Lotus Europa(the old one)

[andyc.]

Any one have experience with the old 1960/70s car?

Ive always fancied one, prices vary hugely and what is there to watchout for......or is it best avoid?

Edited by andyc. on Wednesday 23 December 18:08

[willibum]

Hi,

I've been a fan of Lotus for many years since seeing an original Lotus Europa when I was 6 in 1970.
I have now owned a series 2 Elise, series 1 Elise, an Excel, an Esprit and my last Lotus was a 1971 Europa with a 47 type body, gordini engine and various mods. I have to say it was my favorite out of all of them, true 70's Lotus but cirtainly not modern day motoring.
Great to drive, lovely handling, difficult to get in and out, but I loved it and regret selling it everyday.
No real problems, you can get parts readily, check out the banks engineering website, easy to maintain, just make sure the chassis is good or been replaced and watch the fuel lines for cracking etc.
If you look at my post history there are some pics of mine in readers cars.
Go for it, you won't regret it!!!!

[andyc.]

Cheers for that.I had a hotwheels or matchbox one when I was very young and always fancied one.Sad isnt it.

[47GT]

willibum said:

Hi,

I've been a fan of Lotus for many years since seeing an original Lotus Europa when I was 6 in 1970.
I have now owned a series 2 Elise, series 1 Elise, an Excel, an Esprit and my last Lotus was a 1971 Europa with a 47 type body, gordini engine and various mods. I have to say it was my favorite out of all of them, true 70's Lotus but cirtainly not modern day motoring.
Great to drive, lovely handling, difficult to get in and out, but I loved it and regret selling it everyday.
No real problems, you can get parts readily, check out the banks engineering website, easy to maintain, just make sure the chassis is good or been replaced and watch the fuel lines for cracking etc.
If you look at my post history there are some pics of mine in readers cars.
Go for it, you won't regret it!!!!

Hi, I also have a Lotus Europa S2. Mine's a Type 65 ex US Federal car that's at some time been fitted with a Lotus Twin Cam engine (instead of the Renault unit) and a 5-speed Renault 395 gearbox. Had a Caterham 7 before that but absolutely love the Europa - would only change it for another Lotus possibly an S1 Elise.

[72EuropaTC]

Recently sold mine - alas not enough time to drive it. Already missing it. The main reason I sold mine was that it was left in the garage for too many weeks on the trot and when given a run you could tell, so I'd say that potential lack of use is going to be something to think about.

What to watch out for: a few parts are getting difficult to find (if you want to keep originality) e.g. wheels, tyres (for track), door glass & frames, gearboxes (many swapped to NG5 but now those starting to get rare), water pump (but if car is frequently used should be ok), rear drums (many did disc conversions). Banks and a couple of others (Kelsport, Paul Matty, SJ Sportscars) have spares/parts. Very easy to mess up the handling if you don't do it right - drive as many as you can. Generally straightforward to work on but you need to be a contortionist. You're highly unlikely to make the money back on a restoration project. lotuseuropa.com has loads of info and owners.

Nicely fettled they're great fun. Surprisingly cheap classic car insurance (for me anyway). Get the workshop manual and follow it diligently. Probably not a daily driver unless you've got a short commute, but great weekend fun. Ladies over a certain age always gave me a smile! Be prepared to stop & chat in car parks when someone spots it, too!

I had mine for 5 years and over that time prices seemed to be pretty stable rather than showing any significant rise. Some "dealer" prices are quite high in relation to the type car IMO (ie non-rebuilds).

Hope you find a good'un. Enjoy.

[47GT]

72EuropaTC said:

Recently sold mine - alas not enough time to drive it. Already missing it. The main reason I sold mine was that it was left in the garage for too many weeks on the trot and when given a run you could tell, so I'd say that potential lack of use is going to be something to think about.

What to watch out for: a few parts are getting difficult to find (if you want to keep originality) e.g. wheels, tyres (for track), door glass & frames, gearboxes (many swapped to NG5 but now those starting to get rare), water pump (but if car is frequently used should be ok), rear drums (many did disc conversions). Banks and a couple of others (Kelsport, Paul Matty, SJ Sportscars) have spares/parts. Very easy to mess up the handling if you don't do it right - drive as many as you can. Generally straightforward to work on but you need to be a contortionist. You're highly unlikely to make the money back on a restoration project. lotuseuropa.com has loads of info and owners.

Nicely fettled they're great fun. Surprisingly cheap classic car insurance (for me anyway). Get the workshop manual and follow it diligently. Probably not a daily driver unless you've got a short commute, but great weekend fun. Ladies over a certain age always gave me a smile! Be prepared to stop & chat in car parks when someone spots it, too!

I had mine for 5 years and over that time prices seemed to be pretty stable rather than showing any significant rise. Some "dealer" prices are quite high in relation to the type car IMO (ie non-rebuilds).

Hope you find a good'un. Enjoy.

Absolutely spot on, would pretty much agree with every one of these points. My New Year resolution is to make sure the car gets driven at least once a week! sadly something I've failed to achieve during '09 - being left in the garage for any length of time does not do Lotus's (or any other old car for that matter) any good.