54/0651 My unexpected project.

[matmacwac]

I've been enjoying the restoration hobby for about 10 years. Over that time, the trend that has emerged is that I like British cars. It may just be a side effect of the knowledge and experience that you get from the previous project and the spare Lucas parts that accumulate. I also seem to have a bad habit of choosing to rescue cars that should likely have been left to die in peace(s). I have managed to save 6 cars at a rate of about 1 per year. 1945 Willys MB Jeep, 1974 TR6, 1962 MGA, 1958 TR3, 1960 Healey 3000, and now this beautiful little 1969 Europa S2.


The morning of December 2nd, 2017, almost a year ago, my friend Jeff called me, emailed me, and texted me all at the same time. He was very excited. He had just found an ad on the internet for a Lotus Europa that was being sold by an executor for the estate of another fallen gear head. Jeff told me that the ad was posted less than 5 minutes ago and that he was the first person to view it. I said "Great. Are you going to buy it?" He said "No! You are". So, reluctantly, I called the seller and ended up buying it sight unseen over the phone for a $1000 in London Ontario.


Wil

[RoddyMac]

Wow!  What a steal of a deal on the earliest known S2 Europa.  Please keep us posted on the progress

[BDA]

You've worked on some interesting cars but I'll bet this Europa was/is the most interesting! She looks great! Speaking for me and the rest of us, we'd love to see more details and more pictures!

[matmacwac]

The afternoon of December 3rd, we set off with a trailer. The Europa was about 1.5 hours away in London, Ontario. When we got there, the deceased owners friend met us to finalize the deal. The car was out back and there was a large quantity of boxes and parts inside the garage all simply marked "Lotus". A spare engine and tranny was siting in the corner. We went out back to see the little car.

My heart sank as I looked at this thing that I had agreed to buy over the phone. I had been mostly disassembled. The windshield was gone, the windows where open and the car had water on the floor. What was left of the seats and interior had been eaten by mice and smelled terrible.
Moving to the back of the car, the boot lid was sitting in place with no hinges. I lifted the lid and saw the Renault 16 for the first time. The head of the engine was askew and the cylinders had the remnants of old duct tape over some of them. Surprisingly, the engine was not completely seized as I gently moved the cam pully.

The seller told me that if I didn't want the car, there was two other people waiting and willing to pay more than the agreed $1000. I asked him if that was for the entire project. He said yes and I figured that if I get it home and find that its beyond saving, I could easily resell it for what I've paid. So we started loading it up on the trailer and gathering up the parts from the garage.
My friend Jeff started moving the spare motor which didn't look exactly like the Renault 16 that was in the car. It seemed to have the same block but a different head. The seller stopped us and said that the spare motor and tranny dont go with the sale. He told us that the car had the motor in it and that he had sold them seperately to one of the buyers on the waiting list. I reminded him that "entire project" meant everything. Car, Parts, Spares, Documentation, etc. If the owner that had passed away had a spare engine and tranny, it is because he felt he needed them.

After a few awkward moments and phone calls to the widow, I paid another $400 for the Gordini Crossflow engine with rebuilt tranny and we were on our way home in the dark.

Wil

[matmacwac]

When we got home with the car, I started to research the Lotus. I believe it was the 6th S2 ever built. There was a few signs that it was a transition car from the previous model. First, no door handle. Just a button but with no relief in the body to put your fingers to pull open the door. When you push the button, your also pushing the door closed. It has power windows and the serial number clearly shows it as an S2.

[BDA]

I'm sure that $400 was well spent!

That was a pretty humble beginning but from what we've seen so far, you've made good use of what you picked up! Please let us know more about your restoration. Was it a straight restoration or did you do some modifications or upgrades? Being an early S2, I presume that the frame was not glassed in as it was with the S1.

[matmacwac]

I started to go through the 4 big binders that came with the project. I appears that the car once lived in Montreal and the previous owner from London bought it, owned it for a while and started to take it apart. He sold it to a friend of his and then bought it back from him a number of years later.

I searched the serial number on Google and came across a number of pictures from 1997. The car looked to be in slightly better shape than what I now have but it was clear that this car has not driven under its own power since before 1997.

Wil

[matmacwac]

Dec 14, 2017.

I pulled the body off. Nice that it is an S2. The frame seemed to be in excellent shape dispite the number of mouse nests inside.
Things were looking up.

[matmacwac]

Jan 2, 2018.
Happy New Year!
Disassembly starts for the few parts that where still on the car when I bought it.

[Sofa King]

Can’t wait to see how far you have come this year!

Before anyone else says it.... that should buff right out!😂

[jbcollier]

$400 for a Renault crossflow?  Very good deal.

Be careful about turning the engine over using the cam.  Cam "noses" have been known to break off.  Especially do not do this with the crossflow engine as spare cams are made of unobtainium.  Best to put it in gear and push the car back and forth to turn the engine.  With the engine out, you can use the flywheel.

Also, if the head is loose, don't turn the engine over unless you are planning on doing a complete overhaul.  The liners are "loose" and sealed at the bottom with paper gaskets.  If a liner lifts while you are turning the engine over, it may tear a paper seal which will later leak.  Tie down the cylinders with bots and large washers before turning the engine over.

Any other shots of the crossflow?

[matmacwac]

jbcollier your right. I moved it very gently just to see if there was any movement. Three pistons moved and one lifted a sleeve. I knew I was going to have to rebuild the Renault 16 or use the cross flow, so I wasn't too concerned. I manually shifted the gear selector into neutral and we were able to manhandle the car from the backyard onto the trailer. We had to duct tape the boot and the bonnet and bungee the doors closed for the trip home.

[matmacwac]

Jan 5, 2018
Frame striped cleaned and painted.

[matmacwac]

Jan 17, 2018
I was amazed at how simple this car was. Colin Chapman sure knew how to save weight. It seemed like more of a go cart than a car.
Naively, I thought that this will be a fast and easy restoration. In that spirit I decided to try my hand at sewing. The mouse eaten seats needed a complete rebuild. The tubs were rotten and most of the foam was missing. I welded new pieces for the seats. There was enough scrap upholstery left for me to make crud templates. My stitching wasn't perfectly straight but I was pleased with my first try at it.

[matmacwac]

Jan 23, 2018
The first big shipment has arrived from Ray at RD Enterprises. New shocks, springs, brakes, bearings and bushings.
Opening a box of new parts and rushing to the shop to see how it all is going to fit is my favorite part of a build.