Tag: Europa

Street or Track.

This Lotus was ordered directly from, and picked up at Lotus in Norwich, East Anglia, UK in June of 1970. I believe the buyer was an American serviceman stationed in England. He drove it to Heathrow, and had it transported to JFK in New York. From there, he drove it Malibu, CA, until moving (and driving the car) to Dallas, TX in 1983. During his ownership, he changed the wheels, removed the front and rear chrome bumpers, as well as the driving lights below the front bumper. He lowered the front an inch and a half, and raised the rear an inch. The rear shocks were repositioned on the cross member, and the stub axle bearings were converted to standard US sizes from the factory metric. He fitted it with a header, and free flow exhaust, installed Weber carbs, as well as installing air conditioning. The interior has seen a switch to a passenger racing seat, and the driver’s “seat” is a custom molded fiberglass shell, designed to accommodate a large driver. Both seats have 4-point racing harnesses. The dash facia was custom made, using Jaguar rocker switches, and the inside door panels are modified with MGB door handles. The carpet will need attention if the car is intended to be used as a street vehicle, but should not be a problem is used for the track.

He sold the car in 2007 (after having owned it for 37 years!) to a car dealer outside of Dallas.

From there, the history gets sketchy. How it got from Texas to the barn in rural Virginia where I found it covered in pigeon crap is a mystery.

I cleaned up the poop, flushed the old gas, went through the brakes, and now have it running and stopping like it should.

The paint is a good 10 footer, with stress cracks and blistering only visible on close inspection.

The odometer shows 87,500 miles. The car is still Texas titled in the original owners name.

The car comes with a box full of literature including history, shop manuals, and parts resources.

#racecar #scca #british #autocross