When I purchased 1559, the seller said that he strongly suspected that it might be the rumored “First Twin Cam Elite,” but they needed to find a “smoking gun” to prove it.
Stephen Goss turned out to be the smoking gun.
In the early 60s Stephen, who lived close to Cheshunt, England, would ride his bicycle to the Lotus Factory to hang out among the fascinating assortment of cars and interesting people.
By 1963, he decided to acquire a Lotus of his own and began negotiating for the purchase of a Lotus Seven kit.
During these negotiations, the Lotus sales person attempted to divert his attention to a twin cam-powered Elite that they had for sale, but Stephen ultimately opted for the Seven*.
In 1984, Stephen documented his experience in a letter to the editor of MotorSport Magazine:
Here, finally, was a statement proving the existence of the car, but also that the factory had tried to sell it to someone!
We were able to locate Stephen and, not only did he spend a considerable amount of time happily chatting on the phone, he joined us for 1559’s official unveiling at Lime Rock Park’s annual “Sunday in the Park” Concours d’Elegance. (Where it won ‘best in Class’).
*The Lotus Seven kit that Stephen purchased went on to make
racing history in the hands of his famous brother Tim Goss.