The Lotus Europa
The Lotus Europa used a lightweight, folded and welded “minimalist” boxed-steel backbone chassis with a fiberglass molded body, a combination that was first used by Lotus founder Colin Chapman in the Lotus Elan launched in 1962.
By the mid-1960s, the mid-engine vehicle configuration was well-established as the optimal design for Grand Prix cars, however almost no road vehicles yet used this arrangement. Lotus planned the Europa to be a volume-produced, two-seater mid-engine sports coupe built to reasonable cost, quite an ambitious goal for the time. Like all Lotus vehicles of the era, the Europa was designed and built following Colin Chapman’s oft-stated philosophy of automotive design: “Simplify, then add lightness”.
Minckler Engineering 