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70 S2 0044Q

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Sandyman:
Hello fellow Europa owners and fans. I have been on this site for about 6 months and thought you should see what I have and what I am doing. Some 40 odd (very odd) years ago I saw a Europa In the suburbs of Toronto. It was love at first site! Last September the stars aligned and I found my baby, a 1970 S2 7001.020044Q originally all Carnival red . A 6 hr. round trip drive (North Bay ON) with a rented trailer and she was home. It appears I am the 3rd. owner. Lotus records show the car being shipped to Hamilton ON mid 1970. It was bought and registered as a 1971. My Europa has not run since 1978, when it was put into storage. It appears to have had some off road adventures. Bad fibreglass repair and hole on passenger side under door, bent lower front suspension from tow chain and a replaced right side rear radius arm. 40 years of sitting has not been kind. Rust, rust and more rust. Body is in fair shape. More later on the restoration

Sandyman:
Some how the last 2 pictures were flipped. Please stand on your heads to view.

EuropaTC:

--- Quote from: Sandyman on Saturday,May 04, 2019, 06:46:29 PM ---Some how the last 2 pictures were flipped. Please stand on your heads to view.
--- End quote ---

 :)

That's the sort of thing I do as well......

Now there's some serious welding needed on that crossmember, I can see you're going to be busy. It would probably be quicker to replace the whole chassis, I suppose it comes down to cost and whether you like a project or not.   I welded up my old chassis mostly because I had time and it was obviously cheaper to buy steel and welding wire. Although mine wasn't as extensive as yours, most of my rust was around the engine mounts where I had some spectacular holes (how did the engine stay in place ?)  and at the rear fork where the central spine meets the rear  "V" sections.

Have you started the job yet or are you still making lists ?    I can see your summer is accounted for......    ;)

Brian

Sandyman:
Thanks for the input Brian. Upon crawling under the car and seeing the rust issues I did indeed have some thinking to do. First I decided to take the body off and get a better idea of what I was dealing with. Not having any welding ability or equipment, finding a local welding shop was an option to repair the chassis. All the Suspension and brakes were broken/rusted beyond what I considered savable with my limited abilities. Research lead me to Spyder Chassis. One is now on order. Hoping it will arrive in June 2019.  In an attempt to make the Europa as safe and stout as possible I am upgrading to their front and rear suspension, 4 wheel disks and a duel reservoir master cylinder.

Certified Lotus:
Smart move on replacing the chassis and suspension. You will never regret making that decision. Now you can focus on the engine, cooling system, transaxle and braking system.

The fiberglass work is an art form. Lots to learn but many have been very successful in their home shops. (I went the body shop route because I didn’t want all the dust all over my garage and I don’t have a paint booth).

Nothing better than doing a full restoration in your own garage. You learn an awful lot about your car, friends will be amazed at your new hobby and there is a personal enjoyment of completing each and ever step of your rebuild. After 4 Lotus restorations I still smile at the end of the day at my small incremental accomplishments.

Like you Sandyman, I saw my first Europa 40 odd years ago and was awestruck. I wanted one in the worst way. Amazed it took 40 years to finally acquire one and two years of restoration work. Hope to be on the road this summer!

Keep us updated on a regular basis (with photos). We all like looking over the shoulder of a fellow Europa enthusiast to help along the way. It’s been an invaluable resource for me, all the guys on this website.

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