Europa review

[Chuck Nukem]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PMBerb7l3pM

JayEmm finally did a Europa review and it is quite a good one.

[BDA]

Great video, Chuck! It’s nice to see someone really enjoy our cars as much as we do.

[4129R]

One thing I notice straight away about the engine of that car is it has a metal cover over the centre of the cylinder head above the spark plugs.

I have never seen that on a TC engine before.

One problem I get is rainwater getting into the engine compartment and it sits in the area around the plugs for 1 & 2 cylinders. 3 & 4 have a drain hole at the rear, but 1 & 2 cannot drain.

Has anyone else had this ponding problem in 1 & 2?

How did you solve it?

I had 1 head where 1 spark plug had rusted so badly into the head that the plug sheared in half leaving the bottom thread stuck in the hole.

Other points, no ashtray, centre map box from very late cars, locking petrol filler caps. At £33k, I think he is spot on for a TCS in very good condition in the UK.

[jbcollier]

The metal cover is to reduce radio interference.  It's not a rain shield.  I have seen them on a few TC engines.  Two things you can do to keep water out of the spark plug wells would be to fit a short lip along the leading of the engine compartment to direct water to the sides, and do the same with the engine grills.

Mine is a crossflow powered S1 and I did this:

https://jbcollier.smugmug.com/Lotus-Europa/i-SnWhKB9/A

Keeps the water from spilling onto the head/valve cover.  My engine grills are not over the head/valve cover so I didn't fit anything there.

[S2Zetec54]

I enjoyed that…..nice to see someone enjoying our cars

[Richard48Y]

"The Oddest Looking Lotus", um no, that would pretty much all that came after.
I dare not say aloud my feelings on the most recent examples.

[4129R]

Keeps the water from spilling onto the head/valve cover.  My engine grills are not over the head/valve cover so I didn't fit anything there.

Rainwater seems to get in through the two grills and finds its way onto the well with 1 & 2 plugs.

I know about rainwater draining off both front and rear covers when opening, Lotus made a small ally plate at the front to stop water getting on to the rad fan electrics and fitted it to later models.

I put a vinyl cover over the engine when the car is not in use, and put a small piece of vinyl on the driver seat to remind me to remove it before starting the engine. 

[jbcollier]

If you think it's the grills, fit an under tray that directs water to the sides.  Porsche 914s have one under their engine vent.

[4129R]

If you think it's the grills, fit an under tray that directs water to the sides.  Porsche 914s have one under their engine vent.

Thanks for that idea.

Easily done as the side to side brace for the gas struts that holds the cover open, is directly below the side grills.

[BDA]

The TC had a rubber “engine compartment seal” that went on the forward lip of the engine compartment under the rear window - basically their version of JB’s aluminum angle. I didn’t appreciate its purpose and because I thought it contributed to my engine cover not fitting as flat as it should, I took it out.

A few weeks I took my car to a Hagerty car show at a vintage race near by. Before going, I washed and waxed my car, of course. She ran well on the hour and a half drive to the track but when it was time for us to cue up for our parade laps on the track, she started to run really rough. It would occasionally clear up but on the drive home it never did.

When I got home, I pulled the plugs to see if they gave me a clue about what was wrong. Everything looked good till I pulled the plug wire for #1 (the BDA has its plugs in a well and there is a rubber cover on the wire) and the connector was obviously in about three quarters of an inch of water. There was my problem!

Apparently, water came in the front of the engine cover and ran into the well of the #1 spark plug. I now have a heightened appreciation for JB’s angle and that seal!