Early Elan +2 steering wheel

[robbi]

Hi, I have just joined the site after visiting many times. I bought this steering wheel a while back and recently tried to fit it to my 67 +2....but the boss it came with is too big to fit the rack.

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Lotus-Elan-Pl ... 7675.l2557

If anyone has the right one they'd consider selling, I'd be more than interested in to hear from you.

At the time of buying I wasn't entirely sure this was the 'correct' wheel, but it is a lot better than the current one and seems to look the part. Can anyone give their view as to whether it is the correct one? As far as I know the originals were Springall, but I can't find a manufacturers mark anywhere.

Bob

[cal44]

Is that a 14" or 15" wheel? Looks to be a 14". Although the boss looks correct I am curious if the early +2 cars used a smaller shaft .

[rgh0]

I believe the early Plus 2 cars used a Ford steering column not the Triumph one so potentially they fitted a different spline on the shaft. The wheel does not have a Chapman signature and has a much thicker rim than standard so I may be one from a Later Plus 2 and have had the black spokes polished when it was modified.

cheers
Rohan

[davidj]

I retrofitted the later (collapsible) steering column into my car, replacing the early solid column. However, the steering wheel transferred across. OK, so the splines and shaft were the same.

David

[robbi]

Hi Guys,

Thanks for your comments. The wheel is 15"....2" bigger than the one currently fitted, actually wondering if it is too big! The bloke I bought it off said it came on a Daimler he bought and a mate advised him it was a +2 wheel.

My +2 is number 9 and having had a look at the workshop manual, assume it has the solid column. I should measure the column, looks to be a centimeter in diameter from observation. Could these first few cars have used a different column?

Cheers,

Bob.

[Elanintheforest]

I've had number 24 and 32 Bob, and they were standard Cortina shaft, and standard 15 inch Chapman wheel.

Mark

[[email protected]]

I have taken some pics, see attached.

The column seems to be 13mm at the threads and probably a mil or two wider at the splines

[S2Jay]

Not sure if this is related or not. Saw this wheel on ebay/us, and I have not heard of this brand or manufacturer. It is not Springall, but ?Springalex?

Is anyone familiar with this steering wheel or this manufacturer?

?Springalex classic steering wheel: fits Triumphs and Lotus Elan
Rare Springalex brand from the U.K.?

This is on eBay / US with a BIN of $119.99. It is 13? with a ?slight dish? and a 36 spline hub. Also comes with the Triumph center badge or the Speedwell badge [maybe both?]. At 13?, I suspect it is more likely intended to be used on an Elan rather than a +2.

I have no connection with this item or the seller.

Jay

[trw99]

Something I wrote for the CL News; there is a table of all the wheels used in Elans and +2s that goes with this but the narrative will do for the moment:

The firm of PD Springall Ltd was the steering wheel supplier to Lotus throughout Elan and Plus 2 production. Peter Springall founded the company in 1957 in a small workshop behind the Railway Hotel, Hornsey close to Lotus. He made steering wheels for the Elite and S2 Lotus 7 and by 1960 had three men working for him, necessitating a move to a larger factory in Hitchin. These early wheels had wood rims but by 1962 leather had become more popular. In addition to Lotus, Springall supplied steering wheels to the Mini Cooper works cars, Ford AVO cars and the Brabham F1 team. 1965 proved a busy and remarkable year for the firm. Springall wheels steered Jim Clark?s F1, F2 and Indy championship cars; they were OEM fitment to Elans, Sevens, Lotus Cortina?s and several other sports car makes. In 1966 Springall entered into a marketing agreement for Alexander Engineering to be their sales agent and the Springalex name was born.

The steering wheel diameters were considered large by the late 1960s and many Lotus wheels were replaced with smaller types by owners. This accounts for the rarity of original wheels now. The second-hand values of good condition Elan steering wheels of all styles leads us to consider them a safer haven than gold! The wooden wheels were potentially lethal; they had no steel rim inside the wood, the spokes being screwed to the wood. In an accident, or even when pushing the car and using the wheel, they had a propensity to shatter rather alarmingly. The introduction of the S2 Elan coincided with the increased popularity of leather wheels, where the steel rim was covered with closed-cell foam, which in turn was covered in black leather. These wheels have a delightful feel to them as the foam padding was minimal, ensuring a slimmer feel compared to other makes of wheel.

Alongside the success of Mini Coopers in competition, which were fitted with Springall wheels with holes drilled in the spokes, many 1960s car owners started to fit replacement steering wheels with similar styles in their cars. It was therefore not surprising when Lotus chose the sporting Springall offering for the S3 SE when it was introduced and thus set the styling precedent for the subsequent Lotus wheels. In fact, the same brushed aluminium rim with 4 drilled holes in the spokes remained the basis for the Elan wheel. It was the use of leather or PVC, whether small leather spats covered the smallest hole or not and whether the downward spoke had Colin Chapman?s signature engraved in or not and diameter that differentiated steering wheels.

With the introduction of the +2S PVC was used as a covering for the first time, probably for cost reduction reasons. The PVC was applied around the closed-cell foam padding and then heat welded around the inside, with a single vertical seam welded at the six o?clock position. Over time the welded seam tended to become brittle and split, proving impossible (so far!) to repair effectively. Many owners have thus had their wheels recovered in leather. The PVC had a tendency to spill over onto each spoke when it was being applied. In an effort to cover this, small leather-covered spring clips or spats were used to enclose the spoke by the smallest hole, closest to where the spoke met the wheel rim. These spats were not necessary for the leather covered wheels. The later Plus 2 S/130 was fitted with the 15? rim with black anodised spokes and a leather rim.

The style of central securing boss and horn push also changed with different Elan versions. For the sake of brevity we have distinguished them as the ?top hat? and the ?ashtray?. The former stands proud of the wheel centre and gently rises to meet the edge of the horn push. The latter, introduced in late 1971, is flatter but wider in design; the Lotus emblem being a smaller part of the horn push and surrounded with a mottled rim, later changed to radiating lines. The font for the word Lotus was changed from the normal badges Informa SC Medium to ITC New Espirit Black at the same time.

Wheels for the Lotus Cortina, Lotus Seven and Europa all differed slightly from the above. For example, the Lotus Cortina wheel was more deeply dished and the Europa wheel had an external boss fixing ring surrounding the horn push. In general terms, it was only the Elan that had wheels with Colin Chapman?s signature engraved on them. Why this should be is not known and the only correlation we can find is that on Springall after-market replacement steering wheels they placed their small blue logo in the same place, at the top of the downward spoke. However, this does not explain the signature exclusion from other Lotus models. There is something very fine about driving the Elan with that iconic signature sitting on the wheel.

Tim

[S2Jay]

Tim,

Many Thanks for the details & history. Another obscure detail clarified.

Someone must have jumped on the ebay Wheel deal, the listing is now gone. I never did see the diameter listed.

Didn't plan to hijack the thread.

Jay

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