Friday, July 16th, 1999

16 meeting TBD

16-18 LOG 19 - Lotus Ltd Corning NY

8 Santa Cruz Mountain drive sponsored by the Dubberleys

20 Meeting TBD

27-29 Lotus corral at the Monterey

Historics (featuring Auto-Union)

11 GGLC AutoX (tentative)

11 All British Car Meet coastal drive

and lunch starts in Palo Alto

12 All British Car meet – Palo Alto

17 Meeting

15 Meeting TBD -

Nominations

19 Meeting TBD -

Elections
Dec

5 The Toddler Toy Rallye -Fremont
?? GGLC Holiday Party ,TBD

Sponsored by Allen & Trish Dubberley

August 8, 1999

The cookout will start about 1:00pm at the Dubberley’s. If you want to skip the Santa Cruz Mountains drive, the directions are:

Take Hwy 17 south from Los Gatos to Lexington Reservoir and the Bear Creek Rd exit. At the end of the off-ramp, do not turn left up Bear Creek, instead continue north on the frontage road to Black Rd. Take Black Rd. left, up hill for about 5 miles, until it deadends at Skyline (Hwy 35). Turn right on Skyline and go 1.6 miles. Turn left onto Las Cumbres Rd. Go 0.25 miles and turn left onto Reed Knoll Rd. After entering Reed Knoll, immediately turn right into the first driveway.

You can also come up Hwy 9 (Big Basin Way) out of Saratoga until it reaches Skyline at the scenic overlook at the top of the ridge. Turn left on Skyline and go south for 4.8 miles to Las Cumbres Rd.

If you get lost, just stop at a house and ask how to find Las Cumbres, or call us on 408-354-7645.

For the more adventurous souls, the route to the picnic begins at 10:30am from the parking lot in front of De Anza College in Cupertino. Enter the campus from Stevens Creek Blvd, just south of Hwy 85. The entrance is opposite Mary. Turn left at the Campus Drive stop sign and then go to the second parking lot. Look for the "No Fee" parking area at the right side of the lot. The mountain drive will stick to paved roads and will be less severe on engine cooling than last year’s drive. It should take about 2 hours. We will have written directions for everyone. No one should get lost, except of course, like last year, the navigator in the lead car. See you in August.

~ Allen & Trish Dubberley

Corral NOTEs: Corral parking areas are only given when 35 tickets are pre-sold (by July 21st) for a given day. This year the Club corral parking will be Saturday only, and on Sunday a "Group Club Corral" will be arranged for those who will be returning.

Flagroom $150 (includes 3- day admission, pre ferred parking and hos pitality Sat/Sun)

Youth Flagroom $45 (5-12 years of age)

3 days $75

Sat/Sun $60

Friday only $25

Saturday only $35 ($5 discount over gate price)

Sunday only $30 ($5 discount over gate price)

Premier $150 (reserved sites, Wednesday thru Saturday)

Regular $25/night, open area, first come, first served

Please make out your check to "GGLC", and mail it to me at the below address. Be sure to indicate the number of persons for each day you wish to attend, and the number of Loti you will be bringing in the event that we get corral parking.

Daren Stone

By Scott Hogben

Well, it’s July already and now that the track day has passed us by, I’ve had an opportunity to catch my breath and I’ve started to spend more time on the Seven again. The two things that inspired me to do this were: seeing Jim McClure’s Series 1 Seven at the Palo Alto Concours, and the realization that the All British Car Meet is only a little more than two months away!!!

I really had no intention of going to the Palo Alto Concours simply because I have a hard time coming to grips with the price to get in, and the last time I went (somewhere around 1985) there weren’t that many cars there that got my motor running. But, this year it was on Father’s Day and Packard was the featured marque, so I decided to treat my father and we drove down. I was suitably impressed. It took us a good 45minutes just to get through the lot with the cars for sale! It was in this lot that my father spied an old 1930’s Mercedes that looked familiar. As a soldier in World War II, he had found a saloon version of this same car in Germany at the war’s end which had been abandoned. He began to tell the owner the story of how he saw the car and had tried to figure out how to get it home to the states. People had sent Jeeps home in crates, why not a Mercedes? The end to that long story is that no, he couldn’t figure out how to get it home. But, I think the owner of the car took a liking to my father and his war/Mercedes story because the gentleman wound up getting my father in free by giving him one of the wrist bands which allows you to enter the gates. It was a nice Father’s Day gift from a total stranger.

After I paid my $15 dollars to enter, we were treated to some very old Airstream-style trailers from the 1930’s and 1940’s that proved quite interesting. But the first car that I saw was Jim McClure’s Series 1 Seven- in component form. What a sight! I’ll let Jim tell you all about his adventures that day but in my totally objective and unbiased viewpoint, this was the Best of Show winner! Jim went to a lot of work to research his car’s history and it was well worth it because the display was excellent. And from what he told me, the crowd loved it too!

In addition to Jim’s car, I did see a very nice Elan and a Cosworth Super Seven that really made my mouth water! And, for a little taste of technology, there was an Elise Sport 190 there from Boardwalk Lotus as well. We all know that Lotuses aren’t the most common cars at a concours, so it was a pleasure indeed to see these cars mixing it up with the usual hoity-toity Prancing Mules, Porsches, etc. After the response that Jim got with his car and the award that Victor Holtorf received with his Europa earlier this year at the Hillsborough Concours, I hope some of you out there will consider entering your cars in future concours events.

Now, seeing those two Sevens at Palo Alto sure did turn on the light bulb for me. It’s hard to believe that it’s been almost a year since my maiden voyage to the British Meet in the Seven. Last year I drove into the meet with the gas tank bungie-corded in, no mirrors, a hot-wired ignition, three lugnuts holding each wheel on, and yes, with the engine overheating. You’re allowed to do that once because it makes for great CR articles and club meeting conversation. It also shows you have character and deserves congratulations for all those late nights just before the meet. But, to do that again would mean that I haven’t worked on the car for a year! Well, except for the three month long Europa track prep, I have been working on the Seven, but not enough. Even as I write this article I can still smell the gas on my fingers from working on those stupid Webers earlier in the day! The previous owner of the car had drilled a few more progression holes in the brand new Webers he had bought, and to this day I’m still trying to figure why. Well, I threw in the towel on those carbs and I’m currently swapping them for some older DCOE’s that I know had worked on my black Europa. Pardon the pun but stay "tuned" for developments on that situation.

In the mean time, I’ve installed a new speedo cable, a new ignition switch so I don’t have to hot-wire it, and I’m currently working on getting material so I can have real seat cushions. Those of you who saw my car last year may be saying to yourself that seat cushions and a speedo cable should be the least of my worries! But I can assure you that I’m trying hard to get everything in order for the meet.

As I said, the British Meet is only a little more than 2 months away. If that isn’t bad enough, the summer solstice has already passed us up! So, this is just a little reminder to get fixing anything that needs fixing on your Lotus and bring it to the British Meet, we don’t want to have the Rovers beating us out of the club participation award again! By the way, just in case we do run into that problem again this year, I plan on resorting to "Emergency Plan Alpha". I’m going to argue that a large percentage of the Rovers should be disqualified since they’re not a CAR, they’re an SUV, and therefore should not be counted! That’s my plan and I’m sticking to it. See you at the next meeting.

Scott

OK, my gripe for this column is the new book by Graham Arnold, a Lotus notable that should have great stories and photos to place in the book. Unfortunately, it appears that he put his name on it and ran. No commentary, no new or unique photos, no history. Mostly previously seen photos sorted by car type, no history at all. Worth maybe $5, not the $24 U.S. cost.

Next Month, the capitalist pigs of the All British Car Meet

By Jim McClure

Move your lemonade stand to a new venue. Well, I had already promised Graham Capel that I would help with setup, and be available for the Goodwood Festival, but a trip for two weeks in the hospital, major surgery and pneumonia can change your plans.

I had looked forward to Goodwood again, where Graham’s ‘hi-tech’ charcoal heater saved my rain-soaked life last year. But the doctor was now saying: no work for a while, no air travel for two months, and no strenuous activity. Good, not a word of warning about Lotus-related activities. My primary thought while in the hospital was, "Now that I can’t make Goodwood, do I have enough time to enter the Seven at the Palo Alto Concours?" Entry in and accepted; lots of work to do!

The plan was not to enter a car, though, but to have a display reminiscent of the last time this Seven was on public display in Rotterdam in the fall of 1959. Yes, this is the second Lotus Seven demonstrator, and first at the then-new Cheshunt factory, Chassis #499, Registration 703HNK. The Seven would be shown in 1999 as in 1959, in kit form, as if it had just been purchased and collected from the Chelmsford factory.

Well, the display was fantastic, with the response from the crowd fantastic. The Seven display was second in voting for "Best of Show" (not eligible for class ‘car’ awards). Many viewers (future club members?) had great stories to share of their memories of sevens past.

So, to top that, how about the "All-British Car Meet" here at Stanford in September? Drive it there, take it apart, reassemble it in front of the audience and drive it off. All with the help of members from HLR, Golden Gate Lotus and Seven Club of GB. Sounds like a plan, as we say!

A little more history on my Seven, Chassis #499, 703HNK? It was the second demonstrator, and the first at the new Cheshunt factory.

The first demonstrator was 7TMT which won the Boxing day race in 1958, with Graham Hill driving. It was also a Coventry Climax powered car and was then sold to Peter Warr for £750, which meant that another Seven would be needed to replace it.

703HNK was then built to be the demonstrator in the Summer of 1959. It was painted red, given steel wheels and a Coventry Climax. It was driven to Rotterdam in the Fall of 1959 by Robin Read, to be displayed at the DIY show, where it was taken apart, then reassembled in view of the crowd. It also appeared on the cover of Sports Car/Lotus Owner in April 1960, though its position near the Cheshunt factory front door may have already been usurped by the Series Two Seven.

The Series Two was much faster, would have immediately left 703HNK in the pile of extinct has-been cars, not worth the scrap price. At this time the decision must have been made by Lotus to sell its Coventry Climax to a customer, repaint the car white, drop a 100E under the bonnet, put wire wheels and the new clamshell fenders on, and ship it to the U.S.A., where no one would know that it was virtually ‘worn out’ from being a factory demonstrator. This car would have had little interest in the U.S., either, though, as the magazine road tests of the Series Two and Cosworth versions would have been forthcoming. The 60’s were also the decade of the American muscle car, where for less that $3,500 you could buy 400 horsepower and quarter mile times of less than 12 seconds. A 40 horsepower flathead sportscar would have been virtually worthless.

#499 then disappeared into oblivion for over twenty years, with my attempts to find any evidence of its U.S. history have so far been fruitless. Then a new fire trail was plowed in the Oakland hills in 1987. This area was the center of the tragic Oakland Hills fire, which would destroy hundreds of homes and over ten lives only two years later. A group of young trails bikers tried the new dirt road and discovered the rotting remnants of the Seven, half way down into the ravine. One of them recognized the car from a book, and had the others help wench the car down and towed to his carport. The Lotus had no chassis plate and, therefore, no history. I heard of the find about one year later at a Yamaha bike shop, called the owner, viewed the car and bought it for $150.

That was ten years ago. Storage, phone calls to the U.K., reviewing books and photos, four trips to England, more research took place but it wasn’t until four years ago that the car’s history started to appear, as the nose went in for repair, and the registration number was found under two layers of paint. Whoever had made the stencil for "703HNK" had etched the lines in the soft aluminum below the first layer of paint. This discovery led to books and photos, and correspondence from Robin Read that confirmed that 703HNK was chassis #499.

By the date for the concours, #499 was ready for the show. The end result represents a tribute to the car whose life almost ended in the Oakland Hills fire. It is also a tribute to the engineers and designers of Lotus in the fifties, who worked long hours to make these cars pure magic.

The Europa Chronicles (Daisy’s tale retold)

by Daren Stone

Since 1999 marks the 5 year anniversary of when I brought home my Europa (in boxes), I’ve decided to reprint the tale via the posts I made during 1995 to the british-cars mailing list. These posts range from the short questions of the first-time Europa owner to long-ish progress reports, and in one way served to keep the project on track, the end result being our drive to the 1995 Monterey Historics. This effort is possible thanks to Harald Friese, who had archived these posts and was kind enough to send me copies. I hope you enjoy them.

(Note: the first section immediately below was not posted externally, and at that time I believed the car to be a 1971, but later determined it to be an early 1970 model.)

**********************************************

Author: Daren Stone at RNBCCM30

Late: 11/30/94 7:56 AM

Priority: Normal

TO: Brendan Reitz

TO: Jeff S Weintraub at RNBCCM24

TO: Fred Lopez

TO: Eric N Thompson

Subject: Calling all able-bodied men

-----------------Message Content--------------------

Greetings !

If all goes according to plan, tomorrow I will complete the transaction that will make me the proud owner of a 1971 Lotus Europa.

However at this time the most distinctive feature of this car is that it is completely disassembled, and that is why I'm sending you this

message. (continued below)

You have been carefully selected because of your ability to lift

somewhat heavy objects (say, a car engine or body), and I am providing

you this hopefully not-soon-to-be-repeated opportunity to exercise this

gift -

Your job, should you choose to accept it, is to accompany me to San

Francisco this Sunday, December 4^th (I know, the day after the Intel

Christmas Party), load the Lotus onto a truck and trailer, and then

travel back to Mountain View, where everything with the exception of the

body will be unloaded at our house. The body will remain on the trailer

until sufficient room is established at my garage in San Jose, at which

time I will impose on you again to unload it.

As a minor gesture of advanced gratitude I would like to take

everyone to breakfast beforehand.

Tie parts are more awkward and fragile than heavy, (the whole car

weighs only 14O0lbs when fully assembled), so I honestly do not

envision this being a Herculean effort. Rather I see it as an

opportunity to bond with friends while reinforcing our genetic

predisposition towards things automotive.

Please let e know if you will be able to help out so I can

coordinate things accordingly.

Thanks in advance-

Daren

*********************************************************************

Author: british-cars-owner@triumph.cs.utah.edu at SMTPGATE

Date: 12/5/94 3:53 PM

Priority: Normal

TO: fisheravistar.com at SMTPGATE

TO: mlewis7866@aol.com at SMTPGATE

TO: zursch@solaris.wpd.sgi.com at SMTPGATE

BCC: Daren Stone at RNBCCM3O

Subject: Announcing a new addition to the Stone collection

---------------Message Content--------------

Since the deed is now done, I'm guessing I won't jinx anything by writing about it-

You see, yesterday the transactions were concluded, the truck and trailer loaded up, and the car I have dreamed of owning for over half of my life came home to our garage.

I bought a Europa.

If I need additional justification I am saying it’s my 30th

Birthday present to myself, but anyone seeing the smile on my face

knows why I did it. I lust after these cars. I get that "first kiss"

feeling every time I see one. I cannot explain it, but know you

understand.

So, regarding our new addition:

1971 Lotus Europa S2 (type 65)

Good news;

*Completely disassembled

*Chassis and all suspension components sandblasted and powdercoated

(unfortunately the cracks at the junction of the front and main box

section were not repaired first, see Bad News below)

*Gordini crossflow motor with fairly good compression

*Appears to have all of the hard-to find bits

Bad News;

*Completely disassembled

*Cracks on both sides of junction of front and main crossmember

*Passenger rear control arm mounting holes hogged out with a torch

*No windshield

*No wiring harness

*Bad dashboard

*Only 8 1/2 months till Monterey Histories (our goal)

And a few questions I have;

-Since the cracks in the frame seem to be a relatively common malady, before we embark on our own repair, is there a commonly-accepted one short of frame replacement ?

-Anyone feel confident offering up data on the engine: Gordini x-flow,

hemi-head, # 843-10 and moteur no. 0830 ?

-Ditto transaxle: # 336-56 ?

And before I start bombarding the list(s) with questions on how it all goes back together, I first want to thank all of the people who spent time answering my incessant questions which helped me to find my car. Rich, Phil, Alan, Cory, Mark, Ken, Howard, David, Andy, Thank you.

cheers-

daren

30 LB. Canister of Freon R12 New in Box. Looking for a Good Home. $500
Ed Shakleford (831)-662-3734 eds@141.com

1990 Lotus Esprit SE; silver paint (factory optional metallic); gray interior leather in excellent condition; 34,000 miles; new Yoko AVS front tires; 70% life left on OEM Goodyear rear tires; new Spax adjustable rear shocks; new brakes all around; Sony removable-face stereo; registration paid through April 2000; new paint on front and rear bumpers; best offer around $30K; Victor @ (650)347-4795 or e-mail @ vholtorf@investorfacts.com

Europa Parts Wanted fresh air vents that mount in the dashboard of Europa. Must be in very good or excellent condition. Also need a spring clip to hold the ashtray into the ashtray holder for Europa. John (650) 368-9105 Motofab@wenet.net

The Chapman Report is published monthly by the Golden Gate Lotus Club, PO Box 117303, Burlingame, CA 94011. The GGLC is a non-profit incorporated car club and is not affiliated with Group Lotus, Team Lotus, or Lotus Cars USA. The GGLC's annual membership dues are $20.00.

Opinions expressed in the Chapman Report are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of the GGLC or its officers. Technical advise should be used at your own risk.

Submissions to the Chapman Report are accepted. Please E-mail them to motofab@wenet.net in Word Perfect or ASCII DOS text. Submissions may also be mailed to The Chapman Report at 3507 Edison Way, Menlo Park, CA 94025-1815.

1999 GGLC officers are: President: Scott Hogben, Vice President: Mike Schlict, Secretary: Bruce Weinberg, Treasurer: Laura Hamai, Event Coordinator: Victor Holtorf, Membership Chairman: David Anderson, Social Director: John Ridley.

Chapman Report Staff: Editors: John Zender/Daren Stone, Circulation Manager: Tom Carney, Advertising Manager: Mel Boss, .