[Seax Smith]

Found a large pile of S2 parts (enough for more than 1 car), back bones, and a couple of bodies which should make a whole one.....

What's a fair sum to offer for enough baskets to reassemble 1 S2?

(yes I know there are easier ways...., but I want to build)

Thanks much

 

[lotus69f2]

That is a difficult question without knowing what is in the pile of stuff, and what the buyer would do with it.

If the buyer is planning on building a car with the parts, the buyer will have more money in the car than it is worth when he is done even if the pile of parts are given for free.

If the buyer intends on selling the parts to others for maintenance and restoration, the value of the parts are clearly dependant on the inventory and their market value, and the buyer should be willing to pay more.

This does not directly answer the question, but I hope it helps you formulate a bid.

 

[tesprit]

As Kyle said, not knowing what is there and what out of all that stuff is still usable, and seeing as you are trying to build a car out of a pile of parts, I would start with the lowest amount you feel you can try. A S2 restoration from a pile of parts will probably cost you more in the end than the car will ever be worth, so buy in as cheap as possible. I personally wouldn't go more than $1,500 on a pile of parts, but that is me and I restored a complete running and driving S2 that was purchased for less than $1,500 and still lost my shirt in the end.

 

[Seax Smith]

Thanks much. I work in the auto industry and KNOW this is not the cost effective method - that any car is worth more in pieces and components than it is all assembled. It's about building the car from the ground up for me. Am not looking for a prisitine restoration, just a good clean driver. Have redone several cars already and part of what I am looking at is that some of the dis-assembly work is already done.


What little I can't do myself, I have friends who can, have an actual garage to work in etc....

"The Piles" are more like several S2's which are in various states of dis-assembly, totaling at least 2 complete S2's with lots of S1 and [email protected] spares left over. Owner used to race an S1.

$1,500 was a lot more than I was thinking considering the basket case I saw go off ebay at $700 several months ago.

 

[4380r]

A few years ago I bought a recently restored S2, a truly stunning frame off...every nut and bolt...resto job (unfortunately, can now be viewed on wreckedexotics.com).

http://www.wreckedexotics.com/europa/europa_20040125_001.shtml

I paid $6500 from a dealer, for the car, delivered to my door from Florida.

With it came a binder with receipts for over $25,000 worth of parts and some labor the previous owner/restorer could not do himself (ex. painting the car). Most of the wrenching was done by the PO.

 

[thruthefence]

Buy the whole mess for a price you can live with, form an LLC with the proceeds of the sale as assets of the corporation, build your car, and as you do so, perform "rattle can restoration" on the parts that are surplus to your effort, and sell them on EBAY. You should soon recoup your original purchase price, less the cost of say, 2 or 3 cases of Krylon #1601 Glossy Black, which you can expense out.

 

[DeanG]

I am toying with the idea of trying to find a basket case S1. I think it would make a very good car for the salt flats.

 

[garyeanderson]

I was given a restorable S2 Europa (but not by me) by a total stranger, he was moving to the Florada Keys and was over his past Lotus life. The cost to me was extracting it out the side of from a barn with 4 locked wheels on a Saturday in July, a 90 degree day with the dew point in the low 70's. I think he was passing papers on Monday. Cheap or free Lotus cars happen, It will probably happen more an more as the owners of some of these unrealized dreams reach an age of being "over it"

Gary

ps I also bought (paid money) a Europa S1a once, wont happen again.

Here are a couple of photos of the FREE Europa taken in July 2004
looks like an easy restore...

interior is not bad either...

the back looks good too, how could this Lotus be given away?

Hermes intake and weber, engine locked up solid, time to move it along...

 

[dwkoski]

The poster states that he works in the auto industry but doesn't mention whether he has ever restored a car before. Buying a disassembled car and rebuilding is MUCH more difficult than restoring an assembled car which one must disassemble. The first steps in a proper restoration are :
1. Take photos of EVERYTHING (every last little detail possible
2. Step back, think about what you forgot to photograph, and take MORE photos
3. Start a notebook and measure and log every single bolt AS
ITS REMOVED
4. Put every single sub assembly in a seperate box/envelope/plastic baggie with it's
fasteners attached. Take pictures of subssemblies before further disassembly
5. Anyone who's ever restored a car knows that you ignore the above at your peril. You think that when reassembly time comes, you will remember what goes where and how it looks and fits or you can refer to manuals... Been there and tried that . It ain't gonna happen. Carefully dissassembling the car is crucial to a proper resto and only a professional with experience with a particular model is likely to succeed with a basket case. That's why they sell so cheap (or are free.)...Dave

 

[thruthefence]

In my Europa "basket case" experience, I bought mine from a guy who also had a couple of disassembled Porsche 914's in the same garage, and the "baskets" had become "cross-pollinated". Kinda complicated things when you are trying to sort/organize the components. I wonder what the ratio of 'basket cases-to-driving cars' is, in the Europa universe?

 

[Seax Smith]

thruthefence,
Understand what you are saying about the LLC, but it is against my nature to go into the profiteering game. Is a good idea though and sound enough, just not for me. As far as the "Rattle Can Restoration" - why bother, even if you do prime with self etching primer. Okay, so it is goof for a few years in a gentle environment. Am a really big fan of Wurth Rust Guard. (How can you argue with something which has "other unknown compounds" and "No Known Solvents" printed on the label?)


dwkoski,
Have done several restorations to less than #1 show quality. Last was a 92 VW GTi which is the new daily driver. That started with stripping down to the shell and sandblasting. Is excellent advice you offer though. I have a system I have used with ziploc bags index card and a couple filing cabinets for the bags of bits and pieces, each numbered, so the first things off are the last things back on, 3 ring binder and double tagging each wire. (I learned being over thourough the hard way.) That they are parialy dis-assembled is sort of a mixed blessing.

The world of digital photography makes this a lot easier as does the ability to manipulate html. Build a site about the dis-assembly, then work backward.


Thanks much for that advice. It is appreciated.

 

[Roger]

Being in the throes of a Europa renovation, though mine is a Twin Cam, I agree with most of the above.
I'd say the first thing to establish is that you really do have a complete car, and not 2 sets of components that both lack the same unobtainable bits (though I have discovered that not much is totally unobtainable). If all is there, bid what you can afford. Otherwise, assess what you have to source.
I don't agree 100% with dwkoski. I never have all the car in bits at once! For example, with the Europa, I removed the body, then the front suspension and steering. Then I overhauled that, rebushed wishbones, new bearings in hubs, etc, clean and paint and put in storage, ready for reassembly.
Then take some more off, overhaul, put aside, etc. until you get to bare chassis. Once you've done the chassis, assemble components again.
My way, you intersperse negative (disassembly) with positive (reassembly) and you don't have nearly as much to remember when you come to put it all back together again!

By the way, I'm now back to a rolling chassis with engine and transmission in place and just a few details before I put the body back on - starting end November last year. I am, though, retired so can spend a fair amount of time on the job.
Chacun a son gout!

 

[thruthefence]

Regarding the "Krylon"; it wasn't really meant to be a business plan, but a comment on some of the stuff that shows up on ebay from time to time. Good luck on your project!

 

[Seax Smith]

Roger,

I understand what you are saying... it's pretty much the same approach I use - too many photos, take things off in "chunks", loosely re assemble, label, and loosely reattach to the adjoining bits as possible, strip to the core, refinish and then start with the next assembly "chunk".

Good comment about the duplicate missing fragments. Will definitely double check that.

The skills, time, experience, etc I have. No experience with Loti though, and trying to get a feel for prices / availability of things.

The big question is how much do I really want to spend on a rare car which I will be worrying about when ever a park it somewhere - is why I stopped playing with making brit cars all shiny and new again and went into Mark II VW's as fun "daily-capable- drivers".

Have learned some things with this, but still have no idea what is a reasonable offer. Don't want to offend / insult the owner since he could be a valuable resource since he used to race his own S1, and I don't want to over pay him either.

 

[njboy]

Sad story

You guys want to hear a really sad story? I purchased a '72 S2 basket case for $2000 back in 1994 and the car still sits in storage completely dissambled for 15 years. That is sad and I should be beaten with a renault-gordini dip stick....that is all...