2006 Lotus Europa S

*** UPDATE: This car has now been sold for £13,780 all inclusive ***

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With a production run from 2006 to 2010, and only 456 cars produced (including 48 later SE models), the Lotus Europa S is a very rare car. Introduced as a GT car in the Lotus lineup, it was considered a more comfortable brother to the Elise and Exige.

Comfort was delivered in the form of; air conditioning, entertainment system with satellite navigation, carpets, leather interior. These may well sound like banal items, but for a Lotus these are real creature comforts which stand this car apart from the range of the time.

But don’t be fooled by these additions though, the car is still very much a Lotus; fibre-glass body, aluminium chassis, a 2.0L turbo charged mid-engined set-up, rear wheel drive. All this means a 995kg dry-weight, and a 0-60 MPH time of 5.5 seconds. Pretty nippy you could say.
 

This rare Lotus Europa S belongs to Mark and he has owned it for many years. He originally bought this car in Hong Kong, where he used it regularly, and more recently exported the car to the UK. Mark loves the thrill of buying the best examples he can, once added to his collection he then enjoys driving them when he’s in the country. Mark really does only buy the best-of-the-best examples, and we are very fortunate to be handling the sale of his collection.

So why is Mark now selling his collection? Well, Mark is based overseas and these days he doesn’t get the opportunity to drive his collection as much as he’d like, as more recently his business opportunities are keeping him abroad, so the time has come to pass the cars to new custodians.

Rob looks after the collection for Mark and no expense has been spared in the maintenance of the vehicles. Rob makes sure that whatever the cars need is actioned straight away using specialist garages and original parts. Even the finest indoor covers have been purposely made for each individual car at a cost of over £300 each, and are included in the sale. Every car is securely stored in a new and dry professional unit, as can be seen in our media footage.

Finished in grey, this fibre-glass bodied car is a real head turner even today. Ultimately it looks like a lotus, but at the same time it has it’s own distinct styling compared to the Elise and Exige models that were produced in the same era.

Wheels & Tyres
The car sits on 17inch original alloys all round, and is wearing a set of Bridgestone Potenza wheels. This is a car that Mark used in Hong Kong, and so this is shown with various scuffs and nicks across the wheels, take a look at the exterior video where we have detailed these.

Bodywork
Being a fibre-glass bodied car, there’s no rust and rot to worry about on this. We went over the car with the camera catching reflections at a variety of angles, and from our inspection the bodywork looks great. The panels all line up correctly and shut-lines look good too. Take a look at the detailed video.

Paint
No rust to worry about, and there were no visible signs from our inspection of any blistering in the paint. Colour looks consistent across the panels.

Glass and Trim
The glass across the car is good with the exception of a small chip on the drivers side lower part of the windscreen, which is not impacting field of vision. The being lightweight does not feature much exterior trim at all, and all looks to be good. The door seals as seen in the interior review video need reapplying, Rob should be remedying this.

The Europa S was built to be a GT car compared to the rest of the Lotus range, and so the interior featured things such as a sound system in a Lotus for the first time!

Seats and Carpets
The car has very slim bucket seats finished in tan and black leather, which are in good condition. Along with the door cards they could do with a clean but are not worn or damaged in anyway.

Dashboard
The dashboard is in good condition, finished in a mix of plastic and wrapped in places, there are no signs of overt wear. The dials look fresh and all work correctly.

Steering Wheel / Gear Stick
A go-kart like Lotus steering wheel guides the car, and both the steering wheel and the gearstick show signs of use in line with the cars age.

Rob took us out in the car around some local roads to test drive the car. You’ll see the usual cold start videos too, and our commentary as passengers below.

Engine and Gearbox
The car started from cold without any issues, and on the test drives performed without fault. Rob took the car through all the 6 gears on an open section of road without and issues too, you can review this in the video.

Suspension and Brakes
This cars set up is more for GT compared to the other Lotus cars in the collection, and so a much more comfortable ride. On the drive the car felt very settled on the road, and Rob describes it as being stuck to the road. Brake operation also was observed to be normal and no squeaking etc.

The Drive
No issues on the drive, a very enjoyable experience as a passenger with an experienced driver such as Rob at the wheel.

Electrics and Other
All working as expected.

This car was owned by Mark in Hong Kong, and comes with very little paperwork. There are some service stamps included in the Lotus service book which have been documented.

The car is showing just over 62,069 as of 23.06.2018.

HPi Check Results
– HPI clear – see images.

Mileage Records
– 04.08.2009 – 7,922 km
– 28.01.2010 – 16,625 km
– 18.06.2010 – 22,698 km

The Europa S is a Lotus through and through. Even though it features things such as a stereo player to make it a GT, you still very much get the feeling it lives by Colin Chapmans philosophy of “Simplify, then add lightness“.

Only produced in very small numbers, this example is one of only 10 made in 2006, most of which were used for press purposes as detailed in the letter from Lotus Archives. It makes it a great car to have as part of a collection.

Made with a fibre-glass body, and having spent almost all of its life in warmer climates in Hong Kong, this is a car which the new owner will be able to enjoy and drive from the get go.

This is a drivers car, and the added comfort that comes from its GT setup and longevity that will come with the fibre-glass body make it a great choice for someone who loves road trips.