Hi all:
My name is Gary Pollard and I am the new proud owner of a '74 TC Special, 4224R. I haven't actually seen the car as it is on a truck from California as I write this. It should arrive at my home in Wendell, NC sometime next week. I had some friends with Lotus experience look at it and was told that it is unmolested and runs well. It might need a clutch and definitely needs some work on the shift linkage to the 365 gearbox. I am looking forward to the challenge.
A little about me. By education I am an electrical engineer and by profession, a software engineer. I work for a large French company and am currently working applying artificial intelligence to energy management systems. I have had British cars for most of my life. When I was 17, I took my summer job earnings and bought a new MG Midget (my dad thought that a Pinto would have been safer). When I finished my education, I took a job in aerospace in Southern California and bought a very tired '51 Bentley to drive to work. Other than the perennial problems with rust, the car was completely reliable and I drove is as my only car for over 8 years. A friend's father sold a '62 Land Rover station wagon to me in a number of crates (I had to sweep the garage floor to get all of its parts). I rebuilt everything but the gearbox and front axle. The day I finished it, a friend and I drove it from LA to Raleigh, NC so that I could begin a new job, sort of a 2500 mile test drive. I drove it every day until to lure of air conditioning was too great and I bought a Honda. I have always admired the Europa and have been half-halfheartedly looking for one. I finally found what I wanted in LA, which brings this up to the present.
I am nearing retirement and will have time to do whatever is needed with the Europa. From reading the posts here, it looks as though I will not lack for help when I can't figure something out.
I have 2 questions for which I could use some help from the collected wisdom:
1. What size battery goes in a Europa? The car was sold without one - owner lent one to my friends for the inspection, but I will need one when the car arrives.
2. When placing the car on a 2-post lift, where can the car safely be supported.
Thanks for any help you can give,
Gary Pollard