Lotus Elan and Lotus Elan Plus 2 Forums

How do I reset to zero the tripmeter on the the Smiths Speedometer/Odometer?

I saw in a manual that the airhorn needs periodic lubing. I am wondering how to get lubricant down the little hole on top of the compressor. Should I just spray some lubricant into the hole?

Is there any way to adjust the instrument panel lights? MIne are extremely dim and probably reflect multiple bulb outages.

Craig- 1969 non federal LHD Elan +2 #2305

Fourducs wrote:How do I reset to zero the tripmeter on the the Smiths Speedometer/Odometer?

I saw in a manual that the airhorn needs periodic lubing. I am wondering how to get lubricant down the little hole on top of the compressor. Should I just spray some lubricant into the hole?

Is there any way to adjust the instrument panel lights? MIne are extremely dim and probably reflect multiple bulb outages.


Craig- 1969 non federal LHD Elan +2 #2305

Last time I looked, the only way to (legally) get this Speedo/Odo to show 0 was to drive it to that point - and it is frowned on to open it up and twiddle the dials as has been done in the past.

Dim lights? Could be the rheostat (do they still have them?) is going bye-bye or the usual suspects such as bad grounds etc.

Thanks, but I am not talking about zeroing the odometer. Just resetting the tripmeter.

There should be a metal reset in the lower dash trim for the trip counter. Likely between steering wheel and door.

Common for the lights to be dim. Might have luck fitting new bulbs or changing out for led bulbs. (Don't fit a led to the ignition light).

Could also remove gauges and give a good cleaning.

LED lamps is the way to go.
They are a simple plug in replacement and easy to fit (once you have managed to get there)
All lamps in my car are now LED except the Headlamps and ignition warning.
The instrument lamps come in three different fittings, push in, screw and bayonet so check first. If any of your instruments are not original they may have different fittings.
One small drop of oil at a time on the compressor lubricating hole may be absorbed by capillary attraction. It does not need much. Mine does not have a hole and I had to strip it down to oil the bushes.
Eric in Burnley
1967 S3SE DHC

This is great advice guys. Thanks much for your feedback. I have another question.

I am trying to remove the lens which covers the left front turn signal (indicator). I have removed the two screws which secure it. Still it is reluctant to pop out and I am very reluctant to apply much pressure in prying it out. What is the trick to removing the cover? Does it need to slide in one direction or the other?

Fourducs wrote:Thanks, but I am not talking about zeroing the odometer. Just resetting the tripmeter.

Oops!

Fourducs wrote:This is great advice guys. Thanks much for your feedback. I have another question.

I am trying to remove the lens which covers the left front turn signal (indicator). I have removed the two screws which secure it. Still it is reluctant to pop out and I am very reluctant to apply much pressure in prying it out. What is the trick to removing the cover? Does it need to slide in one direction or the other?

Last time I did this it was that the foam gasket underneath had 'welded' to both the body and the edge of the lens which kept the lens in place.

Hello, here is a snap of my odometer reset cable on my rhd +2 if it helps. As with illumination, I have just fitted led bulbs ( inside and outside) and it is better.Regards Steve

ericbushby wrote:LED lamps is the way to go.
They are a simple plug in replacement and easy to fit (once you have managed to get there)
All lamps in my car are now LED except the Headlamps and ignition warning.
The instrument lamps come in three different fittings, push in, screw and bayonet so check first. If any of your instruments are not original they may have different fittings.
One small drop of oil at a time on the compressor lubricating hole may be absorbed by capillary attraction. It does not need much. Mine does not have a hole and I had to strip it down to oil the bushes.
Eric in Burnley
1967 S3SE DHC

This came up in a recent thread. If your car has the 'brake lights are also indicators' arrangement (I am not familiar with the LHD non-federal spec) then a LED won't work in the indicator repeater on the dash either without a bit of rewiring.

Hi Andy,
yes, I read that as well but did not understand it.
My car is an S3 with standard rear lights which have stop/tail bulb and separate indicator bulb. The only modification needed was to fit a suitable relay for the indicators. This was supplied with the LEDs and was also a plug in replacement. No wiring needed.
Cheers
Eric in Burnley
1967 S3SE DHC

The tripmeter reset pokes out of the bottom of the case and normally has an extension flexible cable pinned onto the reset rod. The extension cable terminates at a knob that you can twist and is normally just behind the knee level trim under the steering wheel.

I don't recall off hand whether or not you need to gently pull down on the knob to engage the resetting mechanism.

You can see the extension rod on this diagram: https://lotuselan.net/wiki/MJ_-_Electri ... ed_-_Early


That's for the 2-seater.

It seems the +2 has a different speedometer and the reset connection pokes out of the back, requiring a flexible reset (mechanical) cable.

The photos and diagrams are very helpful. Thanks guys.

Any recommendations for replacement headlamp bulbs with the goal of improving illumination? Both of my headlamps work fine, but I would prefer them to be brighter if there is an easy plug in and go solution. My car still has a generator if that makes any difference as to what the electrical system can handle.

Dunno what the regulations are in the USA, but in the UK we are not allowed to just put LED bulbs in our headlights, its must be a whole new headlight unit with reflector etc, designed from scratch to work with LED bulbs.