Hey New Guys

[jk1]

If any of you guys who didn't get in on the Raid airbag steering wheel Group Buy a few months back are interested in upgrading the hideous GM steering wheel then shoot me an email. I believe the group buy pricing is still available on the wheels.

I also have 5 or 6 adapter kits left and you'll never be able to do the upgrade any cheaper. The kit comes with all the fasteners and electrical connectors needed to install the Raid wheel. There are several Raid styles available which can be seen here: www.tmtuning.com/main/html/main.html

You can see the install procedure here: www.lotusenthusiasts.org/Downloads/FAQ/WheelInstall/Default.asp
Easy mod to do and takes about an hour or two if you really stretch it.

Jim
95 S4s

[kmaier]

Jim,

Thanks for the heads up... I'll check with some of the locals down here... one other V8 owner really liked mine, so there's at least one possible.

Having the raid setup, I can't possibly imagine going back to the original airbag wheel... it's that superior.

Regards, KM
2000 V8

[karmavore]

Can we use ANY Raid wheel from the site you mention?

What are the group buy prices?

What is the cost of the hub adaptor?

Thanks!

Luke.

[jk1]

karmavore said:

Can we use ANY Raid wheel from the site you mention? What are the group buy prices? What is the cost of the hub adaptor? Thanks! Luke.

The adapter is designed specifically for any Raid airbag wheel. If you use a non airbag wheel you may have to modify the adapter. A couple of guys got non airbag wheels but I'm not sure what they did to mount them. Group Buy pricing is available on any Raid wheel listed.

IIRC, the "Freeway" wheel with silver trim was $460 US and the "Daytona" was $550 US plus shipping which was about $40. I'll have to verify that the pricing hasn't changed with TM Tuning but it was still available a month or so ago.

Adapter kit is $180 shipped anywhere in the US.

FWIW, MotoConcept has the exact same setup with the Freeway wheel for about $1200 US.

Jim

[bojangles]

any info out there on the airbag usefulness?
seems to me that when you crash a lotus you are in for trouble.... not much of a crumple zone.... i suppose an unscathed head is good.. but the whole idea of smashing in an esprit is not a good one..

like a parachute over the middle of the atlantic... is there a real benefit?

[jk1]

bojangles said:

any info out there on the airbag usefulness? seems to me that when you crash a lotus you are in for trouble.... not much of a crumple zone.... i suppose an unscathed head is good.. but the whole idea of smashing in an esprit is not a good one.. like a parachute over the middle of the atlantic... is there a real benefit?

Don't have any empirical data to back this up but the anecdotal evidence appears to be quite the contrary. The kevlar and grp panels of the Esprit are quite a bit more rigid than your typical sheet metal bodies.

There have been many reports over the years of people being involved in pretty bad accidents in the Esprit only to walk away.

If you check the UK list there have been several accidents reported by owners in the last year or so. A few months ago one driver went off the road at 60 mph into some trees and he and the passenger both walked away with minor cuts and bruises. Pretty impressive especially when you see the after pics of the car.

Short of having a 5 point harness I'll take the airbag for whatever protection it might afford.

Just my 2 cents which ain't worth much....

Jim

[karmavore]

There was also a pic on Turboesprit (I think) of a cracked up SE in Califorina and the car held up very well! I'll look for it.

Luke.