So what does your Elan/Plus2 look like today?

[garyeanderson]

Winter projects completed, was a nice day for the shakedown.

I am marking 32 years of ownership, the car has been driven every year.

Hi Mike

Good to hear that the Coupe is up and running and the weather was good to get out and drive about. Thinking 32 years back, my S2 was dead and in many salt infested pieces and the Twin Cam and Ultra-close that was plunked into the Estate and it's terrorizing days of the streets of Cohasset were at an close too. There was a 12 year drought before the Elan infection returned to take over my life again.

Gary

[elancoupe]

Here is what it looked like on the day I bought it, April 1980.

[sparkey]

Like This.

After a year of unreliablitity and general frustration I've finally got it working properly !

And despite the micro blisters and the fact that the bonnet blew off and bounced down the road last year it still looks pretty good in a photograph - who said cameras never lie!

[gordont]

A wet old day in Sydney and inspired by Gary to keep this post alive I thought better do an update. As an aside how about a few photos of all those project cars out there being put back together?
Car update
Stripes fitted after neighbour reversed into me, fortunately just 2 scratches either side of the nose badge and did not break through the fibreglass. I actually thinks makes the car look better with the stripes (though a bugger to fit)
QED420 cams (and chokes, etc etc) received from QED. Now fitted by my friend Alan and I cannot rave about them enough, massive torque increase and significant power boost. Head was cleaned up but that is about it.
Yes the side air scoop finally fitted after being painted at the same time as the roof a few months back, to answer those questions no the vent pipe is not fitted. I figured the car has 26R guards etc so may as well make it look the part but no plans on actually making it functional. I put a fubber gasket between the body and the scoop as they are not exactly a snug fit and the scoop has little flexibility. I glassed in a stainless steel 5mm mesh section to keep out the crap.
The old tyres were pretty knackered, sadly 13" sticky tyres in Oz are hideously expensive, I ended up with A048 delivered from the UK - very sticky!
Hardtop - alas with all our rain I am embarrased to say that has only been off for a few days in the last few months, still it is a daily driver. Oh a note that with the hardtop on the exhaust noise is significantly increased in cabin.
What else...
Heater control - I disconnected the heater control in teh cabin when I took out a personal loan for a 26R oil pressure warning light so not I turn off in summer and on about now under the bonnet. Hey it is Australia so we really dont need a heater very often anyway.
Knock on wheels - I have the Plus 2 hubs and alloy spinners now just need to bit the bullet for the rims, would live to go the Kelsport 26R wheels with plus2 pegs but the cost means I will probably go 13x6 Monilites instead.

Looking forward to seeing a few more elans out there...

[garyeanderson]

I got out for a drive about 5:30 yesterday afternoon and the weather was great. My niece and brother in law had birthdays so the family met at the country club for dinner, the parking lot was pretty empty but I wanted some extra green in the photo, I wasn't the only one on the lawn so I wasn't really being a shit head.

I sure hope that others were enjoying a drive to no where, It seems the best drives are the ones that go no place in particular.

[archigator]

It seems the best drives are the ones that go no place in particular.

Apologies to Kenneth Grahame and "The Wind in the Willows"...

Nice? It's the only thing," the Water Rat said solemnly, as he leant forward to turn the ignition key... Believe me, my young friend, there is nothing - absolutely nothing - half so much worth doing as simply messing around in an Elan. Simply messing," he went on dreamily, "messing about - in - an Elan...
In or out of 'em, it doesn't matter. Nothing seems really to matter, that's the charm of it. Whether you get away, or whether you don't, whether you arrive at your destination or whether you reach somewhere else, or whether you never get anywhere at all, you're always busy, and you never do anything in particular, and when you've done it there's always something else to do, and you can do it if you like, but you'd much better not. Look here! If you've really nothing else on hand this morning, supposing we drive down through the twisties, and have a long day of it?"

Gary
'71 Sprint FHC
Miami, Florida

[jon1986eac]

Finally back together and ready to go (starting problem solved). Just wish it would stop raining!!

[Elan45]

We're back in Ohio, but I left the Elan in Florida. I will miss it over the summer, but it gives me more room in the garage in Ohio for the next project. A day before leaving Florida, I visited my friend Scott and his newly tiled garage floor. I still have to fit the window motors and paint the bumpers, but we're getting there.

Roger

[661]

Spring cleaning

[Jas]

Have just rounded a 1,000 miles for the season so far, and only 40 of them was for transportation
The season is looking good so far.

[gjz30075]

661, are those Revolution wheels?

Greg Z

[661]

661, are those Revolution wheels?

Greg Z

Good spot, yes they are

[garyeanderson]

My F250 Diesel pickup has been acting up as of late so I have been using the Elan for daily transportation. Since Thursday I have been playing internet diesel mechanic and not having a lot of fun with the 15 year old truck that I bought new 242000 miles ago. Yesterday I had had enough and just took a ride over to my friends and got him out of painting the house, we talked and he showed me a copy of the annual Road & Track tests from 1966 so there was some good stuff in it. Fiat Abarth had the 1600OT that he just had to show me and on the next page was the Shelby Mustang GT350, The Abarth beat the Shelby in the quarter 14.5 to 14.7, we had a laugh over that and I got out the camera to get the article so I could read it later and snapped this photo.

Today I played again with the F250 and swore my ass off at those stupid packaging engineers, you cant get to anything and when you can see it you can?t touch it. So at 3.00 pm I had seen enough as I had gotten the ICP sensor loose, tomorrow I?ll see what it costs to get one, one nut or both. Anyway it was nice out so off again I went in the S2 and ran into Dale and we talked Mustangs as he is building a 65 from parts. I told him about the Shelby vs Abarth and we both laughed. He went to go and do something so I went down to the beach and parked for a photo as the blue ocean was nice as the sky.

Gary

[slimromeo]

At pnm engineering.

[mazlot]