Damaged Elan

[Steve A]

If I bought a car that had a damaged roof and the straps had been cut clean through, would that be a major problem to rectify other than getting a new roof .
Also if say the wiper stork got ripped off, is this an easy part to replace?
where's the best place to get spares new and s/h ,are they readily available?
cheers
Steve A

[tigerdog]

:D If I bought a car that had a damaged roof and the straps had been cut clean through, would that be a major problem to rectify other than getting a new roof .
Also if say the wiper stork got ripped off, is this an easy part to replace?
where's the best place to get spares new and s/h ,are they readily available?
cheers
Steve A

Hi Steve! Welcome to the forum. I suggest you deal with the damaged roof the way I have... move to San Diego, California! I've never driven my Elan with the roof up. Seriously, check the Hood/Top and Bodywork forum for several threads regarding the replacement of the top. You can read others' experience and decide for yourself. As for the wiper stork (stalk?) I'm not sure whether you're asking about the wiper arm outside on the windshield or the control stalk on the inside. If you're talking about the stalk on the inside, it's my understanding many of the interior bits are shared with Vauxhall models. This post in the Parts Cross Reference forum seems to answer your question. I hope this helps, or at least makes up for my smart remark at the beginning.

[dapinky]

Steve,

With regards to your queries, I *may* be able to help a bit on one or both, depending on whether my reading is the same as your writing

With regards to the roof 'straps', if you are refering to the elastic webbing which runs front to back and holds the bars in the right place, then I replaced mine with a couple of lengths of 2" black elastic from ebay (about £6 IIRC) but purchasable from any haberdashers locally (if you can still find such places locally!).

The process is quite straightforward and involves the use of a phillips screwdriver, cordless drill and pop rivetter. All in, it was about an hour and a half work and i can talk you through it if you need it.

LGM replaced hers with nylon webbing straps with good results, but I've not tried that route.

For the wiper stalk, if it's the control arm on the steering column, then it's a standard Vauxhall Astra/Cavalier one of the era - and there is a suggestion that it can even be upgraded to include a variable delay on the intermittent wipe by using a Carlton/Vectra arm and a relay for a VW (but i've not actually seen that one done )

Pity it isn't the indicator stalk as I have a brand new spare one I picked up cheap at Donny this year when my indicators were playing up on the way to the show - then they mended themselves on the way home, so i never fitted it

[theelanman]

stalks are simple....
std vauxhall.....£2 each off ebay

[Dico]

Good buy that Steve , you should have plenty of bucks left
Nice colour too!

[Steve A]

Thanks for all that useful information however the car that I was so confident in buying was bought buy someone else , so it's back to scanning the net for another bargin
I'll try not to jump the gun next time
I'm off to wipe the egg running slowly down my face

Steve A