Silly Question - FHC Top

[lotusdelta]

I have owned a 72 elan sprint coupe for several years and obviously I'm biased but I think the coupe looks the best .
I never liked the way the window frames obsured the look on dhc's. The early elans didnt have this but you had the odd window screens.
So i bought an elan coupe and a 65 Triumph spitfire mark2 convertible to have the best of top up and down motoring.

I think I had read somewhere that all elans started life as coupes from the mold and dhc were cut at the factory. This supposedly was to steamline the production line and make it more efficient. has anyone ever heard this?
david

[CBUEB1771]

I think I had read somewhere that all elans started life as coupes from the mold and dhc were cut at the factory. This supposedly was to steamline the production line and make it more efficient. has anyone ever heard this?
david

I read this in one of the Elan histories and it just has to be misinformation. As indicated in ealier posts in this thread, cutting the roof off of an FHC leaves just that, an FHC with no roof. DHCs have additional stiffening around the top of the windscreen and attachments for the soft top. I am sure there are other detail differences at the back. The question you have to ask is would Chunky agree to wasting cloth and resin on hardtops to be cut off? Me thinks not. I am no expert but it is possible that the moulds could have been configured to produce either FHC or DHC shells by swopping sections in and out.

[bcmc33]

For the record, when I compared the body of a genuine T45 to my sawn-off T36 ...... I could not detect any visible difference.

I have no real idea of what the conversion kit consists, but I am sure the Lotus specialists would not associate themselves with anything that would not be capable of producing a perfect looking job.


Brian Clarke

[Jolly Jumper]

I agree with all the comments. However modern hoods really are pretty good. So why not get a 'conversion kit' from Paul Matty or similar and go for a good hood. (...) And now bought an Elan copy for my wife [ MX5 of 1995 vintage ] to get the soft top bit!

Richard

Well, modern cars have good hoods. However, a Drophead Conversion Kit is very likely to display the same disadvantages as the original factory design - for obvious reasons. Otherwise it would not look original.
Don't get me wrong, I have a DHC as well and like it very much. But a FHC is a very nice car in it's own right and I still think it is wiser to buy a DHC in the first place, if you want open top motoring.
Looking at adverts, I think actually DHC are in the majority. It is a easier to buy a DHC Sprint than a FHC. Definitely.