wind deflector advice please

[mickmick]

Hello all,

my latest mini project i'm planning is to fabricate myself a wind deflector, cos summer is looming fast, and being able to hear the stereo etc etc is always nice when doing some topless stuff.

i have found a source for the material, but what i'd like to know is this:

would it be better to use perspex/acrylic OR lexan/polycarbonate for the deflector screen

from what i have gathered browsing the web, perspex will shatter easier than lexan, but lexan will scratch easier than perspex

so, anyone who has done this before, any nudges in one direction or t'other would be nice

Mick

[Enright]

You could always do what the previous owner of my car did and modify an Oris MX5 one to fit. It looks quite professional. I posted some pics a while back but I can't find the link.

[mickmick]

was thinking along them lines mate, but its all budget budget budget

oh yeah, i have answered your Q in the other thread, glad all is ok with you, cars can be fixed easy

[Enright]

Couldn't find my old post with the pics, but at least I found the pics themselves, so here they are:

[Fubar1764]

I simply put a mesh lycra fabric fabric between the seats, secured to each other with snaps. Very very easy to do. I'll post pics later today.

[chrisP]

I used 6mm tinted perspex on mine and have had no problems with it over the last 2 years. It does not take too much of a pounding from the wind as it sits about 15cm higher than the rear deck.(it doesn't appear to scratch too badly either)

Chris

[Enright]

I have been fitting a mesh wind stop to my 1990 y/m se. I did not want to cut and chop the car to fit it. After a bit of thought i have fixed it to the back of the seats using the cover plate top screws to hold it in place. I can lower and raise the hood without having to move the wind stop.


Billy

http://s247.photobucket.com/albums/gg15 ... C_3252.jpg

http://s247.photobucket.com/albums/gg15 ... C_3236.jpg

http://s247.photobucket.com/albums/gg15 ... C_3244.jpg

http://s247.photobucket.com/albums/gg15 ... C_3246.jpg
http://s247.photobucket.com/albums/gg15 ... C_3250.jpg

Looks quite similar to mine above.

[garymb]

Has anyone any experience of this one-- which appears to be made for the Elan?

classic additions

Looks ok to me altough with just the 2 fixing points and their position I wonder if it might be a bit flimsy and wobble around a bit.

see attached 'fitting instructions'.

[inkitin]

Has anyone any experience of this one-- which appears to be made for the Elan?

classic additions

Looks ok to me altough with just the 2 fixing points and their position I wonder if it might be a bit flimsy and wobble around a bit.

see attached 'fitting instructions'.

A friend of mine has just bought one of these for his S2 Elan. He likes it and is well pleased with the result. I'm fairly sure it doesn't flap about because, knowing him, he wouldn't have accepted that!

As you can just about make out, the deflector brackets use the Map Pocket fixings and then the deflector itself attaches to those brackets. Therefore there is no drilling involved. The deflector can also be left in place because it doesn't foul the operation of the hood, at least on the S2 it doesn't.

It's also on my shopping list for next year !!

Roland

[rival]

Looks nice, but 170 quid delivered isn't cheap.... Anyone fitted one to an SE? Does it foul the hood at all?

James

[dermotbell]

I fitted one to my SE, no problems at all with hood fouling, it's easy to fit and remove. There's no flapping in wind either. Only downside is that the top of the deflector sits in the middle of the rear view mirror and blocks a lot of what you can see.

[rival]

Dermot,

Thanks for that - especially for highlighting the mirror issue. Guess I'll take a look at what installations folks have in their cars at Hethel in a few weeks.

James

[dermotbell]

James

Not sure if it is just my height or whether it happens to others, but even when I removed the spacers on the seat mountings it made no difference.

[CJ101KT]

I discovered Classic Additions at Silverstone Classic this year and ordered one there and then. I am very impressed with the deflector, fits perfect, doesn't 'foul' the hood at all and works ofcourse ... here are a few photos! Also I am hoping to hear back from them soon about having a discount from them if you are a Lotus Drivers Club Member ... will keep you posted

[rival]

Looks good. But it does appear in the photo that the top bar is level with the mirror as Dermot posted earlier. How are you finding the rear visibility?

James

[CJ101KT]

Looks good. But it does appear in the photo that the top bar is level with the mirror as Dermot posted earlier. How are you finding the rear visibility?

James

Okay you've got me there. The top bar is, lets put it like this, straight through the line of sight of a cars headlights if being followed at a normal distance. It is challenging when reversing with the hood up as both the rear window and deflector cloud the view 85% so it is a slow manoeuvre. The deflector could be bought and used just when you are out on a sunny day though as it is dead simple to attach and no less idea than a car cover when it comes to putting it on and off.

Personally I like it 100%, quality built and does the job ... even looks top notch on the car!

[lotos]

I simply put a mesh lycra fabric fabric between the seats, secured to each other with snaps. Very very easy to do. I'll post pics later today.

It's been a LOOONG day I'd love to see what you did, Jack.

[tweetdriver63]

I simply put a mesh lycra fabric fabric between the seats, secured to each other with snaps. Very very easy to do. I'll post pics later today.

It's been a LOOONG day I'd love to see what you did, Jack.

I've seen some on ebay before (not for the Elan) that slip down over the headrest part of the seats, leaving a mesh panel between. It seems like something like that would be fairly simple to make, but I don't know how it would look compared to these others.

[davidjt]

Not sure if I'm allowed to borrow (hi-jack?) this thread; if not I'll doubtless get 'moderated' elsewhere.

Anyway, I have a Mazda-type windbreak, never fitted, which has been overtaken by events - i.e. new Roll Hoops.
So I'm open to offers - say 2/3 of whatever they fetch on e-bay.

[lotos]

Sounds good - you've got a PM