The Lotus Europa was a British GT car with a mid-engine layout, built by Lotus Cars from 1966 to 1975. They arrived in the U.S. while the second series of cars was in production and required some mods to meet U.S. safety standards. This edition from 1971 might be thought of as a running project, though it seems nice enough in the photos. Located in Great Falls, Virginia, this hot little car comes with extra parts to sweeten the pot. It’s available here on Facebook Marketplace for $10,000. Our thanks to Barn Finder Chuck Foster for this tip from across the pond.
Series 2 Europa automobiles hit the European market in 1968. Changes were minor but mostly included convenience items like power windows, adjustable seats, and woodgrain being added to the dashboard. These were peppy cars capable of doing 0 to 60 in nine seconds, the quarter mile in under 17, and could top out at 120 mph. To be “federalized” for export to the U.S. meant a larger engine (1,565cc) and changes to the suspension that made the cars ride higher off the ground. This also meant taller front fenders so the headlights would be raised by a couple of inches. Lotus built 3,615 S2s, but we don’t know how many made it to the States.
The overall condition of the seller’s car is fairly good. We’re told that there is no visible rust in the sheet metal or Y-frame. The interior may be okay, but the seller has parts if you need them. The indicated mileage is 20,000, but there’s no mention that this is accurate. It’s a running/driving sports car that has the correct Renault engine and 5-speed manual transmission.
This machine has a single carburetor (though I thought they were built with twins). The seller believes the Lotus will need paint and comes with some wide fenders from England that you could install if you wish. But perhaps this is a car that you could drive now and work on later.
That Weber DCOE oughta give this car a little extra oomph (for those who think that only the twin-cams were good performers). Not a bad price if it’s not too needy-looks like it may need a little cosmetic work.
Interesting car. Owned 2 and if you want a car that’s easy to work on this is it. Body comes off easy, fiberglass is thick enough to not cause trouble, and the Renault engine is known to be pretty stout. They originally came with a downdraft carb. Only suggestion to a buyer is to replace the fuel tank with a safety fuel cell in case of a side hit.
Hmmmmm. I had an S2, and still kick myself for selling it. The other differences between an S2 and the earlier S1 (I believe) is that the S1 had stationary side windows and a frame bonded to the chassis.
The Weber carb, and that header, sure do look like one of the Hermes kits in period – this could come in a variety of stages (mine had the Weber, a fast road cam, and the header. That car really moved.
Also am unaware that an S2 could be had with anything other than a 4 speed, but it may be my memory again. All in, this is cheap and shouldn’t last long
best
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It is the Hermes kit. You can see it on the intake manifold in the video.
I’ll post my usual ,im 60 years old grew up in automotive culture,I have never seen one of these that runs,I have seen many sitting in and behind garages etc… Louisville KY area.
I had a 1969 many years ago, wish i had it now. I like this color, looks like a good deal, i hope it sells.
Buy two, add some straps, and use them as roller skates.
I think Colin Chapman, I love the guy’s creativity, designed performance cars for dwarfs.
Gonna need a few things if you prefer originality as some do for these cars. Aside from that, if the mechanicals are all OK, they are an absolute blast to drive , but, as are most British sports cars of that era, they do not especially like hot climates. They also are not particularly friendly to tall folks, which will require some light gymnastics if you are over 6′ and shoes over 9 1/2.This one appears to have had at least some basic engine upgrades, which includes a Hermes kit consisting of that 40 DCOE Wber and the exhaust header.$10k isn’t too bad if you can do a lot of things yourself and the parts are not going to be growing on trees. $30k would be high dollar for one of these in top shape. This is an East coast car, so be mindful of rust on the frame. At $10k I would want some kind of personal inspection.
Had one. Loved it. Miss it. Always putzing with it to keep running though. And it is a “adults only” car. Never let your teenager drive it! I did let my eldest daughter take mine out once, she’s responsible. After a hour, she came back, gave me the keys, said, “dad, sell it. Your either gonna get in trouble with the police or somebodys husband”….and it’s too dangerous because of other drivers. So, I did. went out and got a little two cylinder 12 horsepower british car from 1910.
If I had the room, I’d get this one, though I don’t like the color…..sorry about that.
I remember Road & Track magazine saying the Europa was the best handling car at the time.
…FYI…Chapman was a dwarf 5’7″…lol… R&T first car to break 1G on the skid pad.
Just a note there were no 5 speeds transmissions until the Europa Twin Cam and the Specials, everything before these were 4 speeds. I own a 73 Europa Spl (JPS) #021 which was a 5 speed Looking at that video in FB market place that is a 4 speed
It is a 4 speed, I was just talking to the guy and he did not know what it has, he said he would have to go and check. I can tell you how many speed every car I owned had. Trust me this car has a 4 speed
Just FB messaging this guy, wow he is some car guy, go to his FB page , works with a lot of cars
I bought one of the first T/C’s sold on the west coast and it had a 4speed trans with a special bell housing so they wouldn’t have to change the drive train It did have the cut down sail panels however. Performance was just OK, nothing spectacular. I traded my’ 69 type 54 for it with more reliability in mind. I would definitely like to have that ’69 again though.
I rummaged around a lot of these Renault Europas and settled on an early twin cam // big vaulve. Very STRONG 4 speed.
This is a deal if not too needy BUT the T C is worth the extra $$$. The only way top go….