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Re: Elvis Presley Drove This Car in ‘Viva Las Vegas,’ Legend Has It - WSJ
From: Larry Bard (larrybardhotmail.com)
Date: Sat, 16 Oct 2021 10:00:58 -0700 (PDT)
See if this works for everyone (I'm a subscriber):

My Ride

Elvis Presley Drove This Car in ‘Viva Las Vegas,’ Legend Has It

Modifications to his rare 1961 Elva Mk VI have led Tom Thinesen to believe it was used in the King’s campy classic

Tom Thinesen with his 1961 Elva Mk VI, at his home in Sunnyvale, Calif. Mr. Thinesen believes this car appeared in the Elvis Presley movie ‘Viva Las Vegas.’
By A.J. Baime | Photographs by Clara Mokri for The Wall Street Journal
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Tom Thinesen, 75, a retired electronics engineer living in Sunnyvale, Calif., on his 1961 Elva Mk VI, as told to A.J. Baime.

I have been racing vintage cars for about 40 years. Back in 2007, I went looking for a mid-engine car [a vehicle with the engine behind the driver, ahead of the rear axle]. I found this Elva in an ad in a British publication. So I called, and it turned out the car wasn’t in Britain. It was in Illinois. A friend and I were about to drive across the country to a race in Connecticut, so we stopped along the way.

The owner told me a fascinating story, one that had been told to him when he bought the car. According to his story, this Elva had appeared in the 1964 movie “Viva Las Vegas,” starring Elvis Presley as a race-car driver. I was familiar with it because I’ve seen every old movie that has racing in it.

The 1961 Elva Mk VI is a product of its time and place—a small-chassis British racing car with its engine behind the driver that is very lightweight and has a low center of gravity.

Mr. Thinesen’s car straight on. In ‘Viva Las Vegas,’ you see Elvis driving an Elva with the same #7 racing number.

Elvis and Ann-Margret in a still image from ‘Viva Las Vegas.’ Mr. Thinesen believes his Elva was used in the movie.

Photo: Everett Collection

As a racing car, the cockpit is all business. And being British, the vehicle’s steering wheel is on the right.

Elva was a small British company from the 1950s and ’60s. A guy named Frank Nichols started it, and had named it after the French words “elle va,” meaning “she goes.” The Mk VI was very similar to what fellow British race-car builder Lotus was doing at the time.

I am 5’8” and about 210 pounds, and the owner told me that when he restored it he widened the frame a bit so he could fit in it. When I sat in it, I fit in it. So I bought the car.

At the time, it did not have its 1100-cc Ford four-cylinder engine in it, but the guy promised to have the car put back together so it would be ready to run when the truck carrying it reached my home in California. Famous last words.

Mr. Thinesen’s most-recent race in this car was at the Rolex Monterey Motorsports Reunion in California this past August.

Mr. Thinesen did a lot of work on this Ford four-cylinder engine himself to get it running and keep it running.

The hardest part about restoring a vintage car, according to Mr. Thinesen, is the paint. You need a paint shop that has all the equipment, he says. This car was painted during a restoration before he bought it.

When it arrived, I couldn’t get the engine started. I invited friends over, and none of them could get it started. The trouble ended up being a combination of a whole bunch of things. I did all the work in my garage—everything that did not need machining (any of that stuff I sent out to a machine shop).

I have been racing this car for nearly 15 years, and while I can’t confirm 100%, I do believe this car did appear in “Viva Las Vegas.” According to the story I believe, the original-movie Elva Mk VI had a Maserati engine that wouldn’t work. You see this car in the movie, but never running. So MGM went to a local dealer, Hollywood Sports Cars, and found what is now my car.

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You see Elvis driving it in the movie, and since the other Elva that appeared in the movie had a bunch of modifications made to fit the Maserati engine, my car had the same modifications, so the two would look alike. You can see them in the movie and on my car.

I tried calling MGM to confirm, but nobody has gotten back to me. Elva has long since disappeared. If you haven’t seen the Elvis film, it’s pretty good, as far as Elvis movies go.

Mr. Thinesen with his hands on the wheel. He has been racing this car for nearly 15 years.



From: Ferrari <ferrari-bounces+larrybard=hotmail.com [at] ferrarilist.com> on behalf of Rick Moseley <ramosel [at] pacbell.net>
Sent: Saturday, October 16, 2021 11:52 AM
To: larry <larrybard [at] hotmail.com>
Cc: The FerrariList <ferrari [at] ferrarilist.com>
Subject: Re: [Ferrari] Elvis Presley Drove This Car in ‘Viva Las Vegas,’ Legend Has It - WSJ
 
Yes, Sir.   But can't read the whole story because I'm not a subscriber.

On Saturday, October 16, 2021, 08:26:56 AM PDT, Luke Graves <buyer1austin [at] gmail.com> wrote:


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