved in so hopefully we’ll aim to see the car again in the not to distant future.
The Evante, designed and invented by George Walter Robinson, is an English automobile which began production in 1987 in Spalding, Lincolnshire, England. Engine tuning company Vegantune had been restoring Lotus cars and making some improvements to them. They decided to build a complete new car and set up a separate company, Evante Cars Ltd, to make them.
Engine tuning company Vegantune had been restoring Lotus Elan cars and making some improvements to them. They decided to build a complete new car and set up a separate company, Evante Cars Ltd, to make them.
The car’s looks were heavily inspired by the Lotus Elan and it was powered by the Ford Kent based Vegantune VTA 1.6 and later 1.7-litre twin overhead cam engine driving the rear wheels through a gearbox originally from a Ford Sierra. The fibreglass body and carbon-fibre was mounted onto a space frame chassis with independent suspension all round. Disc brakes were fitted front and rear.
The cars were intended to be available as either complete or in kit form but all cars were supplied fully built and were produced at a rate of about one a week. The bodies were fitted out with leather seats, walnut dashboard and electric windows.
An attempt was made to revive the car in 2001, but this was unsuccessful. Lotus Restoration Specialists Spydercars, Whittlesey now own the rights to the name and the fibre glass moulds.
