Radiator revelations

[brassringfarm]

All -
Yet another surprise! My 'radiator' on my S2 basket case is a full four
inches thick, the proper width and height - but has NO radiator cap. (It does
have a pretty Lotus decal on it, though!) The plenums are on the left and
right as opposed to top and bottom. Was this some type of racing setup? I've
never seen anything quite like it before (but I don't race) and cannot find
any separate chambers that would allow me to add fluid to the system or catch
overflow. There is, however, barely enough room to add a cap on either side.
My favorite radiator shop (I've taken several old tractor radiators to them)
would have a good laugh.
I'm also concerned about bonnet and fan blade clearance with something this
thick.
What's the verdict - trash it or torch it? Looking at the inside, it appears
to be virtually unused.
Signed
Paul
'Not so cool' in Ohio

[gobw2]

Been a long time, but I think your radiator is from a formula car, not an
s2. As I remember, there was a fitting cut into the upper hose that had
the cap on it, and a tap for the bottle. If you can get it to fit, you
may have solved the overheating in heavy traffic on hot days issue.
George

On Mon, 13 Mar 2000 21:36:26 EST ***@***.***es:

[SpeedModel]

Paul,

I have an aluminum radiator on my Elan 26(R) racecar with a separate
header/filler tank. Although I have not measured it, I would imagine that
it's approximately three and one-half to four inches thick. It works great.
I know you live close by, so drop over and have a look. Tony Thompson sells
new aluminum header/swirl tanks for Elans, but you should be able to source
something locally.

Eric Jeffries

[jim.normile at snapondiag]

Not being a Lotus purest, when I rebuilt my S3 roll-over coupe to a
convertible, one of the things I did was add a filler between the upper
radiator hose inlet and the engine outlet. The part used was from a Ford
Mustang around 76-78. It is a size larger than the Elan hose fittings but a
reducer - made from old radiator hose- works fine. By the way the radiator
is a four row, originally had the filler centered on the radiator but caused
interference with the hood, so I replaced it with a blanking plate. Never
over heated even with two drivers at autocrosses in Kansas City in August.
Jim Normile
S3 - now a convertible

-----Original Message-----
From: ***@***.***lto:***@***.***
Sent: Monday, March 13, 2000 9:39 PM
To: ***@***.***
Subject: Re: [LotusElan.net] Radiator revelations


From: ***@***.***

Been a long time, but I think your radiator is from a formula car, not an
s2. As I remember, there was a fitting cut into the upper hose that had
the cap on it, and a tap for the bottle. If you can get it to fit, you
may have solved the overheating in heavy traffic on hot days issue.
George

On Mon, 13 Mar 2000 21:36:26 EST ***@***.***es:



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[Raymond.Jang at UC.Edu]

Hi Paul:

Interesting radiator, sounds like it would work in a racing Elan, where the
radiator is located forward for greater air flow and the fill-cap is located
at a convenient point (for example, near the thermostat housing). I'd be
interested in looking at it, definitely don't torch, trash it if its
otherwise sound. Maybe I could swap a stock S2 radiator for it, if you're
interested.

Regards, Ray.