Dealing with leaky roof

[Gruffy]

How does everybody manage? Any tricks/advice?
I know we're due for some rotten weather over the next few days and I'd love to be better prepared than I was at the weekend (when I got soaked).

Gruffy

[Pack Man]

make sure your windows are fully closed, my drivers side tends to drop a bit and leave a gap.
Also carry a towel or as I've got a chamois leather covered sponge thing, one to wipe inside of windows and mop up water!!
Or water proofs!!

[thub]

I presume you mean the soft top? Aside from a clean and re-proof it's important to get it properly centred when it's fitted. Then check the glass alignment. (Both Seloc and the Lotus BBS have plenty of information on this.)

Another trick is to close the doors with the glass slightly lowered and then to raise it again once you're in with the doors closed. Not easy from the outside, of course!

[Gruffy]

Yeah I carry 2 tea towels at all times
I have a shower-cap on order (for the car, not me) but in the meantime, given the weather we're about to suffer, I was hoping for a temporary fix.

I was thinking about making rain channels out of Vaseline or something as I reckon I'll need a wetsuit to get in after a night left out in proper rain

Gruffy

[StuartB]

Elemental Shower Cap

I got one second hand, while it isn't completely water tight, it does stop 99.9% of the rain, which means none gets inside the car.

It takes seconds to fit!

If you can't afford it, I found that if you buy lots of bar towels from eBay (or nick them from pubs) and leave them under the winder handles that also does help a lot

[X-Box]

Out of interest, how are the new '04 roofs doing?

[adrnbtt]

I have a 03 car with the "rubber cups" fitted retrospectively by a dealer , still leaks a little but a very very little . They do look alittle weird though :-)

[adrnbtt]

I have a 03 car with the "rubber cups" fitted retrospectively by a dealer , still leaks a little but a very very little . They do look alittle weird though :-)

[MarkPH]

Asked the question of my local Lotus dealer & they told me that you can't stop the leaks - a design problem with the S1 soft top roof! The water gets down into a 3 way joint & only has one way to go - down into the car & onto the sill plate - or leather pad.

They reckon that even proofing the soft top will do no good at all!

Mark

[StuartB]

If you proof the hood completely then the water should in theory bead off. The water only gets in because of wicking along the edge.

That though is theory, I would still suggest you look for a shower cap

[AndyV]

Clean and Fabsil the roof each time you wash and wax. Had exact same problem with mine when I bought it earlier this year but this seems to do the trick. That said......i'm still gonna get a shower cap.

[steff]

Theres only one way to properly waterproof your elise and that inlvolves a golf umbrella and a 205/55/16 tyre.

HTH

[S Works]

How about getting some duct-tape to make home made extensions to the L and R-hand edges of the soft-top. Water will run off and down the windows rather than getting in the gaps at the front corners where it usually does (minimally).

It's great stuff is duct-tape, love it I do