Lotus Elite

[Sam_68]

a8hex said:

Are you sure about the 220 lbs?
I thought the engine was very closely linked to the Imp engine. As a teenage I could lift up the whole long engine gear box and transaxle assembly out of my brother's Imp and later out of my Husky.

IIRC, the Imp engine weighs about 185 lbs/85 kilos, so 220 lbs/100 kilos for the FWE sounds about right to me. Although related and aesthetically very similar, the FWE is physically a bigger engine than the Imp unit.

You must have been a bloody strong teenager if you could lift the whole engine/tansaxle out of an Imp!?

I used to unbolt the rear crossmember then sit under the back of the car with my legs projecting forward under the engine as I unbolted it from the transaxle. The engine would thus drop onto my legs and I'd shuffle out backwards... I wouldn't have attempted to lift the whole engine/transaxle assembly out in one; the transaxle weighs about 30 kilos, I think, so trying to lift/pull 115 kilos out of the hole in the back of an Imp would take a strong back! It was easier to disconnect the doughnuts, mounts and gear linkage if you took the engine out first, too, since you could work from within the engine bay.

Ah, happy days!

[srob]

johnnymaestro said:

srob said:

johnnymaestro said:

Yep there is one over here. My Grandfather has had 2 in period(White S1 and Red S2) The white S1 is now raced in HSCC and we see it regulary.

My uncle now has the S2. He and his twin sister (my mother) used to be squashed in the back as kids and taken all over Eurpoe in it. We recently sold the 11, which will help the ground up resto of the Elite, which will be used for Euro Tours and the like (Not a competition car). It is Red with tan interior, but this is to change, and the final colour combo is still in family discussion.

As a car, I love it. Great design and a lovely drive. we can't wait to get in back.

Sorry to go off topic here, but the formula junior race car in your profile. Is that Bob Dance sitting in it?

Snetterton April 2007. Was trying to figure out the clutch problem.

Thought so - I did my apprenticeship with his Grandson, still good mates with him!

[a8hex]

Sam_68 said:

a8hex said:

Are you sure about the 220 lbs?
I thought the engine was very closely linked to the Imp engine. As a teenage I could lift up the whole long engine gear box and transaxle assembly out of my brother's Imp and later out of my Husky.

IIRC, the Imp engine weighs about 185 lbs/85 kilos, so 220 lbs/100 kilos for the FWE sounds about right to me. Although related and aesthetically very similar, the FWE is physically a bigger engine than the Imp unit.

You must have been a bloody strong teenager if you could lift the whole engine/tansaxle out of an Imp!?

I used to unbolt the rear crossmember then sit under the back of the car with my legs projecting forward under the engine as I unbolted it from the transaxle. The engine would thus drop onto my legs and I'd shuffle out backwards... I wouldn't have attempted to lift the whole engine/transaxle assembly out in one; the transaxle weighs about 30 kilos, I think, so trying to lift/pull 115 kilos out of the hole in the back of an Imp would take a strong back! It was easier to disconnect the doughnuts, mounts and gear linkage if you took the engine out first, too, since you could work from within the engine bay.

Ah, happy days!

Yes, I used to undo the doughnuts and undo all the plumbing. We started by standing the engine on axle stands and pushing the car forward. But as the weight came off the suspension the heights of everything changed. So I starting lifting it, to disconnect things and in the end found it was just easy to just lift it out. Or more likely I probably lifted it in first where it was easier to align everything when lifting by hand. I remember it being more awkward than heavy. But I sure wouldn't attempt it these days. Jaguar XK lumps are a wee bit heavier. The Imp engine was a great little motor and a very easy thing to learn about engines on. I when from there to a Dolomite, which apart from having an iron block seemed to be just like a bigger version of the Imp, only at the other end.

[Ferg]

Sam_68 said:

I agree that a V6 engine misses the point; it's way too heavy for a tiny, light car like the Elite. If I were to build a Spyder chassis'd replica, I think the Rover K-series would be top of the list as being closest in spirit to the Climax FWE.

Hmm...Rover 'K' in a fibreglass monococque coupe perhaps? Sounds like a great idea for a car.

[Ragtop65]

A random thought made me stumble into this thread. Further searching turned up this:

http://www.mk14components.com/index.php/news/item/...

Anyone know the price for a full shell?

I heard somewhere in the distant past that these would not be sold without a salvage car. I wonder it that is still true.

I also wonder if he would lay up a spec of a mix of modern composites and orientations.

I also wonder if a mix of modern replacement components could be used for many of the originals. There has to be a great Bilstein strut that is close enough in dimensions serve as a chapman strut for the rear, for example. Simple to fab parts like A arms could be made up with some basic welding skill and an angle grinder....

Might be fun... if only I had the time.

[marshalla]

Ragtop65 said:

A random thought made me stumble into this thread. Further searching turned up this:

http://www.mk14components.com/index.php/news/item/...

Anyone know the price for a full shell?

About £13.5k - it's on the site. http://www.mk14components.com/index.php/parts-stor...