I pulled my Lotus Europa’s pedal box out today in preparation for doing some additional fibreglass work before installing the new carpet. This is what the area looks like before I removed the pieces.
Take a look at this. My first thought was that the pedal box looks as though it came out of a go-cart. I suppose in some ways it did.
My second thought… it looks like the pedal box was made in some kids 10th grade shop class. Look at these beautifully done welds! Perhaps that’s true as well and Colin Chapman managed to save a little money having school kids make parts in preparation for future jobs in the factory. Either way, it’s a very primitive solution to a problem.
I should also mention for entertainment value that the clutch cable connection was held together with a very lightweight safety pin, a very creative touch by some previous owner. It did work for over 9,000 KM of spirited driving last year so maybe it isn’t that bad of an idea.
On the other side, I always thought that the MGB wasn’t the best made car in the world and of course the British had a reputation for not exactly producing the best of anything after the war. Working on the Lotus however gives bad quality a new meaning and perhaps the MGB isn’t that bad after all. The Lotus does have one huge advantage however. It likely weighs 20% of what the MGB unit does. Simplicity and light weight is what made Lotus cars what they were.
