Seller Description: 1973 Big Valve Twin Cam project. Engine is free but I have not tried to start it. Doors don’t sag, chrome is excellent, twin tanks, seems complete. Windshield is delaminated from body on drivers side, paint is very splotchy up front. Body is pretty good, a few small areas need attention. Clear FL title. Frame appears to be good viewing from underneath.
If Red’s 1970 Europa was just a bit too rough for your taste or on the wrong coast, you might want to take a look at Kevin’s Europa. It’s located in State College, Pennsylvania with an asking of $8k. It isn’t in perfect condition, but after a good cleaning and a tuneup, it would be a decent driver.
Our thanks to Kevin for listing his Lotus with us! If you’d like to give this Twin Cam driver a new home, be sure to message him via the form below. And if you happen to have a Europa, or any other Lotus for that matter, that needs a new home, please consider listing it with us!
Location: State College, Pennsylvania
Title Status: Clean
Mileage: 50,000
VIN: 2516R
Asking Price: $8,000
in the air force at raf chicksands, uk in ’71 or ’72, a friend spent his re-enlistment bonus on a new dark green europa. it was beautiful and he took me for a spin in it. leaning back like a recliner it was like sitting on the ground going 70mph.
Just out of curiousity BF why do you “have” to put the pics in a pop up windo? It doesnt allow you to zoom in if your on a mobile device (havent tried itvon a computer as i dont carry one of them around) and thus renders the pics usless except forvan inital look. Is it that complex to have thebpictures in a gallet? The “otger bug name site tgat starts with a “B” seems to manage it quite easily. Just asking??
We will look for a better solution Leo. Thanks!
We have redesigned the way the gallery works. You should be able to zoom in on mobile now. Please let me know what you guys think. Thanks for the suggestion Leo!
I had a white one just like it. It was the most horrible car. But I loved it. I drove it from Los Angeles to Washington DC in July. It did not have air. I didn’t notice it. It is the most comfortable car I have ever ridden in. But it required a ride-along mechanic. The car was designed by Murphy. But I loved it. My wife loved it. And I loved her for loving it. Its power brakes finally got me in trouble — they quit working. I removed the boosters and installed a TR4 master cylinder in order to get the pedal soft enough to drive. It regularly ate shift linkage roll pins. You had to remove the motor to replace the water pump. You had to replace the water pump every 20 ki miles or so. Its windshield wiper motor broke loose from the fire wall and I was left with a linkage that went back and forth in the front boot while the wipers stood still. I needed fresh plugs every 10K miles. Its electrical system was made by Lucas. You could not see over the rear “duck-tail” from inside the car. If you put vinyl or nylon suitcases in the bac “trunk” they would melt. It could out-corner a go kart.
But I loved it. If I had owned a barn (or even a garage) back then, I’d still own it. My wife and I are discussing whether there is $8000 somewhere that we could spring free. And now, I DO own a barn. I know how to fix the windshield wipers. And I still have some roll pins (they are the same ones that are used in a S&W M&P 9mm). We really do want to look at this one. But you have to be realistic — it’ll cost a LOT more than $8000. But you’ll love it.
Great accurate narrative…….my brothers and I have owned many of them, I think there may still be a couple squirled away in our aircraft hangers…or maby a warehouse. They have a decidley kit car feeling as they were built before Colin Chapman died, all he cared about was light and fast and these are. Super fun cars that I can actually fit in at 6’2″ unlike the older versions. The twin cam engine is a tinkerbox, I always wondered what they would be like with an Alfa 2.0. edges are rough, things don’t fit well but they are so much fun at speed it really doesn’t matter. I heard of some being repowered with Mazda Rotaries like the 7’s. Could be blindingly fast.
Dave – you answered my question here re: height, so thanks ! I’ve seen in magazines various conversions….both the Alfa and rotary (and a few others…including a SBC ( why ?). Had a host of friends with various Alfas 1.6 – 2.0, I’d figure that would be okay, as long as it was one that didn’t need all the fooling with the cam chains. Having had a new ’83 RX7 myself, I’d believe that would be cool….Never saw one of those conversions in person, so, never drove one either. The ’68 BRG one my friend had was a blast when new. I’ve just recently re-connected with him and he said it turned into a money pit later in it’s life…So it goes !
But we all know what LOTUS means don’t we, LOTS Of TROUBLE USUALLY SERIOUS (well in the UK that’s what they’re known as!!) Still a sweet looking car, see someone mentioned the Fiat Twin Cam as an engine swap, well how about staying with Ford & using a Zetec or Duratec Twin-Cam to make it modern like reliable (along with a Custom Wiring harness for piece of mind!)
Mark – didn’t know that LOTUS had such a bad “rep” in the UK. When I was stationed in Germany, beginning in ’67, we had two “cliques” among my fellow junior officers…the guys that had Elans and Europas, and the guys that had Alfa GTs/GTAs and Spiders. (Other guys had XKEs, Porsches, and a mix of American “hot rods”…I had a Fairlane GTA and one of my SGTs had the 435hp 427 Vette convertible). It was the ALFA guys that were always working on their cars in the bachelor officer’s quarters parking lot, not the Lotus guys. Maybe their woes came later. Anyway, I like your idea for those Ford engines.