Lotus Europa Community
Lotus Europa Forums => Garage => Topic started by: Jake17 on Thursday,July 14, 2016, 07:37:40 PM
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Hi, Name is Dave. I'm located in Dutchess County, New York state and have a 1967 Europa S1 type 46, complete wrap around body style, windows are fixed, cabin air from a fan in the bonnet. Loved it!
Remembering a trip to Canada around '70 or so the Ferry from Bar Harbor, Maine to Yarmouth, Canada was slow and hot and the disembarking was even slower. When the road in front of us was clear I floored it and remember passing a man with a yellow stripe on his pants talking to a motorist. I'll never forget the expression on the face of the chase car driver that had 4 wheels up off the road when it crested the hill and he saw us sitting in a space at the top of the hill perpendicular to the road, just waiting for him. After following him back to the broad yellow striped pants Canadian Mountie we waited for our fine which turned out to be just $10 and the rest of our vacation in Nova Scotia was wonderful.
I'm ashamed to say that in 1972 I parked this car outside my house with insufficient covering, moved with it to a new house and it sat for 40+ years with only my promise that when I retired I would restore it. I just cannot do that anymore. It needs to be sold. After freeing the brakes, front and rear, by removing the front calipers and removing the rear brake shoes the car rolls well. The frame has rust as do the brakes and other metal parts. I did not know if the Europa could be restored or just junked but after reading the Garage entry "Removing the Chassis from a 1967 Europa S1" and all the answers especially those of jbcollier and serge I see that anything can be done to the S1 within a proper time frame. After cleaning out debris such as decayed carpeting, other upholstery, nut shells and other remnants of previous residents I took some photos that I am attaching.
My question is can I sell the Europa as a project car, what price can I expect to get and with whom should it be listed for sale. I am grateful for any help you can provide on the subject.
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Wow! Thank you for all the detailed photos. Very seldom do we get a close look at an unmolested S1.
Yes, of course, you can sell it as a project. The frame is rusty but it looks to be straight. Another rarity as so many were at least curbed if not crashed. And it is so original! So many are taken apart for work and then abandoned. Parts go missing and nobody is quite sure exactly what went where.
Value? And where to sell? Good questions and hopefully there will be good answers to follow. Myself, I'd talk to Richard Banks of Banks Engineering. Original cars are worth quite a bit more in the UK than over here.
Don't want the hassle of shipping it out of country? I paid $2000US for a stripped heap of an S1b. If I wasn't neck deep into doing it up, I'd cheerfully pay much much more for yours.
Could you please post more detailed photos. Any chance of higher rez photos on a photo hosting site such smugmug? Myself, I'm looking particularly for shots of how the windows were fitted to the doors.
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Yes, sell it as is. As John says, it is a perfectly original and complete S1, they don't come up often (if at all). I agree that prices for S1s are a lot higher in Europe, than they are overseas.
I would suggest mailing this dealer. He has a very nice S1 for sale and is always looking for more to sell.
WANTED : True first series (1966-67), cn #0001 to 0300, with fixed one-piece windows and integrated chassis.
http://www.autodrome.fr/achat.htm#english (http://www.autodrome.fr/achat.htm#english)
http://www.autodrome.fr/lotus_europe_series_1.htm (http://www.autodrome.fr/lotus_europe_series_1.htm)
For such an original car (even in poor condition) you could get somewhere around 10.000 euro I would think. But someone will correct me if I'm wrong.
Serge
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:coolpic:
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Gentlemen, thank you for the response on my 46. I shall contact ml at autodrome.fr and Richard Banks at Banks Engineering.
I had to reduce the original photos from more than 2Mbytes each to the Kbyte range so I can send the ones you want either by e-mail, smugmug or any other site that will transmit large files.
I had to remove the passenger side window in order to get that door open. Windows, as far as I could see, are held in by 4 plastic grooved forms (window surrounds, per the workshop manual?), front, rear, top and bottom with glue and waterproofing substance. The cross section is somewhat S shaped with one side of the S groove aligned to an inside plastic rail of the door's window frame and the other groove fitted to the window. Since mine were all dried out and loose there was no problem in removing them to get the window out. As far as installation I have not seen anything on fitting a complete window. I can take some additional photos at the 2 or 3 Mbyte range. Where should I send them? Forum restriction is 1Mbyte.
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:Welcome:Hello Jake and welcome, nice to see some photographs with the first post. This is the best possible site you could ever wish to join. Happy (Lotus) motoring
all the best
Stuart
:lotus:
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Send the photos to me, I'll put them up on my smugmug site and post the links to this thread. My email is: jbcollier (at) shaw (dot) ca
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Door window detail shots:
https://jbcollier.smugmug.com/Lotus-Europa/i-38pVBcm/A
https://jbcollier.smugmug.com/Lotus-Europa/i-3DGtFwm/A
https://jbcollier.smugmug.com/Lotus-Europa/i-3jNP6jR/A
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Wow! Any other larger file photos you have, please send them my way.
Thank you!!
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FYI
Autodrome.fr had that very nice Yellow S1 for sale for quite a while, asking price was €50.000 at first, but then dropped to €40.000, not sure what the selling price was.
Serge
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I hate to be the party killer here, but I sold a rust free S1 about 6+ months ago about $2500. It was a roller with transmission. Body was pretty straight with some custom fiberglass work that needed to be redone, but not too bad. I'm thinking this car is in the $2000-3000 range. I would bet this one needs a chassis after 40 years outside. I could be wrong though.
My car went to the UK.
Dan
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It's worth more $$$, more like $5,000
i sold one "wrecked" but complete for $4,500 last year. it also went back to UK.
good luck with the sale!
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Well, as the saying goes, it's worth what it sells for. The frame would have to come out I'm sure but it may just be the bottom that needs replacing as long as it hasn't been smacked. That's what I planned on doing to mine until its battered and beaten form saw the light of day. The pluses: it's an early car (bonnet and boot have the corner latch pins), it is surprisingly original (all the other recent S1s had many "custom" features).
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Another favour to ask. Could you take some interior photos of where the sun visor attaches above the door? Is there a cover or just covered with black vinyl? I can't make it out in the interior shots because the headliner is hanging down.
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I took some photos of the drivers side sun visor and sent them to you direct. Saved file size reduction time. Please post if time permits. The visor is held in place by a metal (must be iron 'cause it has some rust) rod with a near 90 degree bend that tucks in behind a black trim piece still solidly attached above the door opening. The visor flips up and down but cannot rotate to block sun from the side. My car had no visor for the passenger.
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Thanks. Here they are:
https://jbcollier.smugmug.com/Lotus-Europa/i-DJFjcbn/A
https://jbcollier.smugmug.com/Lotus-Europa/i-x3VRKpT/A
https://jbcollier.smugmug.com/Lotus-Europa/i-7Sk29Th/A
https://jbcollier.smugmug.com/Lotus-Europa/i-F8cX5gV/A
https://jbcollier.smugmug.com/Lotus-Europa/i-cxMNsDN/A
One last question. How is the trim piece that covers the sun visor rod held in place?
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Whoops, the trim piece you say! Spent a half hour looking at how the visor was mounted. Very interesting. The rod holding the visor has a bend of about 60 degrees not 90 and appears to be tack welded to a piece of metal attached by nut and bolt to the thick part of the roof where it curves around to form the top of the door opening. Tacked in two places just after the bend and 10 to 12 inches away toward the rod end. Photos show what I mean. I had to peal back the trim piece the bottom of which seems to be glued to the top of the door opening.
The best to you all,
Dave
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That's the same basic method used on the TC. I think the way it is hidden is different.
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Thanks again!