Ron Hickman the 105E Ford Anglia. He became the director of Lotus Engineering in the 1960s, designing the first Lotus Europa as part of Lotus's GT40 project bid. He left Lotus in 1967. Hickman invented the wood-and-steel foldable Workmate bench after sawing through a piece of wood into a chair used as support, when making a wardrobe. His offer of a licence for the product he developed was rejected by several companies who could not see a large market for it, so Hickman sold the benches himself to professional builders at trade shows until Black & Decker saw the light in 1973
Lotus Elan requirements (especially for Federal vehicles); model year enhancements; and the phase-in & phase-out of stock during the transition to the next Series. Lotus promoted the potential variation between vehicles by stating in its documentation: "Lotus policy is one of continuous product improvement and the right is reserved to alter specifications at any time without prior notice." The price of the Elan changed during its production lifetime. At announcement, in October 1962, the fully built cost was £1,499 (GBP), although between 1963–1966 the factory price was generally 5-10% lower. By the end of production, in April 1973, the fully built cost