My 1972 TC

My 1972 Lotus Europa TC

 

Thanks! I've put a lot into it, and there's still more to go. But as Europas go, it's one of the best in existance. It's SUCH a blast to drive! It will out handle anything, although it's slow by modern standards. And top speed is only in the mid 120's. But, it draws crowds like any exotic and I really love it.

 

No; mine is a Twincam. The S1 and S2 have the Renault engine and a slightly different body style. Mine has a Ford block and Lotus aluminum twin overhead cam head. 1.6L and develops about 130 HP in the tune I have it in. Redline is 6800 RPM but balanced you can go a little over 7. I'll post some pictures when I can.

Although the HP is low, the car only weighs about 1500 pounds and with the backbone frame and mid engine, has a lower c.g. than pretty much any street car ever made. It's 42" tall, and there is no weight in the outer edges at all. In fact we joke it's the only car where the passengers protect the frame in a crash! Very few cars can keep with me in 70 MPH turns although in straight line acceleration a Lexus will smoke me easy. Europs are still sucessfully races in autocross today and frequently beat new Vettes in them.

It's a simple car to work on which is good for me as I didn't grow up working on cars. Junk Europas are easy to find but not worth the money. Top condition cars are rarely for sale, so if one wants one, you go to EBay and spend about $10k for a decent car and drop another $10k to make it perfect, and you have what I think is the best value ever in an exotic.

 

Yes, I read bad! I have the Renault 352 which is the upgraded, rear shift 4 speed transmission. It is good up to about 150 HP which is a big improvement over the earlier 336 side shift the early TC's and S2's had. The TCS cars mostly have the 5 speed version.