Lotus Elan Central

by **browfish** » Wed 10.01.2007, 14:26

I have a 1992 Elan SE turbo. THe exhause has been getting a bit gravely the last few weeks and completley went yesterday. sounds fantastic but need ear plugs to drive it.

I think it is just the back box that has gone. Havent got under the car yet but the back box wobbles when you grab the exhaust so i think it has broken where the pipe goes into the box.

Is this a lotus specific part? How much should i expect to pay at the garage.
thanks

by **Enright** » Wed 10.01.2007, 14:54

Don't go to a garage.
Either get one from SJ Sportscars (do a quick search on the net), or use the search facility on here for Peco. There's a great opportunity to get a quality performance full stainless steel system.
Or PM me as I have a bought quite a few low mileage parts but then did an upgrade so never used them anyway.

by **browfish** » Wed 10.01.2007, 14:59

What difference will a stainless steel system make? Sorry, im not a mechanic.

What is the difference in price between that and a standard? Are they easy to fit. I am in the process of building a house so i dont have much time to fiddle around under the car. I can either pay a garage to do it or pay labour to help me on the house.

thanks for the help

by **Enright** » Wed 10.01.2007, 15:31

A stainless steel system won't rot.

If you go for the big bore Peco then your engine can breathe up to 25% better and so will make noticeably more power. It's probably double the price (at around £300) but it will last the lifetime of the car.
The only problem is in some cases fitting a big bore exhaust can lead to the turbo over-speeding. The ECU senses this and has a built-in failsafe which momentarily cuts the fuel off. This is called "boost creep" and it can be a bit of a shock if you're not prepared for it! To permanently cure it you have to remove the turbo and bore out the wastegate by a few mm.

If you're not a mechanic then fitting even a standard complete exhaust is probably best left to the professionals. After 15 years they can be a nightmare of siezed fasteners, and without a proper lift you'll struggle for room to work under the car.

Depending on how good you are at sweet-talking your local Kwik Fit, you should be able to take the parts in and get it done for between £20 and £40.

But hey, don't listen to me - I'm a Stupid Boy! :lol:

by **GeoffSmith** » Wed 10.01.2007, 15:38

Good posting Pike.

Most of us had them fitted for ~£20 cash - Friday afternoons are usually quiet and a good time to go. Make sure you get the top dog and not the trainee though.

Geoff

by **browfish** » Wed 10.01.2007, 15:42

Is that around £300 for the whole system or just the back box?

If a bigger exhaust means more power then you might have twisted my arm. Jsut why oh why did i decide to buy a new bathroom on my credit card this month...

Might have to go and talk to kwik fit. Jsut to check, i am not damaging th car by driving it around am i. Just maybe reducing the fuel efficiency a little bit and damaging my ear drums right?

thanks again

by **Siegreen** » Wed 10.01.2007, 15:50

Dave Jones (nice bloke) from PECO in Birkenhead is the guy who fitted mine. Price was £300 for the full exhaust system and £20 for the fitment.
Noticed and immediate improvement in power due the bigger diameter exhaust than the standard anr removal of the CAT. There has been no sign of boost creep for me (some do some dont i guess), and makes a nice sound to boot.

Hope this helps.
Si.

by **browfish** » Wed 10.01.2007, 15:59

didnt think of the CAT and wasnt sure if they even had one.
Does that price include a new cat or is that on top? or is this seperate and doesnt need replaceing?

Scary thing is i have a Masters in mechanical engineering from the best engineering univerisity in europe but i know bugger all about cars.

by **GeoffSmith** » Wed 10.01.2007, 16:07

N/A & SE = no cat. S2 = cat.

Doesn't matter either way though because the exhaust is complete from the downpipe to the tail (without a cat) and the S2 retains the pre-cat which does enough to pass the MoT.

by **Siegreen** » Wed 10.01.2007, 16:08

Sorry wasnt looking closely, with you having an SE there shouldnt be a CAT fitted unless some after market exhaust was put on with a CAT ant think of any reason why that would happen sheer madness!)
The price is the full system (No CAT) and you needent have one fited as the SE being pre 95 when CAT's were introduced doesnt need one fitted and people with S2's have said that there's still pass the emissions test anyway. (mines not due for a while yet so havent tested this out).
Dave reckons he got just over extra 20 Bhp with the PECO and i dont doubt him.
In my opinion is a good upgrade to have, specially if your exhaust has given up the ghost anyway.

Regards
Si.

by **browfish** » Wed 10.01.2007, 16:23

Oooo 20 bhp extra.....
Stop trying to make me spend money.
£300 versus £30 for second hand ss silencer that i have been offered.
Think i might have to sleep on it.

Also it is going up on the ramps around the corner for a quote so they should be able tell me if it is just the back box or not.

I did plan on spending some money on it this year but wasnt planning on the exhaust.

Thanks again

by **Dico** » Wed 10.01.2007, 17:52

Find another £100 and fit Alans chip for anything up to an extra 40 bhp!!

(with exhaust)

Alans busy at the moment but you can still put a request in.

Then get yourself some brakes, quaife, rollbar, assco flywheel, 6 puck clutch......

by **GeoffSmith** » Wed 10.01.2007, 17:55

Dico wrote:Then get yourself some brakes, quaife, rollbar, assco flywheel, 6 puck clutch......

Careful Paul, he's a lowly paid engineer like me.

by **browfish** » Wed 10.01.2007, 17:58

Dont be silly. Im no lowly paid engineer. Just did the degree. I wasnt stupid enough to stay in it.

Right, just been to the garage and wacked it up on the ramp. Its not just a case of replacing the silencer, the mid section has rusted away so looks like i need to find myself £300

did think about putting the chip in, not researched into it though. Does that affect your insurance though and become a modified car?

by **GeoffSmith** » Wed 10.01.2007, 18:02

browfish wrote:Dont be silly. Im no lowly paid engineer. Just did the degree. I wasnt stupid enough to stay in it.

Well that's me firmly put in my place! :-D

browfish the non-engineer wrote:did think about putting the chip in, not researched into it though. Does that affect your insurance though and become a modified car?

We generally only use the chip on private roads (track days and the like) and the process is fully reversible in a matter of seconds (by a qualified engineer :lol:

).

Geoff

by **browfish** » Wed 10.01.2007, 18:13

"Browfish then non engineer"
Cheeky bugger.

Sorry. I am kind of still an engineer, i just dont tell people. Tends to be a conversation killer.

Do you really only use chips on track days? really? or is that the official story.
Seriously though, are they illegal on the roads or can you insure it?

by **ailwyn** » Thu 11.01.2007, 14:45

browfish wrote:can you insure it?

As long as you can find an insurer to take it (mainstream wont) and are willing to pay the additional premium you can insure anything.

by **ratman** » Mon 12.03.2007, 14:18

my exhaust has gone! it's completely empty inside!!!
I cutted it in order to take out a rusty small part of the inside holed pipe!
after all I close all the several rust holes in the external ply, but it's definitely gone..
can you advice??? has someone a stainless used exhaust for an S2???

by **Dico** » Mon 12.03.2007, 15:59

PaulP has a full system including cat for an S2, not sure if its stainless though. Send him a PM.

by **ratman** » Mon 19.03.2007, 16:28

I tried, but no answer from him.
Anybody knows or has a rear silencer??
thanks!

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