The nameplate first appeared in 1962 on a lightweight two-seat sports car that became one of Lotus’s defining road models of the 1960s. The original car was built around Colin Chapman’s low-weight philosophy, using a steel backbone chassis and a glass-fibre body, and it quickly earned a reputation for sharp handling, delicate steering feel and everyday usability that was unusual in a small British sports car of the era. Over time, the original run evolved through several series and body styles, including fixed-head coupe and drophead variants, as well as the later Plus 2 derivative. The first production period ended in 1973 after the Series 4 era.
The name was revived in 1989 for a very different car, the Type 100, better known as the M100. This second-generation model marked a major departure from the classic original because it used front-wheel drive and a more modern roadster layout. Lotus positioned it as a contemporary reinterpretation of the lightweight sports-car idea rather than a direct continuation of the earlier rear-wheel-drive car. The M100 was sold in two separate production periods, first from 1989 to 1992 and then again from 1994 to 1995 after a gap in production.
Because the Elan badge was used for two distinct and non-continuous eras, it is best understood as an important Lotus nameplate with a long original production run and a later revival rather than a single uninterrupted model line.