I got an opportunity to drive down to San Diego yesterday and take a closer look at the Craigslist Europa. Talking with the owner, he had just bought the car about a month ago with the intention of restoring it. The car was previously located in Ohio. Apparently his plans changed when he came upon an E type Jaguar for sale. He bought the Jaguar and now he wants to get rid of the Europa. I didn't ask him directly what he paid for the Europa but I get the feeling that the asking price is his total investment including transport.
The pictures really don't show just how grimey the car is in viewing it in person; some would call it borderline rough. The car was sitting for 20 years with the previous owner, originally yellow before it was almost immediately painted white. The white paint is peeling off in numerous spots. The interior looks relatively good. The dash, seats and top pad look real good. The carpets are a bit worn as would be expected from being original. From the pictures, the engine bay looks pretty untouched from original. It has all of the original emissions bits still attached, missing a few hoses from the Strombergs. The transaxle is the 352 with very loose and sloppy shifting. The entire engine bay is dirty and caked with oil and grease. As was previously noted, the luggage box has been modified, looks to be very nicely done.
Overall the car appears to be a good candidate for restoration but I sure as hell wouldn't pay his asking price for it. I did tell him that he was overpricing his car but he was pretty adamant that he wouldn't go down too much on price. I took a few pictures before the batteries in my camera gave out.
