+From: spitfire?davevh@microsoft.com
+From: Cory Carpenter<coryc@sequent.com>
+Subject: RE: Value of a Europa
I'm new to this mailing, but being a Lotus nut (just plain Nut to my
wife) I have to make a few comments...
First, I'm just about finished with a complete restoration of a 72
Elan (just have to replace the coil, get it smogged, and registered in
CA). I have spend about 4 years (three of those in Wyoming where
it's had to work on cars when the garage is about 10 degrees for 9
months a year) and according to my wife, over $7500.00 on parts, etc.
(yes I tried to "Do It Right").
+>Looking at it from a buyer's point of view,the poor cosmetics are
+>going to be really expensive to fix.
Probably... see below...
+> A new windshield will run about $800 plus labor.
+Now come on! I also need a new windscreen, and I done some checking
+around: I can get a new one for about $300 from several different
+sources, or could have about a year ago (haven't checked lately).
I had to get a new windscreen for the Elan about 10 years ago. At that
time, I could get a new one for about $150.00 from the local glass shops.
However, ALL the windscreens available in the U.S. were tinted, and I
wanted an original untinted one (tinted windscreens on a convertible just
seemed wrong). Turned out that I had to order a "real" windscreen from
England, wait about 6 months, and pay close to $500.00 for it (remember,
that was about 10 years ago, prices have gone up...).
+>It needs new paint, and before you paint you'll want to sand down and
+>fix the stress cracks in the body, a multi-grand job if you pay for
+>someone else's labor and a real pain in the ass if you do it yourself
+>(I hate fiberglass work).
+Well, granted: If you pay someone else to do what you can do
+yourself, you're bound to get reamed. (I agree about the glassfibre
+-- just thinking about it makes me itch... .)
I agree... A lot easier on the skin to pay someone else to do the body
work...
I had the bodywork (minor stress cracks) and the paint done by a
friend who was starting up a body shop. I removed all the trim,
windscreen, door handles, lights, etc. so that he just had a bare body
shell to do work on (I even removed the doors so that the jams could
get painted right). It still cost me $2,500.00 for the paint job (nice
red Imron).
+> And that the pistons were reused in a balance job isn't a
+>vote of confidence in the rebuild; between that and sitting, I'd
+>budget a couple of grand for a complete teardown in the
+>not-too-distant future. 72 is before the Big Valve head became
+>available, if memory serves, and it's a 4 speed, so it's not a
+>sought-after engine/tranny combination either.
Note that a Lotus engine was VERY high performance for it's time, and
as such, it may not last as long as you think it should. 20,000 to
30,000 miles between valve jobs, 40,000 to 50,000 miles between major
engine rebuilds may be the norm (Your mileage may vary depending on
how you treat the car). My Elan had 50,000 miles, 1 valve job, 1 major
engine rebuild, and its third paint job on it when I got the car (I'm
owner number 4, and I got it when it was 4 years old). Needless to say
the prior owners were jerks and abused the car. :-(
+This I'm not too clear on: I'd assume that dual carbs implies a
+twin-cam, which could boost the value into the $8K range, from what
+I've seen. The rest of Dave's evaluation I can buy into, with the
+priviso that DIY is always an order of magnitude cheaper than having
+a shop rebuild it.
First, 72 is the year the Lotus Twin Cam started using the Big Valve
Head, all Europas with Twin Cams are Big Valve heads :-), pre-72 cars
had Reaunalt engines, but you are correct about the 4-speeds being
less desirable than 5-speeds. Also, all Twin Cam engines were dual
carbs, early ones had two Webers, but the later ones (probably about
69, but definitely 72 on) had dual Strombergs for emission reasons,
and no, you can't just change the carbs, the "manifolds" are actually
runners cast into the heads, and are different... :-(
Other than that, regular valve heads can be converted to Big Valve
heads by a machine shop that knows what they are doing (see below).
The exhaust valves are only about 0.1 inch bigger in diameter or some
relatively small change -- but a big difference in power (although
you would probably need different cams), but remember, ALL Europas
came with Big Valve heads. As a side point, I have seen ads for used
Lotus heads for $500 to $1000, so even as a parts car, the Europa
might be worth looking into (I'd be interested, but my wife would kill
me).
Second, I spent about $2,500 rebuilding the engine and transmission.
About $300 to a local machine shop to bore the cylinders, grind the
crank, and balance the engine (using NEW pistons that I provided),
etc. Cost me about $500 to have the head done (new valve guides, new
exhaust valves, etc.) at Dave Bean Engineering (a Lotus specialist in
CA). Make sure that whom ever does the head, knows what they are
doing... The angles of the valve seats are critical, as are the
guides, valve stem height above the head (since the cams directly
actuate the valves - no rockers), etc. The local machine shop can
really do a number on the head if they treat it like a regular
American car head.
The rest was spent on "parts" (bearing, gears, timing chains, etc.).
Most all of the parts came from Dave Bean, and they have a great
catalog with lots of hints... Incidentally, although they are Lotus
specialists, they sell lots of special "racing" parts that are hard to
find (fittings, braided brake lines, etc.). Call them if you need
something "different", (209) 754-5802.
Oh, one more thing, I replaced all the Nylock nuts (usually the bolts
too) on the car whenever I reinstalled a component (almost everything
on the car). If you buy the Nylock nuts one at a time, they cost a
fortune, however, I found an aircraft supply company, that sells
Nylock nuts, bolts, spherical joints, etc. at reasonable prices. They
also seem to understand that aircraft hardware are often used on cars
and racers, and don't seem to mind talking to "car people". They will
even send a catalog and price list. I spent about $80 with them for
nuts and bolts (I even rebuilt the complete suspension), and still
have a LOT of Nylock nuts left. I don't have the name or number of the
company with me right now, but if anyone needs it, I can try to find
it.
This was kind of long winded, but like I said in the beginning, I AM a
Lotus nut...
Tim
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