1974 Lotus Europa Twin Cam

1974 Lotus Other Description

This car is excellent driver quality and tends to impress people who see it. Mechanically it's better than very good.

The engine was built to order by Marcovicci-Wenz on Long Island - if you go to the Glen or Lime Rock you'll have seen them running their own cars and you can google for their reputation. They're the go-to guys for vintage racing Lotus engines in the eastern half of the USA. They built a very streetable car that will putt around town as well as pull hard to redline. It needs to run on 93 octane pump gas. I have the engine dyno sheet which shows 141 ft/lbs of torque @5100 and 159 HP @6600.

• Weber 40DCOE carbs, Aeroquip hoses
• mild Iskie cams (I have the specs if you want)
• new tall stroker block, new rods, new pistons, new crank, head rebuilt
• 10.5:1 compression ratio
• heavily baffled sump
• new high volume oil pump
• head and manifolds ported, polished and matched
• Custom Ceramic coated Header
• new Bosch electronic distributor
• new MSD-6AL electronic ignition
• new MSD coil
• water pump with Gilmer drive

Interior: Headliner is fresh. Carpet worn but clean. Dash fronta little wrinkly - that very thin veneer does that after it gets hot enough long enough - but not split or scratched. Seats, dash top, door panels, sunroof bottomwere custom reupholstered in dark brown leather-look vinyl and there are some small tears which have been mended in a few places. Seat inserts worn. Speaker covers intact but tacky. General impression is good at a glance but a little used when you look hard at details.

The parking brake is disconnected because it causes drag on the left rear and my Lotus mechanic felt that the problem wasn't worth chasing too far because it's a parking brake, not a hand brake, and he considers Europa and Elan parking brakes to be pretty worthless even when working right which apparently is rarely. Battery has been relocated to front and brake booster removed for weight distribution.

It's a blast to drive. I can't describe how capable it is. It handles like you won't believe and it's totally predictable. I can't take credit; the previous owner made all the handling modifications and improvements. Slight understeer to near the limit when it goes more neutral, and it communicates well. This is with the rear sway bar disconnected; connect it for autocrossing. About how quick the car is, the torque curve and 159hp in a car that weighs around1500 pounds speak to that. The headers and intake manifold were handmade in the 1980s by Claudius, a Lotus specialist in California. My engine builders insisted on using both and took measurements for their own use. The muffler is a Magnaflow and amazing, although little loud.