MEET THE OWNER – PAUL STEVENS AND HIS LOTUS EUROPA TWIN CAM

It would be fair to say that Paul Stevens is a connoisseur of fine cars, as his fleet comprises a 1960 Slough-built Citroën ID19, a 1969 Lotus Elan S4 DHC, a 1929 Austin Seven ‘boat tail’, a 1936 Austin Seven Nippy – and in October last year, a 1972 Lotus Europa Twin Cam. To quote its proud owner: “I drove 6 ½ hours to view it – fortunately, I have a trailer so that I could bring it back with me!”.

The story of the Europa dates to 1963 when Colin Chapman hoped Lotus would build an endurance racing car for Ford. In the event, the US corporation rejected the ideas of Lotus’s designer Ron Hickman, opting instead for the Lola-designed GT40. However, as Matthew Vale notes in his book Lotus Europa - Colin Chapman’s mid-engined masterpiece:

With the success of the Elan, and the upcoming, upmarket Plus 2, there was a need for a third model to slot into the Lotus product range, just below the Elan and the Plus 2. Another factor was the emerging dominance of the mid-engineed configuration for racing cars in the higher (Formula 1) and lower (Formula Junior) echelons of the sport, along with Lotus’s desire to field a mid-engine sports car in the Group 4 class.

On its launch in December 1966, the Europa was not only the first car from Lotus’s new Hethel factory but also the realisation of Chapman’s long-held goal of a compact mid-engine sports car. Power was from a tuned 1,470cc Renault 16 engine rotated by 180 degrees in a single-mould GRP body resin-bonded to a steel chassis. 

Chapman described the Europa as: “a GT car with outstanding good looks and the now-famous Lotus standards of road holding, safety and reliability”. When Denis Jenkinson tested a Europa for Motor Sport, he wrote: “Oh my goodness! This has put the fun back into motoring”.

The S2, with a bolted-on, detachable body, followed in April 1968, to be replaced by the Twin Cam, powered by the famed 1,557cc unit, in 1971. Further improvements included a brake servo, a redesigned chassis, and revised suspension geometry. The body also lost its rear buttresses; the great writer John Bolster thought, “Everyone was unanimous in hating the tunnel vision to the rear”.

By 1972 the Twin Cam cost £1,996, or £1,595 in kit form, compared with £1,606 for a TVR Vixen Series 2 or £2,302 for a Volkswagen-Porsche 914S. “Lotus brand” alloy wheels were another £101.25, and Lotus further tempted buyers with a Phillips radio for £45, tinted glass for £35 and air horns for £10.

The first impression of Paul’s Europa is of its remarkable profile, akin to a Gerry Anderson creation that has escaped from the studio. The second is how Lotus subtly updated the original design without diluting the Europa’s appeal. The third is how diminutive it looks compared with 2025 traffic. Paul remarks about accessing the cabin: “It is very low. If I had waited another ten years to own one, I would probably struggle to get in and out, one of the reasons I used to justify buying it!”.

Autocar recorded a top speed of 120 mph with 0-60 in seven seconds. The tester welcomed the reduction of the “side sails” and concluded it was “a coupe with considerably increased appeal”. Motor Sport believed the Twin Cam would: “undoubtedly prove more popular in its new form for enthusiasts who like thoroughbred two-seater sports cars”.

Europa production ended in 1975, and Paul says of his Twin Cam: “Now I have sorted the gear shift mechanism. It drives very well! Very few people know what it is. It has not been out much as the winter has been so wet”. A yellow Europa is a car for fine West Country weather, preferably with Cat Stevens playing on the Phillips radio.

Above all, the Europa truly was a watershed design for Lotus, anticipating future generations of supercars. And as Colin Chapman told Car in 1968 about his products: “I always get a thrill seeing them on the road, especially when they are clean and fresh. But I always feel I can improve on what we’ve already done”.

With thanks to Paul Stevens for his time and permission to use the images in this blog.