'74 TCS FS on BAT

[FourLoti]

Just listed. Says one prior owner from Ohio.  @Sveris, is this the Dayton car you were helping sell last year?

https://bringatrailer.com/listing/1974-lotus-europa-twin-cam-special-4/

Ron

[Dreamer]

I find it perplexing when a seller puts a vehicle up for sale with known issues and states, it’s an easy fix. If it’s so easy why not fix it before putting the ad up?
In this case the speedometer cable being broke seems like a simple fix. The sellers use a GPS based speedometer phone app which they think is fine. I however do not. The missing plate is more of a, why is it missing? For me that’s a must have part. It keeps debris away from the steering and master brake cylinder. But more importantly it’s part of (even if just a small bit) the front end integrity
My experience has been that these types of problems usually are more involved than stated. So I tend to error on the side of caution.

[berni29]

Hi

This does look like quite a nice car and it certainly seems to go well from the sales video. It will be interesting to see what price it makes. I do not know much about these things but if a TCS complete but requiring complete restoration id $5k then this must be $15k minimum yes? Is my thinking correct?

All the best

Berni

[Dreamer]

If you try to apply logic to a BaT auctions you’ll drive yourself nuts. There is no rhyme or reason to some auctions. The only criteria is price. How much does the seller believe it is worth versus, how much is that one person willing to pay. History, condition, what has been done or needs to be done rarely figures into the equation. Looking back through past two years I see some great cars not meet what I have learned was a reasonable reserve while other lesser cars fetched stupid prices. In some cases the buyer realizes how much over he has gone and backs out. In others it is the seller that changes his mind. Case in point was 1974 TSC just sold on Oct. 22. https://bringatrailer.com/listing/1974-lotus-europa-twin-cam-special-2-2/
The seller had been trying to unload this car for a long time at a very high $29K. I suspect his reserve was near that the first time around. It didn’t meet reserve at first but then was listed as sold for $20K back in Aug. https://bringatrailer.com/listing/1974-lotus-europa-twin-cam-special-2/
Then just few days later it’s back up on Craig’s List for $29,900. As you will see if you go through the comments on both auctions there is clearly a problem with this car as the seller only put about 11 miles on it in all the time he owned it. The original owner even chimed in about the time he ran it hard with zero oil pressure. In the end it brought $17K which is more than I would have paid for it.
I won’t be surprised if this car clears $20K because some people are no thinking with their heads. People who do not know the problems and costs to repair Europa’s should not bid on them.

[berni29]

Hi

What you say makes sense. I do think this particular car is quite unusual in that it is in original unmolested state but is running and useable. For those to whom money is not such an issue, but time is, I think it might be a very attractive proposition indeed.

I do hope it sells well. I think it deserves to.

What would you say the value of the exact same car is but in the more usual total "barn find" state is? I know none of this conjecture actually matters, but I am curious.

All the best

Berni

[Vegantune]

Hammer fell at $26,750 after multiple last minute bids and two minute clock resets.

[BDA]

That's a pretty nice price! I think the buyer and seller did well.