Lotus Elan and Lotus Elan Plus 2 Forums

can anyone tell me whether the thermal cutout on the headlight circuit plus 2s130 will rest itself? thanks in anticipation
david

It will, but only after it's given you one hell of a scare when the headlights go out. Relays in the headlight circuit is the answer IMHO.

I went through this drill last Friday, except with the side and panel lights. Had them, then didn't have them. Found the thermal cutout just below the light switch. Stuck my hand in their and it was more than hot. A quick check showed the red/green feeding the cutout was the problem. Apparently, heat over time had caused the female connector on the end of the wire to loose its tension, creating a high resistance connection, which generated significant heat. Got hot enough to melt the protective cover on the connector. A quick repair and a tight fit, and all was well.

Many thanks, the reason for the question was the lights going out, fortunately it wasn't pitch black that evening

Mine used to trip out regularly when I first got it, I think it was the modern 60/55W halogens that were the cause. Rather than reverting back to candles I temporarily looped the thermal cut-out out with an in-line fuse and eventually fitted relays to the circuits, at which point I re-instated the thermal cut-out without problems.

Robbie