Lotus Elan and Lotus Elan Plus 2 Forums

Posted: **Mon Sep 20, 2010 2:20 pm**

After only 30 years in my possession I have at last found enough time to work on the total restoration of chassis no 26/0086 Unit no 3067
First registered 05/09/1963 as 3XBF. Bourne body no 26/0073

I did the chassis and engine some years ago, (they may need attention again by now) but have just made progress on the bare shell Resprayed to the original Yellow. It has also been red and black in its life.

Wiring and interior to follow. I think making a loom is the next job

Posted: **Thu Sep 23, 2010 9:56 pm**

Rod,

the project looks like its of to a good start. btw wiring harnesses are available , in the us they come from british wiring in the uk its called autosparks. i suspect they sell the same product.

George

Posted: **Tue Jun 28, 2011 5:18 pm**

Seeing as crash pads are made of unobtanium there seems no option but to make my own.
I am going to try by making a foam core then covering it in lightweight glass cloth then covering that in leathercloth so here goes
Progress so far

: First I made the large flat area from a piece of polyurethane insulation board

: Then added the end bits

: Now cut out the demister hole

: So far so good

Now got to wait till the glass cloth arrives.

Posted: **Tue Jun 28, 2011 5:37 pm**

Lovely job and a great looking car, but isn't Charles at the 26 Register remaking original spec dash tops for the S1 and S2?

Posted: **Tue Jun 28, 2011 5:50 pm**

Sadly not, I talked to him and he said the people who were going to do it decided they couldnt

Posted: **Tue Jun 28, 2011 7:03 pm**

Rod,

Looks like you are well underway and looking great. The dash pad looks like it should work out also. I still have a couple of pads which are in reasonable shape which I will try to do some repair.

I like the fact you chose to paint down into the engine bay as it in my mind looks more complete that way.

Keep us posted as you move forward.

Mark

Posted: **Tue Jun 28, 2011 7:21 pm**

Looking good, Rod. Is the car in Sunburst Yellow? If so, it's the same colour as my Elite, and I'm in a quandry....whether to paint it as original, or go for the slightly more yellow Jaguar Primrose, which is what most folks do.

The engine bay for your car, being such an early one, was originally grey-pigmented bare fibreglass, but I guess you knew that!!

Posted: **Tue Jun 28, 2011 7:55 pm**

Actually its in LO7 still listed as a colour in our local paint suppliers
and yes I did know the engine bay should be grey. Ive sprayed it a grey which is pretty near the rest of the body colour ( had to graft a new front on)
Being unsure just how far down the engine bay they were originally painted body colour, I decided to paint down to the flat above the pedal box on the bulkhead
the rest of the bay which of course you cant see in those pics is indeed grey.

: As you can see in this pic

Posted: **Sat Jul 09, 2011 4:16 pm**

Heres the foam core glassed over ready to cover in leathercloth, thats the really difficult bit, dont know how Im going to stretch it over those curves and get it to stay there.
if anyone has any ideas on this apart from heating it up please let me know.

: Needs a bit more smoothing !

Now covered in Leathercloth, turned out OK I think

Posted: **Sat Jul 09, 2011 10:04 pm**

Rod,
Your restoration looks great. On the crash pad, although leather would look very nice, re. your question on stretching; have you considered vinyl -noting it stretches more in one direction than the other - depending on the fabric orientation on the back, therefore may be more forgiving than the leather? just a thought...
Jack

Posted: **Sun Jul 10, 2011 8:40 am**

Yes I did say leathercloth actually, I found a sample that stretched in both directions as well but no one had any stock

Posted: **Sun Jul 10, 2011 10:21 am**

I saw kelsport are selling the dash tops, has anyone tried one?

Posted: **Sun Jul 10, 2011 1:32 pm**

Ah yes, the terminology difference threw me off.
I made new door panels etc. with vinyl/leatherette/leathercloth/naugahide?

and used a 3M product called "super 77" which seems to be a spray on contact cement - there are also industrial similar products your upholstery person may have access to. Sprayed lightly on both materials, keeping the nozzle back from the material, (instructions from the car upholstery chap - an older Austrian born tradesman- I purchased the material from) then assemble once starting to dry and tacking up which, is quick. If you miss a bit you have a very brief chance to immediately pull it back a bit but not much. It all worked out quite well however. Substrate was thin marine grade plywood for the door panels, side panels, also the rear panel of the seats, etc. I didn't do the "crash pad".
Jack