Lotus Europa S2 1970 - World Of Classic Cars -

Lotus Europa S2 1970

The Lotus Europa is a two door mid-engined GT coupé manufactured from 1966 to 1975. In 2006 Lotus began production of a totally new, Lotus Elise-derived design, a mid-engined GT coupé named Europa S. The original Europa used Lotus founder Colin Chapman's minimalist steel backbone chassis that was first used in the Lotus Elan whilst also relying on fibreglass moulded body for structural strength. The Europa was based on a prototype built to compete for Henry Ford II's contract to build a Le Mans racer in the early 1960's. The four-wheel independent suspension was typical of Chapman's thinking; the rear suspension was a modified Chapman strut as used for his early Formula racing car designs. The forward radius arms were increased in size and rigidity to act as a semi-wishbone. The car's handling prompted automotive writers to describe the Europa as the nearest thing to a Formula car for the road.