Help needed!

[clivetonge]

A long shot, but I?m looking for any help in identifying this repatriated Plus 2. It was exported to Sweden in 1984 and returned in 2016 having been bought by an enthusiastic and serial car collector here in Leamington. Unfortunately, there is no VIN plate or UK/DVLA specific identification on the car. The Swedish paperwork uses the Lotus replacement chassis (sorry, subframe!) number.

I have been in touch with Alan Morgan and Andy Graham, both very helpful but without a chassis/VIN number or original UK registration number we are going round in circles!

So, what we have is probably a 130S:
Unit number from rear of engine bay 2711
Build year 1970 (reference Lotus Cars archive based on the unit number)
Registration year possibly 1971 (based on Swedish paperwork)
(Stromberg) engine number 18050B (a 1969 engine according to Lotus archives)
Lotus replacement chassis 50LR66

She has:
4 speed gearbox
Remote boot lid pull in the driver?s door jamb
Fold down rear seat backs to create load space
Steel wheels with chrome rims/three eared spinners
No steering lock
6 (small) dial dash
Fog lights
Metallic light blue paint with silver stripe

I?ve looked under the tunnel trim for any further clues but am loath to pull trim off the door trim and headlining as it?s not my car!

If anyone recognizes or remembers the car any information would be great - it would be nice to establish the original VIN number and registration.

I would welcome your thoughts! Thanks in advance

Clive

[alan.barker]

For me it's a 1970 +2S not a 130 big valve.
The Door Trims just unclip 5 minutes very easy.
Have you got any photo of the Engine Bay and is there 3 Fuse boxes which would confirm 1970 +2S model.
Also Lights inside Ashtrays, Red Light on trailing edge of Doors and White Puddle Lights under bottom edge of Doors.
Alan

[Donels]

On mine the unit number is moulded into the doors, boot lid, etc. If you can uncover one of these Andy Graham should be able to give you the VIN. Probably the easiest would be the boot lid where the number is moulded next to the boot catch.

[clivetonge]

Thanks for the responses. I'll need to check the fuse boxes, but she's been rewired by Spyder cars and we've got a blade fuse box inside the glove compartment. I will check further for other unit numbers but Andy at Lotus has already said he can't search by body number i.e.the number on the bulkhead at the rear of the engine bay. We shall delve further!

[SGO 2F]

The 6 small gauges indicates a +2S.
Check out the engine prefix letter: "F" = S/E engine, "P" = 130 engine.
Lotus may be able to trace that number to a Unit Number/VIN.
Cheers,
Richard

[alan.barker]

Does your car have lights inside the Ashtrays + red lights trailing edge of Doors + Puddle Lights bottom edge under Doors.
Alan

[gus]

The vin tag in the windshield was removed?

more pics would help

UK stromberg car?

there should be a body number on the edge of the engine bay behind where the stromberg bump is

not a vin but a approximate date

[Bud English]

Like Donels, my light pods, boot lid, and doors had the unit number (not the body number) cut into them with a rotary tool. You don't have to disassemble anything to see the number on the boot lid. The unit number was also in many places in white crayon. See if your car has these markings and try again with Andy.

[gus]

I don't know if it changed post 1/1/1970 with newer style VIN, but the numbers on the body were always body numbers, which were not related to vin/chassis number, but there is no reason the have to be different. Mine is 37 numbers different. No reason to think that they couldn't be the same number, but they were not meant to be, at least to my knowledge in old style chassis numbers

lotuselan-plus2-f51/does-your-body-number-match-your-chassis-number-t18534.html

[Bud English]

Like yours, Gus, my body number is not the same as the unit number. The molded in body number, 0086, made with Dyno label tape in the mold, is the odd one out. All the other numbers are hand applied and match the unit number, 0053. But then they are Lotus. The only real "standard" way of making them was light and fast. One might even go as far as to say half fast.

[clivetonge]

All good stuff guys, thanks. Will have another crawl round the car, hopefully at the weekend and delve a bit deeper!

[JackFB]

Hi Clive,

I recently bought this car.

Do you manage to pick up further information on it, during your research?

Kind regards,

Jack