Lotus Europa barn find restoration

I have this list of attainable vintage sports cars that I like to think I’ll be able to buy as mid-life crisis project, and the Lotus Europa is firmly planted on that list. Every time I see an article or post about these cars, I can’t help but read every word and obsess over every picture. But the owner of this particular Lotus, Serge, is no where near middle age. In fact he’s still a dental student, yet he’s attacking this restoration from the ground up all on his own. His Europa is a special one, being the oldest chassis in existence (Chassis number 2 – #460002) that he’s slowly restoring back to as-new condition. Serge not only documents the whole process on his blog, but also starts a YouTube channel with periodic videos of the work he does. These videos are some of the most informative that I’ve ever seen, he really goes into full detail about what he’s doing, how he’s doing it, and why he’s doing it.

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Vintage Build Threads

One thing that has remained consistent since cars first came into production is that guys simply can’t keep themselves from cutting them up and showing off their work. Before blogs and forums, there was black & white photos and car magazines. Rikster from Rik Hoving Kustoms posted up an amazing thread on The H.A.M.B. full of scans detailing the work done by Valley Customs in the late 40’s to early 60’s. Luckily for us, not only did he post pictures of finished cars, but also some rare in-the-build shots. If anyone tells you that modifying cars is just a phase or a fad, show them these pictures.

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