1967–75 Lotus Europa

Europas seem to come two ways—completely done or completely done-in. There’s little point in messing with the latter

by Rob Sass

Would look good delivering biscuits

Colin Chapman and Lotus led the giant-slaying revolution of rear- and mid-engine race cars, so it’s not surprising that Lotus was among the first to bring a mid-engine production sports car to market in 1967. The car was christened the Europa in a nod to Britain’s European Common Market ambitions and the fact that the car sported a Renault-sourced engine and transaxle. Although it seems like an odd marriage—a British sports car and a French powertrain—the choice made sense. Chapman simply took the 1,470-cc engine and transaxle from the front-wheel-drive Renault 16 sedan, turned it around longitudinally and voilà: a mid-engine sports car with economical mechanicals that could be easily serviced on the continent, where the first two years’ production was sold. It was a formula that would be followed countless times by other mid-engine car designers.

SUBLIME RIDE AND HANDLING