Most liked posts in thread: My ride for the day..

The Lotus Europa has been a favorite car of mine since childhood. I've had a chance to drive a couple of them over the years.
This is a 1974 twin cam John Player Special.
Although there is plenty of legroom, the cockpit is small. Your head is just about at the tiny back window and your fingers can touch the windshield while still holding the steering wheel. The center console area is almost as wide as the seats (which is essentially where the frame of the car exists) and the pedals are super close to each other.. I have to drive using the side of my foot to ensure I am only pressing on one pedal at a time. The shifter throws are very short and the gear selection is vague (at least it was on the two I have driven). Shifting worked better as the revs come up a bit but still require a measured pace between the gears.
The car is super light and everything is a bit squeaky/rattley. Despite being only about 120-ish horsepower the car is very peppy and the engine sounds behind your ears are fantastic. Visibility to the sides and back isnt great, and the small steering wheel has is super responsive.. the car wants to change direction just by taking your hand off the wheel to shift gears. Expressway driving in traffic is an interesting experience due to the very low seating position and directness of the steering.

 

My ride for a local cars and coffee yesterday was the 1951 Jowett Jupiter



The featured marque for the day was Ferrari

Here is a link to a few pictures

https://www.flickr.com/photos/ernestovumbles/albums/72177720320696872

 

This is a 1954 Sunbeam Alpine I got to drive several times about 5 years ago.
The styling was amazing.. power from a big 4-cylinder engine was ok. The aftermarket power-steering was overboosted, and brakes were fair.

 

Here is a 1950 Morris Minor Tourer. It was designed by Alec Issionis before he designed the the classic Mini.
This is one of the owner's most easygoing cars.. Starts and runs all the time without issues or fuss. It is usually the first car for any of his "guest drivers" to drive before moving on to other cars. The pedals are very close together, and the steering is light and direct. The shift lever is long and you need to keep your hand under the shift ball in first gear or risk rapping your knuckles into the dashboard ;-)
It is a very pleasant car to drive as long as you aren't in a hurry with it's 900cc engine.
Fun fact.. The Morris Minor was widened by 4 inches shortly before production started, but the bumpers had already been produced. The solution was to cut the center of the bumpers and add a small extension piece to make everything fit.

 

This is a 1959 Hillman Minx. It was a pleasant car but not really exceptional. It reminded me of a shrunken down early 1950's American car.
It did have a 4 speed column shifter, which worked ok.

It did offer a moment of excitement on a drive when the brakes failed as I was pulling into a car show. Fortunately I was moving slowly at the time and there was nothing directly in front of me.. Issue was fixed after the brake fluid was topped off. The owner did not keep the car much longer after that incident.

 

Yes indeed.. I have been a "guest driver" to car shows for a few different people over the years. One friend has more modern sports cars (the Lotus pics) that I often take to a specific yearly British car show, and the other one has the older British convertibles (mostly). He enjoys collecting things not a lot of other people have and showing them at local car shows usually once or twice a month in the driving season.

 

This is a Lotus Evora.

Compared to the Elise, it has a larger Toyota based V6 engine, it is much more luxuriously appointed, better sound deadening, a narrower door sill making it much easier to get in and out. It is a much better "everyday" car. Power is stronger and handling is not quite as razor sharp but very close.

While I loved everything about this car, and it is probably better in almost every measurable way, my heart still goes to the Europa and the Elise for a much more raw and mechanical experience.

 

Yes similar, although I like the lines of the Jaguar a bit better.

Note how the door handles are built into the same line as the window trim for a super clean look.

There is also a Trafficator in the pillar between the front and rear side windows. Dont remember if it was functional on this car or not. I seldom use the turn signals on these cars because many of them are delicate (although some of them have been updated to LED or better functioning lights than original) I tend to mostly use hand signals for turning and lane changes instead.

 

This is the last drive on my list that I can think of for a while..

This is a 1953 Jowett Jupiter. It is a very unusual car with an aluminum body, a horizontally opposed water cooled 4-cylinder engine (like a Subaru), a radiator placed behind the engine, and a 4-speed column shifter. To make it stranger, the shift pattern is opposite of the Hillman, with first gear towards you and down, and 4th away and up.
A version of this car won it's class in Le Mans in 1950.

This car had been previously restored to museum quality and trailered to events, so there were a few teething problems when transitioning to a regularly driven car.

It is a tight squeeze to slide into the bench seat under the large steering wheel, but there is adequate room once you are in. The engine does not rev especially high but there is good torque in the low and mid-range. Shifting is slow, and the gear selection is a bit vague. Brakes are fair, but not great.

The body lines on this car are beautiful from some angles but a bit awkward from other angles, but the car always draws a lot of attention.








For those who have been following along.. thanks for the read.. it was a bunch of fun to show off these interesting cars.
I'll add to it when I get opportunities to drive other fun vehicles.

 

It's 60 degrees in Chicagoland today so I snuck out to my offsite storage location and took my 1987 BMW K75 out for a short spin.

This is a bike from a family friend/friend who passed away a few years ago. It's been hopped up with a bunch of cosmetic and performance parts from back in the day, but he put this and another bike in storage 20 years ago until his death.
I took the bike late last fall and got it cleaned up, fluids changed and running. I'm waiting for spring to get a chance to put some miles on it, but couldn't resist a February ride

Clutch and throttle response are amazing and very comfortable for easy riding around town or for getting on it hard.. Brakes are 1 finger sensitive and super strong. Riding position is sporty and firm but not too aggressive.

 

Got a last minute call while out on a motorcycle ride to attend a curated car show..
My friend had a driver lined up who was a no-show due to a logistics misunderstanding..
So I got to take the Jowett Jupiter out again.

My favorite for the day was this cool looking Devin




Here is a link to a few more pictures.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/ernestovumbles/albums/72177720320946071

 

I've had the chance to drive a whole bunch of unusual old British cars from a friend who owns several and he likes to take them all out to car shows together..

I could post pics of them now or later next year as I get a chance to drive them again in the spring/summer.

 

I'm enjoying doing these short picture reviews.. Hope you-all dont mind the non MINI activity in the quiet season.

I've driven a couple other more modern Lotuses and there are more older British cars to come..

 

Today's car is a 1934 Austin 7 Touring car.. It is the oldest car I have ever driven. It is right hand drive and feels more like a toy than a car. you sit very high and sight lines are great. There isnt much power but it feels pretty zippy once you get moving for around town speeds.. It tops out at about 50 miles per hour but 45-ish is more comfortable. The pedals are pretty narrow and there isnt much feel to them.. the clutch engagement point is super narrow so it makes for tricky starting.. the gear throws are long but the shifter action is actually very nice.

It makes for a really fun around town car as long as there isnt much traffic or stop and go activity.

Here is a pic of the owner in the Austin 7 not long after the car was bought and picking it up from the initial service.

 

Owning 2 red MINIs and a red Sunbeam Alpine, I completely agree!