Lotus Europa Community
Lotus Europa Forums => Garage => Topic started by: Nockenwelle on Tuesday,May 08, 2018, 12:19:13 PM
-
Hello, my name is Klaus and I'm located near Cologne in Germany. I'm into Lotus since the early 90ties.
I started with a Europa S1A which I bought thinking it was an S2 as it had the later doors. I restored it including fitting a new chassis. Restoring and driving the S1 was really a special experience. Back then without internet etc. there was little to no knowledge about this car around. Although I tried really hard I never managed to let it run fully straight on high speeds, brake sufficiently without locking the fronts too early or stay cool in traffic.
But I'm still addicted to its radical concept and its elegant and clean lines. And I like the fact that its styling is not to everybody's taste.
Later I had to sell the car because we were moving house. After some Lotus-less years I re-joined the Lotus crowd starting with a Rover powered Elise S2 111S. Being not a big fan of open top motoring a Lotus Exige S1 project joined the Elise. This is quite a different car with its 180 bhp tuned VHPD Rover engine in a 780kg car. You won't stay unnoticed when driving the car with the 'mini Group C racer' look and the lumpy exhaust note caused by the wild cams. The road holding is even by Lotus standards exceptional.
But I still kept looking for an Europa S1 all the time and nearly bought a nice yellow S1 in France two years ago. But another buyer was quicker than me.
Now two month ago I stumbled across an unrestored true S1 offered for sale in UK which has been imported from the US. After a minor transport damage the original buyer rescinded from the order. So a deal was arranged with the very friendly seller and I brought the car to Germany on a trailer.
I'm very happy with the condition of the car as it is fully original with matching chassis (460230), body (0230) and engine numbers. All the hard to find S1 parts are still present except for the hood fasteners. And most importantly: no one ever tried to restore/improve the car. The chassis looks like it might stay in the car. The engine is running. It has been repainted once from the original Cirrus White to some sort of red (Carnival Red?). The condition of the car looks better in the pictures than it is. But it's the ideal starting point for some careful restoration work while trying to preserve as much as possible of the original substance.
So I'm finally back in Europa S1 ownership :)
Regards, Klaus
My old S1A during restoration
(http://up.picr.de/32603917vy.jpg)
and as seen out of the back of a friend's S2 heading to Spa back in the nineties.
(http://up.picr.de/32603918cz.jpg)
My Exige S1
(http://up.picr.de/32603919wh.jpg)
An finally the Europa S1
(https://up.picr.de/32543297fn.jpg)
(https://up.picr.de/32543295cj.jpg)
(https://up.picr.de/32543298sx.jpg)
(https://up.picr.de/32543301vy.jpg)
-
:Welcome: Klaus!! And welcome back to the fold!
Thanks for the pictures! We LOVE pictures! ;D Your S1 looks really nice, especially for an unrestored car! There are a few S1 owners here, Serge is documenting his restoration in youtube videos. His thread might be useful: http://www.lotuseuropa.org/LotusForum/index.php?topic=211.0
Keep us up to date (and post more pictures)!
-
Hi Klaus, and another :Welcome:
That looks a great project, I'm guessing from the general photos the car is a driver already, or if not it must be very close to being so.
It's great to have another S1 owner on the forum, although I'm a TC owner I've always considered the looks of the early S1's as the purest of the breed. Like BDA I'm looking forward to more photos as you make progress with the car.
Brian
-
:lotus: Welcome Klaus
-
:Welcome: Klaus! Great to have you here. We all like following people projects and restorations.
-
:Welcome:
From the other side of the pond.
Answers are only a question away here.
Dakazman
-
:Welcome: Klaus!
Beautiful car to restore! There are some very knowledgeable experts on this site (though I am not one of them). We are looking forward to following your progress. :beerchug:
Tom
-
:Welcome:
And a great looking S1 (and exige)!!
-
Hi Klaus,
:Welcome:
it’s so good to see another S1!
(especially in original, unrestored condition)
Mark
-
:Welcome: and greetings from Aachen!
Uwe
-
Thanks for the warm welcome :beerchug:
Although the car might be considered as a driver I didn't drive it. It was last road registered in 1992 and since then has been stored in a hangar in New Mexico. As said before the car looks better in the pictures than it actually is. So suspension, brakes, cooling, electrics, etc. all needs to be revised.
There was a thread on this forum about this car as it was for sale the first time on Ebay UK:
http://www.lotuseuropa.org/LotusForum/index.php?topic=2377.msg22360#msg22360
I found it when it was advertised on ClassicCars UK for an even more competitive price :)
The seller, Ian Colligan from Bespoke Motor in Boston, partly focussed on finding Europa S1s.
It was a real pleasure to deal with him and if you are looking for an Europa S1 you should consider to contact him.
I love those early S1 doors. They are so clean and light. Surprisingly the LH windows on my car is made of glass. The RH side is missing. Any other Europa S1 around with fixed glass door windows?
@Uwe: Greetings from Kerpen, we are not far away from each other.
Klaus
Some more pictures as you were asking for them:
(http://up.picr.de/32635878aw.jpg)
(http://up.picr.de/32635873sm.jpg)
(http://up.picr.de/32635877ds.jpg)
(http://up.picr.de/32635874go.jpg)
(http://up.picr.de/32635875lj.jpg)
(http://up.picr.de/32635876rm.jpg)
-
Normally, I would think that a new frame would be required because it would surely be very rusty by now, but if it spent most of its life in New Mexico, you may have dodged that bullet. I am a bit surprised that the seats are in such good shape as I would have expected the sun and heat to really play a number on them. It seems as though this car has really been babied!
-
Klaus your cars are stunning! I have an S1A that I am excited to restore one of these days. Your first picture is the spitting image of how mine is. Glad to have you here!
-
Hi Chuck,
yes, that picture looks familiar to me. A lot of work but it can be done. Which chassis number has yours?
My car has been stored since the early 80ties in New Mexico inside. Before that it must have lived in California. That may explain the good condition.
Klaus
-
Mine is chassis no. 0392 so it is a fairly early S1A. I believe I have all the parts to make her whole again except the frame which is in a bad state. I was told that my car spent most of its life in San Antonio which is also a very good place to keep a car. It spun a rod bearing in 1971 and sat ever since. In the 90's it was bartered for a late rent payment and moved to a place near Ft Worth. That's when the trouble started... It was wrapped up, but stored outside. That is probably when the frame got wet and rusted. The caretaker decided to remove it with an angle grinder some time in the early 2000's. I found it in 2014 with big plans for it, but unfortunately lives covered outside to this day...
-
An early S2 frame is easily modified to S1 specs. Later S2 frames only marginally more difficult. They all rotted because water naturally collects between the sub-frame and the body's under tray only present on S1s. The rear tires fling the water forward and it seeps in. Time does the rest. Once repaired, regular applications of a light, non-hardening rust treatment should keep things in good shape.
-
That's a great looking starting point for a restoration on a car that looks close to original equipment. Lovely to see your photos and to know that work will be started. The current colour looks like Carnival Red to me too, my favourite choice for the Europa ;D
-
Although my Europa S1 project is currently on hold I pick up missing parts from time to time when I stumble across them. The right wing mirror went missing a long time ago. On the left side a Talbot mirror is mounted.
(https://up.picr.de/39142610il.jpg)
During the fifties and sixties most of the sports cars were delivered by the factories without external mirrors. It was up to the customer or dealer to mount an aftermarket mirror. One well known manufacturer of such mirrors was Talbot in Berlin. A few cars were even equipped with Talbot mirrors from new such as Mercedes 300 SL or some Porsches.
About a year ago one such mirror popped up on Ebay which I bought. I was very disappointed when I discovered that it was bigger than the exiting one on my car.
(https://up.picr.de/39142614bf.jpg)
The seller agreed to return the mirror. It turned out that he is a Talbot mirror collector and that the smaller version of the Talbot 300 (called 'Junior') is very rare. He promised to to try to find one for me.
Now some weeks ago he contacted me again that he had found one including a set of blue tinted glasses. I did not hesitate to buy the mirror as I've only found other offers on the net for ridiculous money. On the picture he sent me I noticd a difference in the manufacturer stamping mark. Mine showed 'TALBOT & Co - BERLIN -' but the new one read 'talbot + Co - W-Berlin -'
(https://up.picr.de/39142615dc.jpg)
(https://up.picr.de/39142616mc.jpg)
The seller assured that the mirrors are absolutely identical except that the mirror on my car was manufactured before the Berlin wall was put up. The one he was offering was built after it as indicated by the 'W(est)'-prefixed Berlin. So my car had been equipped with pre-1962 mirrors when it was sold new by B.M.C.D. in California in 1967.
To mount the mirror I just has to reopen the lazily plastered holes. I'm quite happy with the result.
Klaus
(https://up.picr.de/39142619lb.jpg)
(https://up.picr.de/39142618ti.jpg)
-
That's a great story, Klaus.
Perhaps the 'W(est)' mirror should go on the left? :))
-
Nice mirrors and nice story! They look great on the car! :beerchug:
-
Perhaps the 'W(est)' mirror should go on the left? :))
I will think about that ;D ;D