Hello, All,
I recently joined the group because I'm in the market for a good,
roadable Europa and am seeking some advice. Allow me to provide a
little background first.
I caught the bug for English sports cars from my older brother in
law, who used to drive me around in the '67 Spitfire that he bought
after returning from Vietnam. I saw my first Lotus at an autocross
he took me to. The American muscle cars embarrassed themselves, the
911s did pretty well, and a Bradley GT (!) did even better. None of
them came close to a car I'd never seen before: a Lotus Europa.
Fast forward a few decades and I was driving a (sort of) Lotus of my
own: a Caterham Seven. I was the second owner of a car that had
been built for the track, but only drove it on the road. The ex and
I took more than a few long road trips in that car. I lost the car
in a springtime flood in central Texas while finalizing a divorce.
(No, I'm not kidding -- it's a very long, weird story.)
Now, five years later, I live in the Columbia River Gorge, about 60
miles east of Portland, Oregon. Close to paying off the loan on a
reliable yet dumpy Subaru hatchback (de rigueur here in the winter),
I thought I might like to have a Lotus in my life again, but this
time one with doors -- say, an Elan. I was a little taken aback by
the going rates for these cars -- 30-40K for a really good runner.
At the same time, I was surprised to find that Europas seem to go
for considerably less, and became intrigued. I'm looking for a car
for short road trips on long summer weekends, basically, and a
Europa arguably fits that bill better than an Elan, especially if it
has a 5 speed transaxle.
Which leads to the inquiry: There's a '73 Twink with a 5 speed for
sale at this classic car "boutique" in southern California. It's a
bit pricey but looks like it might be in very good shape. With the
coronavirus raging, I'm not keen on traveling 1000 miles to check it
out, though. I'd like to find someone -- a mechanic or professional
appraiser -- somewhere near Orange County whom I can hire to do an
appraisal *and* thorough mechanical survey. Any helpful suggestions
would be appreciated!
-James Miller
