costs?

[antelope]

Hi. Looked at two cars over the last two days.

One needs a new clutch bearing [so new clutch]. Anyone any idea what this would cost?

The other has the standard brake setup...and try as I might, I simply could not do an emergency stop in them. They were truly, truly appalling. Am I right in thinking the HiSpec u/g is about £550?

Thanks
David

[maz_r]

Hi David,

You are correct that upgrading the front brake calipers, discs and pads with the 'Hi-Spec' kit is around the £550 mark, depending on exactly which options you go for. Similar (slightly higher if memory serves) to do the rears too.

Cheers,

Martin.

[antelope]

Thanks Martin...I hadn't realised that it was about 550 quid x 2 to all four wheels...

Is there a cheaper way to do it? Bearing in mind that I'd rather not fit them myself...I'm an OK diy mechanic but don't like the idea of messing about with brakes.

David

[Songbird]

Hi David.. ... Judging by your previous few posts you are an eager beaver and have been very busy trying to find one that is right for you....
For the benefit of other members it would be great if you could briefly list the actual élans that you have test driven and your observations /comments / opinions of the cars....This helps other members avoid long wasted journeys.
Best of luck with your search ........

PS LEC Member and Elan guru surfboardfiller had a well looked after, and rather gorgeous BR green one for sale recently...don't know if he has sold it yet ..but see link below....

viewtopic.php?f=49&t=17340#p227838

[antelope]

errr....OK...but two of them are LEC members/users and I don't want to offend anyone! Actually, one of them has now been sold anyway as far as I know, and the other is an excellent car, but with a...errr....small problem to which I have alluded in this thread...and if I can justify the cost of a fix, I may make an offer, but I'd rather not have the hassle.

Of the other two I've seen, one is this...http://www.pistonheads.co.uk/sales/1672409.htm. When I viewed it, I knew little or nothing about Elans...certainly less than I've learned from this site in the last couple of days...so I wouldn't want to pass judgement on the car from a mechanical perspective. I did think that it felt less powerful than I'd expected, and since experienced in other cars, and the paintwork had suffered from the pinking that often affects red cars. Whether it's to sufficient degree to put a possible vendor off is subjective. But it wasn't for me.

The other car I've looked at, and am sorely tempted by, was this one...http://www.pistonheads.co.uk/sales/1803768.htm. It's an SE but has had S2 wheels added, an S2 roof and an S2 interior. Actually a very smart looking car. But...the brakes were quite appalling in my opinion, and an upgrade would be required for me, which is why I'm trying to determine the cost. The car had a fortune spent on it by the owner prior to the current one [who's owned it for a year - the work was done immediately before he bought the car], includnig a new turbo, what may be a peco exhaust, and one new wishbone, and the underside appears to have been painted with some black material resembling waxoil, which is still sticky to the touch, so I don't know when it was applied. Drove well,as far as my inexperience can tell, although struck me as slightly tail happy. Bodywork was really nice. Very smart car, but I have some research to do on why all this mechanical work was required, and I need to factor in the cost of a brake upgrade. I don't think there's any room for movement on price, so I doubt I'm going to be able to afford this, but I'll find out tomorrow, after a few phone calls, so if you fancy it, please do me a favour and give me first call![I think, with the brake work required, that it's going to be too expensive for me, but it depends on the result of a phone call tomorow.]

Hope that's of some use. As I say, I don't want to undermine anyone's effort to sell a car, who's also a member here, and remember that I don't know these cars well yet....

David

[Songbird]

Many thanx David...
its certainly ok to comment on the results of a test drive / condition ect on here... as it provides a "heads up" for any other members who may be planning a very long round trip to view a car...... Most members usually list the good points, and the not so good points when selling .... The only thing that is activley discouraged is discussing the sellers asking price on open forum ....as opinions differ and this can lead to confrontation and bad feelings...

Best of luck with your search ............oh...and hurry up.... Summers flying by

[Jackonicko]

You can report an asking price. You can say what you paid. But what you can't do is comment on or discuss those prices - either way.

[rip]

Hi David,

You are correct that upgrading the front brake calipers, discs and pads with the 'Hi-Spec' kit is around the £550 mark, depending on exactly which options you go for. Similar (slightly higher if memory serves) to do the rears too.

Cheers,

Martin.

There are other options:

The rear brakes do not & should not provide too much braking effort, so why not just upgrade the pads? Greenstuff are the only upgrade available in the UK, but there are several alternatives available in the US. Check out the thread for brake pads in the Parts cross-reference section.
It is important that the sliders are not seized though.

For the fronts, I have a set of Vectra V6 calipers & Subaru Impreza discs which cost less than half the amount quoted above. They needed a little modification which was performed by the supplier (but so do the HiSpecs I believe). They work very well.

[antelope]

Thanks Rip...may I ask who the supplier of the Vectra/Subaru setup was?...I see I'm not too far from you...

[antelope]

Someone's mentioned using an Astra GTE setup as they say they'd fit straight on..being four stud. Any views anyone? [there are S2 wheels on this car]

[antelope]

OMG, Paul Matty want £1431 +VAT to fit an AP Brake kit to the front only...

And £730 + VAT to fit a new clutch...

[theelanman]

OMG, Paul Matty want £1431 +VAT to fit an AP Brake kit to the front only...

yep thats what the AP set up costs.......
you may aswell have asked for the gold plated brembos while you were at it...
ask PNM engineering about the HiSpec version you should find it about £600 all in
http://www.pnmengineering.com/

And £730 + VAT to fit a new clutch...

the clutch bits are about £300 IIRC so why not buy the parts and fit them yourself...or get a local garage to do it..IIRC its only an isuzu unit so should be within the talents of a local garage.....

[antelope]

I've found someone who will do the work, and source the parts for me at trade prices...but I still need to know exactly what [brake] parts are best....what car, model, year etc... Anyone any advice? Thanks.
David

PS I'll shut up soon...!

[antelope]

Thanks theelanman, I've dropped them a line.

btw. Matt's are quoting ten hours to do this [clutch] job.

[antelope]

Aha...I've just found a load of brake related threads...it's all starting to come clear, sort of. But is the kit from PME as good as Bob's kit? Or are they same? And if the OE rear setup is working as should, is there any need to change it as well?
Thanks.
David

[rip]

Thanks Rip...may I ask who the supplier of the Vectra/Subaru setup was?

A name you've probably heard somewhere.....

Bob Brown

[rip]

Someone's mentioned using an Astra GTE setup as they say they'd fit straight on..being four stud. Any views anyone? [there are S2 wheels on this car]

Yes, the brakes on those were rubbish too.

Use your bigger wheels to fit a bigger disc.