Lotus Elan and Lotus Elan Plus 2 Forums

David

Source a wide ratio form Small ford Spares of like as spares box if its the shafts etc, they are less desirable and still around.

If the gear clusters different story, if competition use the straight cut quake either dog or synchro are available as full kits, alternatively there's a manufacturer of the ultra close as well now for road use

V

Frogelan wrote:Hi Rohan

With regard to your springs...200"/inch and 150"/inch. Do you recall the free standing length of your springs by any chance...and where did you find them ?

Is there a particular spring manufacturer that you would recommend?

[I plan to run front and rear historic adjustable konis, with the Aeon springs on the rear).

Many thanks,


Andrew

HI Andrew
The fronts are TTR supplied with the shocks and i did not take them off to measure. However i can calculate the length. They are a little short as the platforms have to be wound up to full height to get the car to an acceptable ride height. The rears I had made locally and i have the free length data - I will see what I can find in the next few days

cheers
Rohan

Hi Rohan -

Who did you get to make your springs? I need to get some made for my Europa and I've struggled in the past to find a source in Melbourne.


Tim

tjb0274 wrote:Hi Rohan -

Who did you get to make your springs? I need to get some made for my Europa and I've struggled in the past to find a source in Melbourne.


Tim

S&S springs made my rears many years ago they are still in business in Dandenong . They were not confident to make the front springs at the time as they are very highly stressed so i only used them for the rears and got the fronts from TTR. The front springs on racing Elans and on even a normal road Plus 2 are very highly stressed hence their tendency to sag. The really need to be hot formed using top grade chrome spring steel and finding people to do this anywhere in the world is not easy, most people cold form suspension springs these days. The last guy to do hot forming in Victoria retired about 20 years ago

cheers
Rohan

Thanks Rohan.

I have the standard length of the springs and have been trying to calculate the implications of firmer springs.

Although in theory there should be a linear effect, I'm not an engineer so my estimations are approximative.

I can by the TTR fast road type springs and then work from that, but it all costs money!

Andrew

Thanks Rohan!

Frogelan wrote:Hi Rohan

With regard to your springs...200"/inch and 150"/inch. Do you recall the free standing length of your springs by any chance...and where did you find them ?

[I plan to run front and rear historic adjustable konis, with the Aeon springs on the rear).

Many thanks,

Andrew

I'm not sure if this will help but these are the notes I took a few years back when I rebuilt my suspension. The notes are rough measurements taken from the front Armstrong adjustables and the rear struts which I believe were the same fitment as a 26R although my wishbones were standard straight ones and non adjustable.You will see that it was fairly vague, the shocker stroke coming out anywhere between 2 and 2.125"! At the top of the page you will see the spring length and rate.
At the time I couldn't find anyone to rebuild the Armstrongs so I chucked them out! I had some fronts made to these measurements by Spax with adjustable seats and the rears were Koni, shortened to fit the shorter strut tube and provided with a shorter stroke and re-valved to suit the springs, by Banks of Peterborough.

I have instructions for rebuilding the 26R type Armstrong adjustable shocks if anyone needs them.

David,

Sadly about 30 years too late!

Note to new or recent acquirers, be sure you want to...

NO, do not throw anything away.......!

No, I never throw anything away-much to my wife's dismay! Women have no sense of nostalgia I have concluded...

After a request from one forum member for copies I spent part of last evening looking for the instructions and found them! So if anybody else wants them just send me an email: davidandandrea at telus dot net