Road & Track, June 1959...
Consider the Elva Courier's specifications, which can be summed up very briefly in this way: an MG with 430 fewer pounds to carry, yet a price tag only $500 higher. However ,this is an over simplification of the facts. The MG buyer, who gets a more comfortable, more luxurious machine for his money, takes his lumps when he runs in production class racing.Elva's Courier uses standard British Motor Corporation components in the engine, transmission and rear axle. The unit weights of these being fixed, savings have been accomplished by making the vehicle smaller, by using a simple tube frame and by mounting a fiberglass body. The new results may not please everyone, but the Elva has its advantages for the performance-minded enthusiast. For example, it will beat a stock MG to 60 miles per hour by nearly 2 seconds and cover the standing 1/4 mile in 18.2 sec as compared to about 19.5 for its more luxurious cousin. Top speed is about even.
Sports Car Illustrated, August 1958...
...the weight of the Courier is 300-odd lbs. less than that of the MGA and the effect is pure scat. The one we had would hold off an A.C. Ace-Bristol with Stage Two tuned from a standing start to 80 miles per hour - just barely, true, but it would hold it off...Regardless of this we were able to charge from zero to 60 in 12 seconds flat. Later, we turned up a one-shot 0-60 time of 9.2 seconds. About the only production cars we have tested that have bettered that figure are the Jaguar; the Corvette, the Mercedes 300 SL, Ferrari CT Europa and the Fury Handling the Courier is an experience in sheer exhilaration. The ultra-precise steering is the sort of thing one might expect on an outright racing car but never on a street machine selling for less than $3,000....Braking is in accord with performance. With twin master cylinders handling the pressure, there was nil fade and no pedal drop in ten stops from 60.
The suspension all the way around is by Woodhead-Monroe coil springs and Armstrong shocks, practically a standard set-up on British racing cars of all types. The resulting ride is tight without being stiff. Small, sharp bumps are all but soaked up and big ones are glided over without the hopping that one might expect in this light a car with a rigid rear axle. Road holding is absolutely superb by any standard except that applied to the Mark II and III all-out racing versions and their likes.
Summing up, for the man who wants to drive his car on the street and race it on weekends and still have a chance at the hardware, the Elva Courier will be hard to beat. Admittedly some of the amenities of the full street or boulevard sports car are missing, but to the truly shriven the no-nonsense performance and maneuverability of the Courier will make up for any number of cigarette lighters, ash trays and fancy knobs.
Auto Sport, Sept 1959...
While the Courier and the Elva race cars are two different pups, its not hard to tell they're from the same litter. Of course, there's nothing plush about the roadster. The top and side curtains are, to be kind, pretty funny. When choppy bumps are encountered, the fiberglass body sounds like it's made of loosely nailed lumber, and the ride is comparable to that of a TC-MG. Why then would anyone want a Courier? The answer is apparent as soon as it is driven. We don't know of any other sports car and the Courier is definitely that costing less than an additional thousand dollars that will even begin to match the Courier's performance.Frankly, it's hard to conceive that an MGA powertrain in stock form could make for the bear-type automobile that the Courier is. And not only does the machine go, it handles and stops as well. The tailend is light, and comes out rather easily, but we got around the traffic circle at a relaxed 35 mph. The brake test failed to unmask deficiencies. Its most appreciated trait was high speed stability; the harder the throttle is depressed, the more the Elva Courier "settles in." Good aerodynamics are largely responsible, but the unique rear suspension has much to do with it, too. ... Hundreds of guys who could never before afford the high tariff of competition will suddenly find themselves availed of a potential cup winner at economy car prices both in initial purchase and maintenance. Some of the silver spoon boys will have to put their foot where their wallet was.
...Elvas? We like 'em!.
Sports Car Graphic, August 1964...
...recently introduced Mark 4, which is a much better bet in almost every department. It looks better, it handles better, it has a good choice of engines, and from a competition stand point its potential is considerably greater.
The Mark 4 is the first Courier to have independent rear suspension. This is by double wide, based and braced wishbones, and coil-shocks mounted behind the final drive line, the differential being chassis-mounted at three points. The net result of this change is that the most serious weakness of the earlier design, namely instability during vigorous cornering, has been overcome.
With an anti-sway bar on the front, the car has almost neutral steering characteristics, although pressed to the limit, the rear end will break away, aided by the 98 horsepower potential of the 1,798 cc MGB engine. (The Ford 1.5-liter power unit is also available for the Courier, in two stages of tune.)
The performance of the MGB engine and its ability to take considerable doses of extra tuning are well-known, and as expected when wedded to a sports car weighing less than 1,500 pounds dry, it gives the Courier quite a spritely performance with reasonable fuel economy.Unlike so many sports cars, the Courier has a soft top which can easily be raised or lowered by one person in a minute or two without amputation of a couple of fingers. The glass-fiber body, though not completely faultless, had a generally high standard of finish. The fit of the top around the door windows was well up to average standard (which means there were only slight drafts in the corners, but the action of one of the door windows was-stiff.
Throughout the test, the Courier Mark 4 was an instant starter, and it became quite a pleasure to drive. Though faultable on several minor scores, there were no serious defects, and its attractive appearance in bright red finish made it quite an attraction on the roads. Clearly, the Mark 4 is giving a new lease of life to a model which some people were beginning to think was 'over the hill', and the faith of Trojan in their car as a racing prospect is evidenced by a 'Sebring' version of the Mark 4 which they are now starting to make to special order.
Thanks to my brother Steve and his buddy Rich Yerton for scanning old Sports Car Illustrated magazines for Elva ads and stories
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