Lotus Elan Central

I thought I’d change the classification of the thread because I appear to be moving past the changing radiator subject. The rad and aircon condenser have been removed along with the fans and the radiator mounting frame.The top transverse beam was badly rusted and as welding it insitu would have been extremely difficult, it needed to come out. Some of the mounting screws sheared so the only option was to gain some space so that the clam shell would clear the upstanding at the rear of the beam The head lights, motors, brackets and front clam mountings bolts allowed the front to be lifted a tadge and the beam came out. Thankfully because I was not looking forward to removing the clam. So today I’ve been making plates out of steel to weld in tomorrow. I’ll collect the new rad from coolex, the new hoses from Merlin and the new fed spec condenser from S & J sportscars when I’m back in Blighty. I’m wondering if it’s worth while changing the timing belt, bits and the water pump whilst I’ve got the wheel arch off and the mental inclination. The car hasn’t done any mileage since I last did them but that was 17 years ago

Absolutely. There’s a time (as well as mileage) change period on the cambelt - 5 years. So you’re well overdue. If it were me, I’d be changing the tensioner, the two auxiliary belts and the water pump at the same time.

There are two brands of water pump with slightly different profiles. I can’t off the top of my head recall which one is correct for the Elan, but Dave Pink has a list of all the necessary components for a belt change which he has posted on here somewhere. They’re all available at reasonable prices and speedily delivered from RockAuto in the US

cellaway wrote:I thought I’d change the classification of the thread because I appear to be moving past the changing radiator subject. The rad and aircon condenser have been removed along with the fans and the radiator mounting frame.The top transverse beam was badly rusted and as welding it insitu would have been extremely difficult, it needed to come out. Some of the mounting screws sheared so the only option was to gain some space so that the clam shell would clear the upstanding at the rear of the beam The head lights, motors, brackets and front clam mountings bolts allowed the front to be lifted a tadge and the beam came out. Thankfully because I was not looking forward to removing the clam. So today I’ve been making plates out of steel to weld in tomorrow. I’ll collect the new rad from coolex, the new hoses from Merlin and the new fed spec condenser from S & J sportscars when I’m back in Blighty. I’m wondering if it’s worth while changing the timing belt, bits and the water pump whilst I’ve got the wheel arch off and the mental inclination. The car hasn’t done any mileage since I last did them but that was 17 years ago

im not a big fan of the "5 year rule" for timing belts, but i stil follow it. but even at the longest stretches of belt age. i think 17 years is definetly overdue for the belt.

The transverse beam is repaired. Sheared bolts drilled and re tapped, radiator and condenser mountings replaced. Hopefully back into the car this afternoon. Thankfully I didn’t need to take the clam shell off.
Chriso

The beam’s back in, next anti rust paint and wax oil. After that the fans. Admin wise, I’m awaiting a rendezvous with the douanes to get an assessment on how much importing the car into France will cost. Then applying for the Carte Grise

I've just had a request from the douane for a selection of prices of recently advertised comparable cars so they can make an "accurate" assessment of the value of the fed spec. From classic car, I found and submitted four adverts ranging from a project at £3000 to an excellent example at £6500 , I'm continually amazed at the value of Elan M100's. Yes! they're highly awkward and relatively expensive to maintain but what excellent value for a classic car.

Chriso,

I don't know what lengths they (the Customs people) need to go to to decide how much you need to pay (if anything) for duty dependent on value, but I would be happy to supply a suitable letter if they require something from a "Club".

Hi
Just thought I'd provide some useful info re importation/obtaining equivalent of V5 (carte grise over here in France)

"I’m awaiting a rendezvous with the douanes to get an assessment on how much importing the car into France will cost. Then applying for the Carte Grise"

- Surprised the Customs (Douane) haven't told you how to proceed! In theory, for the evaluation, you should be able to produce:
- a UK MOT certificate (if that's where vehicle has come from) with validity not exceeding 6 months
- a copy of the sales transaction (if purchased from a private individual or a garage) stating the value paid for said vehicle
- the original V5C certificate (proof of vehicle registration providing all information VIN etc)
most important : a French automobile expert's inspection report stating the vehicle's condition and an estimate of its value. Cost around 300€. This will allow the Customs to put a value on the car.

Once you've satisfied the Customs, you'll then have to pay the value estimated by them in order to obtain the 846A Form required for registering the vehicle over here (carte grise).

For obtaining the carte grise, the goverment agency ANTS will require:
- the 846A form (French customs) (photocopy)
- the original UK MOT Certificate (not exceeding 6 months) (photocopy)
- a newly conducted French MOT (contrôle technique) for the imported vehicle (photocopy)
- a photocopy of the original V5C UK certificate
- Most important : A Type Approval certificate from LOTUS (Andy Graham - Lotus Archives) - around 139,00€ pertaining to your Elan M100 (photocopy)

That's roughly it. Up to you to decide whether it's a viable transaction.
At you disposal for any additional info.
Regards David

Thanks for the advice and offers of help. I'll keep you informed.

The fans are back in. Bloody awkward. Now it's just fitting the samco hoses, all 14 of them, fitting the radiator and condenser and fitting the bumper after I get back from Blighty. I suppose, the flexible brake pipes need looking at and then the Jamie supplied seals and we should be good to go

Back from Blighty with a new radiator, aircon condenser. Samco hoses, various cage bots, riv nuts, timing belt and bits, braided brake lines, door seals and extra tools to do the job. I’m looking forward to this next bit.Jennifer is looking forward to the ease of pressure on the bank balance

Impressive work, the fed radiator is at a weird angle!

It looks like to get the radiator in, you have to take off the rad and fan mounting bracket. The rad can be temporarily supported by the bottom hose and the condenser by the two pipes. I can’t see how the top radiator spigots are going to go over the mounting lugs with the grommets in place. The holes in the lugs are almost the same size as the spigots. I’ve put silicone grease in the center hole but they still don’t want to go. Can the grommets be omitted?

cellaway wrote:It looks like to get the radiator in, you have to take off the rad and fan mounting bracket. The rad can be temporarily supported by the bottom hose and the condenser by the two pipes. I can’t see how the top radiator spigots are going to go over the mounting lugs with the grommets in place. The holes in the lugs are almost the same size as the spigots. I’ve put silicone grease in the center hole but they still don’t want to go. Can the grommets be omitted?

Perhaps you can remove the grommets and open the holes up a bit?

cellaway wrote:It looks like to get the radiator in, you have to take off the rad and fan mounting bracket. The rad can be temporarily supported by the bottom hose and the condenser by the two pipes. I can’t see how the top radiator spigots are going to go over the mounting lugs with the grommets in place. The holes in the lugs are almost the same size as the spigots. I’ve put silicone grease in the center hole but they still don’t want to go. Can the grommets be omitted?

did you get a new radiator from coolex by any chance ?

Personally I wouldn't leave the grommets off, I don't like rattles in cars, and if the rad moves enough to come into contact with a fan......

The grommets are likely ~30 years old, even new ones have probably been sitting in a warehouse somewhere since the '90s. When I fitted my coolex rad I put the grommets in boiling water for a few minutes to get some elasticity back in them, then used silicon grease and even then it was a struggle to get them in, but they did eventually go in.

Good idea about the grommets. I still haven’t worked out the better order of work. The top condenser mounting bolts appear to have to in before the radiator. This means that the fans have to come out to allow the radiator to go in from the back.

Radiator, condenser, sealing strips in. Mounting brackets and torsion rods in. Then I thought that I’d better think about fitting the new hoses before the the fans and number. I should have thought about the hoses before the rads. There’s a bit more room. The bottom hose’s top clip looks a nightmare. Hopefully I’ll be able to get at it with a combination of extensions from underneath however that will probably depend on the orientation of the clip screw. What were the engineers at Lotus thinking ?

Most of the new hoses are fitted. 4 left to find homes for when the weather is drier. Then the timing belt and bits to fit. Change the fluids, the new door and hood seals, brake cables and she’ll be there or there abouts, or am I getting in front of myself. I mean what could go wrong ?

All the new hoses are in. 35 year old jubilee clips can be fun and a couple of hoses I had to cut to get them out. The next thing is to refit the fans, but as usual not enough room, so I’ve re dropped the mounting bracket. The right hand fans’ top M4 mounting bolt is impossible. The diagonal brace is seriously in the way but I can’t believe that you have to remove it to get the fans in, so there must be a way. Any suggestion from the fed spec owners ?
Chriso