Lotus Elan and Lotus Elan Plus 2 Forums

Mark, I've found them, well at least the stalks, they were in a white envelope rather than the usual clear plastic bag. Thanks Brian too, for the pics, I know now what I have to do. I tried getting the black plastic bit off an old switch, but they're so firmly glued on it just broke, so back to the drawing board

Nice shiny bits straight from the re-chromers today


Also had a go at making the little brackets for the tenax fasteners at the corners of the crashpad based on the pics from Rdent and the impressions left in my crashpad



Reckon they're not too bad although I have yet to fit them. Assuming these are painted black?

Just thought I'd have ago at "adapting" a couple of old switches to make ends for the window catches. Not too bad I think


Just had to choose the cheaper type switch that does not have a metal insert. Then just cut off at the required length and very carefully drill a 3mm hole down it's centre and glue with araldite. Job's a carrot

Also fitted (not easy ) the tenax fasteners and their brackets (what I made earlier ) in the corners of the crashpad.

I think they look alright, but whether they're in the right position???? I'll find out in due course I expect, that's IF I get a tonneau which is hardly a priority yet
Thanks to everyone who helped with the info to be able to complete these.

It may become a priority if the hood and / or roof don't fit

When you do get a tonneau you have to fit the other side of the fastener to it....so it will line up!

Fine looking catches.
Mark

Returned from our week in the sun resolved to get to grips with this pesky slave cylinder. There was no way I was going to be able to bleed it properly where it was and I was reluctant to take the whole exhaust system off including the headers. So, it was the remote bleed system solution. I already had the old slave that had a seized cylinder and I made sure by cutting it a tad shorter and filling the remainder with metal putty. Where to put it though? Considered many places , but settled on the engine compartment lower bulkhead in the well below where the screen wash container is fitted. The head protrudes into the back of the wheelarch and the body is almost hidden in the well. Here's a pic:

I may have to fabricate a cap of sorts to keep out the crap!
Then came the connecting it up to the real slave. WELL!!! I've had some crappy, fiddly jobs on a car before, but this takes the biscuit. There's only room to get one, left, hand in the gap between the slave and the bell housing. A small spanner can only move one flat at a time IF you can get it on in the first place and IF you can get the screw started by hand. I drpped the bolt and washers more tmes than I care to recall and it continues to amaze me how long it can take to find a washer that has just dropped onto the floor next to your left earhole And then when I thought I had it together there was a leak, so that I had to take it all apart and start again It's taken the best part of two, yes 2, days to get it all together. The air was blue with a select collection of expletives and I admit to a couple of crying sessions in the corner In the end I SHOULD have removed the exhaust system it would have been easier and quicker. STRONG advice to others faced with a similar issue OR.....BLEED THE F_F_F_FLIPPING SLAVE BEFORE YOU FIT THE HEADERS!!!!!!
Sorry for the rant and going on a bit, but I feel SO much better now....thanks

Is that copper pipe your clutch line? Is it 'hard wired' all the way to the master? If so, not a good thing when the engine and transmission will be vibrating/shaking and the master is not, the line will crack eventually.

Good point! The copper pipe only goes as far as the 'real' slave cylinder in the bell housing. The remote connector is not rigidly fixed to the bodywork, but can move a little to absorb vibration, but I can always fit a short flexi to the remote for peace of mind. The real slave is connected to the master by a braided flexi pipe.

Leaks, leaks, leaks Finally got the replacement temp/oil gauge fitted and started her up again. Starts quite well, but takes a minute until it warms a bit to really tick over nicely. Let her run for a while and really heat up and there are leaks everywhere
First the rad leaks, I first thought it was a hose connection, but no the rad itself, a Marsten original, is leaking along a bottom seam. So I've pulled it out and taken it down to our local rad repair centre. The guy there was bemused by how little solder there was along all seams. He will clean it out , pressure test and resolder as necessary.
Secondly the vacuum system leaks The headlamps only rise slowly and never fully. They also immediately drop when the switch is closed. I can hear a leak at the connection to the switch and there's probably others. I haven't used any clips to join the rubber to the PVC pipe as I thought the fit was tight enough, but should I have done? Will work systematically round all connections in due course.
Thirdly the rocker cover gasket leaks (surprise, surprise ) I can fix this easily enough ( hope springs eternal )
Fourthly the exhaust manifold leaks at the head connection, a small trickle of black oil from the 2nd and 3rd gasket. I found I could tighten the nuts at least another turn or two, so I'm hoping that will fix it, but is there a more sinister reason for such a leak? Valve guides? Mixture too rich? The oil in the sump and leaking from the cam cover is clean and clear, not black like this.
I hate having to deal with these annoying little set backs when there's so much else to get on with. I'm still not satisfied with the clutch operation, so that's something else to sort.
Oh well, onwards and upwards!

Well Geoff, it's exactly a year now since you collected the flatpack Elan.

In exchange for the 1 years parts and labour warentee provided, which has now just expired, I seem to remember that we agreed that the title of the car reverts to me, free of all charges, should you not get it on the road and MOT'd within 4 weeks of the 1 year anniversary.

Should I be making space in the garage for the end of April?



I hope it's all still going well and you're sorting the little stuff!

Cheers...Mark

Hi Geoffers,
I am following your progress with much interest as I was a complete novice when I acquired my S4 DHC partly restored in 2010. I too had issues with oil leaks and a troublesome clutch, the former being easily rectified by going over all sump screws/bolts plus re-fitting the rear sump cork gasket properly, now it only has minor leaks which are hardly worth doing much other than wiping the underneath of the engine and gearbox after a run. The clutch was a completely different story. firstly it did not release till the pedal was almost at the floor even after several attempts at bleeding it till I finally put a length of 1/4" tubing from the bleed valve back into the master cylinder and pumped the pedal many times till all air finally disappeared. The other problem was clutch shudder even though the entire clutch was new( 8" Cortina pressure plate). I discovered that some other Aussies had the same problem which we solved by changing to an 81/2" pressure plate from a 1984 Mitsubishi Sigma which fits perfectly and has a softer friction surface- now I have no shudder even on hill starts at traffic lights.
I look forward to the next installment.

Oh no Mark, I didn't read the small print although I vaguely remember a clause which stated that your other two Elans would be taken in exchange Seriously though a year already, where HAS the time gone.
Anyway leaks now fixed, well as much as most Elans can say I suppose. Radiator was sent for re-soldering around top and bottom tanks. It's a Marsten rad and , interestingly, the repairer commented on how well built and strong it was particularly compared with the usual Stanpart ones, which he said were rubbish
Leak in the vacuum system was near the switch end, which when fixed now works well. Lamps rise immediately and stay up even for 20 mins after the engine switched off when they gradually start to sink. The adapted spring on the RH pod seems to work well ( do try and keep up ). Happy with that I think.
Oil leaks are better with a tweak to the nuts ( ooer )
Ordered the right vinyl for the door trim and surrounds and the underlay from my local trimmer. I also showed him my seats. I was concerned to keep them looking original, but was a bit taken aback by the cost of the original style covers that you can buy. As the centre panel, with the welded seams were virtually unmarked, he thought it easy enough to reuse these and only replace the sides that needed it. New foam too if needed. I've used him before ( about 28 years ago he rebuilt my S3 Coupe seats in leather and the job was superb) so I'm confident the results will be perfect. Estimated price too was excellent, about a third of the new covers.
I've repaired the cant rails too, will post pics to show what I did when I have a minute.
Ordered a hood from Don Hoods, who supply Pal Matty, and a windscreen from SJ.
Still not happy with the clutch, so anything worth trying, thanks for all the suggestions.

So, what have I been up to since I last posted, I hear you all say Well as a bit of a diversion from fixing little niggly problems which seem to take a disproportionate amount of time I decided to have a look at the cant rails. These were in a very poor condition and I contemplated buying new ones. The price of these were however too much for an old skinflint like me, so refurbishment was the only way forward, The flanges were broken away and the ends broken or missing.

I ground back the surrounding good gel coat and laid up successive layers of GRP resin and mat. When dry I then trimmed to shape.




The gutters were very poor and beyond just polishing. More severe treatment would have removed much of the anodising, so the only recourse was to remove them, flat them back with W&D and to prime and paint with gloss aluminium spray paint, The GRP part of the rail was also flatted back and resprayed black

Not too bad I reckon. I still have to fit the tenax fasteners and hood poppers when they arrive.
I've tried them out on the car with the hood crossbars and it looks and fits fine, although I'm puzzled by the front female fixings on the windscreen surround as the threaded part seems too long. they protrude about a 1/2" into the car , which doesn't look right. Is there anything that fits on the end? Sun visors perhaps? Does an S2 actually have sun visors?
I've also cut out the door surround cards using the old ones as a pattern. These have been soaked in 2 coats of thinned varnish to ensure they're soaked right through.

One thing that is also puzzling (only one ). These appear to be fixed to lugs that are welded to the door surroud lattice, but these lugs are not flush with the door aperture, so it would be difficult to screw the cards to them. Should these lugs be flush? Or are they packed out with something to bring them flush? I realise that the lattice could have been repaired/replaced at sometime, which would explain why I now have the problem.

Nice work on the cant rails, Geoff.

There's only one fixing on the windscreen surround, see photo below, unless my early car is different. The popper fastener is secured by a self-tapper into a thick part of the frame. The S2 didn't have visors of provision for them. Could you show a picture please?

The lugs on the lattice should be in line and can be bent into position easily. What material did you use for the panels, the originals were just hardboard I believe?

Thanks Meg for your reply and the helpful suggestions (nice to know someone is reading my posts ). I have the popper screwed in as per your 'photo, the bit I'm talking about is the female part that the cant rail fits into


Sorry that the pics are a bit blurred, but you see what I mean about how the threaded part juts out into the car. It's obvious they've always been like that which made me ask if anything was attached to them. BTW mine seem to be much thinner walled, quite flimsy in fact when compared with yours,
Yesterday I also fitted the 9" electric fan. it's manually operated by a switch under the steering column and has it's own relay

I've also changed the remote clutch slave bleed nipple by making up my own extension

The flexi pipe has too tight a bend in it at the moment, so it will have to be moved down a couple of inches, BUT I think I now have a reasonable clutch action. Well at least the pedal only moves about an inch before resistance is felt and there's another 3" at least of pedal travel - does that sound about right? - though I haven't tried it yet with a running engine and selecting a gear.

....................just another viewpoint from switzerland: a spyder chassis is NOT original and you won?t get the sought after 6 year (7 to 8 in reality) MOT freedom. so of course that also influences the value. there may be other places on the planet where they offer a similiar service for 30 year (and more) old cars which you automatically get if 100% original and 100% restored --- many cars, like mine have two sets of certain parts: none of the TTR, AP racing, 310? cams etc. go thru easily!!!!! cheers sandy - enjoying elan territory in the alps
PS replaced one / 1 of the rear handbrake pads: the other 3 were still good?%?##**??!!