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Re: Hi all - planning to buy my first Lotus
Posted: Sat Jun 04, 2016 7:36 pm
by Moggy
Dennis wrote:Re the fuel reading, that is part of the fuel pump, you might be able to get this separately but rather way it is a tank out job (not a technical job full day if you DIY)
I believe another option is a hole cut above the pump behind the passenger seat
LCD fuel gauge should show refill after 11ltrs which is an absolute pain if you miss when it goes onto refill.
Re: Hi all - planning to buy my first Lotus
Posted: Sun Jun 05, 2016 6:09 am
by Dennis
If done well that is possible, the reason mine took all day was the fuel filler pipes were stuck/could not be revived from the tank, so had to remov them from the filler neck, all straight forward until they got stuck when putting it all back together
To make matters worse when it got back together the 'new pump was just as 'noisy' as the original (paranoia cost me a few hundred £'

)
Re: Hi all - planning to buy my first Lotus
Posted: Mon Jun 06, 2016 6:48 pm
by Richard
Dennis wrote:The tension the roof with the Allen keys (keep your eye on the the moving bits under the tabs to make sure it doesn't mark the paint.
Yes, this is the part which hadn't been done (pins were in their holes, but not tightened). The allen key seems to be missing. Now it's done properly, I think it'll be fine.
Moggy wrote:LCD fuel gauge should show refill after 11ltrs which is an absolute pain if you miss when it goes onto refill.
This will be something worth watching out for
As Dennis suggests, I'll let the fuel tank fill and go down a few times, see if it starts moving again properly.
Re: Hi all - planning to buy my first Lotus
Posted: Sat Nov 26, 2016 10:42 pm
by Richard
Hi again!
Everything seems to be going fairly well. The car now lives in a garage, so the rain/bird mess issues are largely in the past. Stuck with the soft top in the end
It kept being impractical to get to your meetings at the Buckles Inn to join properly (Tuesdays aren't great for me). About a million questions still, but I don't want to fill up your public forum with them! Is the next meeting in January?
Re: Hi all - planning to buy my first Lotus
Posted: Sun Nov 27, 2016 7:22 am
by Moggy
Richard wrote:Hi again!
Everything seems to be going fairly well. The car now lives in a garage, so the rain/bird mess issues are largely in the past. Stuck with the soft top in the end
It kept being impractical to get to your meetings at the Buckles Inn to join properly (Tuesdays aren't great for me). About a million questions still, but I don't want to fill up your public forum with them! Is the next meeting in January?
Richard, Yes the next meeting will be 24.01.2017
Fire away with your questions as it is a public forum the info may also be useful to others in the future
Re: Hi all - planning to buy my first Lotus
Posted: Sun Nov 27, 2016 9:38 pm
by PaulT
Richard wrote:About a million questions still, but I don't want to fill up your public forum with them! Is the next meeting in January?
As Moggy says, we have this section of the forum so non-members can ask, not just about the club but anything Lotus-related. Fill yer boots

Re: Hi all - planning to buy my first Lotus
Posted: Mon Nov 28, 2016 7:45 pm
by Patrick
Hi. Welcome to the wonderful world of Lotus ownership! You made a wise choice to avoid a hardtop. I have just traded my Elise S. It came with a hardtop which was a pain to fit and created wind noise around the windscreen, although I did not notice any rain ingress. The downside (or upside depending on your point of view

) was that my wife could not get in or out with the hardtop in place. I found it difficult and wondered if the answer would be a plank on a trolley jack to feed yourself in feet-first

Re: Hi all - planning to buy my first Lotus
Posted: Tue Nov 29, 2016 9:30 pm
by Richard
Moggy wrote:Yes the next meeting will be 24.01.2017
I'll try hard to make it this time

it'll be the last one before the MOT is due
I wouldn't have imagined the hard top making it more difficult to get in - I'm always baffled why some people don't see the fun side in the awkward access!
The two issues which stand out at the moment are the odd smell of petrol and the brake lights' reticence to come on. The smell of petrol is strongest when the tank is near full, and when the window is open/the roof is off. There does not appear to be a hissing noise when the filler cap is removed, so pressure must be lower within the tank due to some escaping gas? There's no outward sign of a leak, so I've not been too concerned, but any suggestions would be appreciated. And the brake lights do definitely work, but only when a lot of pressure is used on the pedal. Can this be easily adjusted?
And one more slightly daft question - is this the correct one to buy for one of the original S1 five spoke wheels?
http://www.seriouslylotus.com/wheels-ty ... ige-wheels
Thanks again!
Re: Hi all - planning to buy my first Lotus
Posted: Tue Nov 29, 2016 10:39 pm
by Patrick
Hate to say this Richard but maybe it's age related? Always the gentleman I released the edge of the soft-top so Chrissie could get in easily and then slid in sideways myself! Easier if you park across two bays to open the doors wide!

Re: Hi all - planning to buy my first Lotus
Posted: Wed Nov 30, 2016 7:26 am
by Rick101
Petrol smell is sometimes the fuel cap seal afaik.
Not that familiar with your model but worth checking.
Re: Hi all - planning to buy my first Lotus
Posted: Wed Nov 30, 2016 8:22 am
by Moggy
Richard wrote:The two issues which stand out at the moment are the odd smell of petrol and the brake lights' reticence to come on. The smell of petrol is strongest when the tank is near full, and when the window is open/the roof is off. There does not appear to be a hissing noise when the filler cap is removed, so pressure must be lower within the tank due to some escaping gas? There's no outward sign of a leak, so I've not been too concerned, but any suggestions would be appreciated. And the brake lights do definitely work, but only when a lot of pressure is used on the pedal. Can this be easily adjusted?
Fuel smell could be the the cap seal or the filler neck pipe which could have degraded.
From memory. The brake light switch is easily adjusted but is also a ball breaker to not only find but reach as it is a blind fingertip search! It is either a ford or vauxhall part but damned if I can recall which.
Short answer is probably no, it doesn't mention S1 or 5 spoke AWI wheels
Re: Hi all - planning to buy my first Lotus
Posted: Wed Nov 30, 2016 8:32 am
by Moggy
Accessible from the front compartment behind the brake fluid reservoir. You just need to twist the switch, set the height, then twist it back to lock the position. Some trial and error will quickly give the correct height to set it to.
Couple of links that might help:-
http://arc.seloc.org/viewthread.php?tid ... pid5455638
http://elise.bidouille.info/docs/LotusE ... Manual.pdf
Re: Hi all - planning to buy my first Lotus
Posted: Wed Nov 30, 2016 10:21 pm
by Richard
Thanks Moggy - brake lights working perfectly again. There was definitely some guess work in positioning, but it lined up correctly on the third attempt.
Hadn't considered the fuel cap seal

Re: Hi all - planning to buy my first Lotus
Posted: Thu Dec 01, 2016 12:19 am
by Dennis
The brake light switch if off a ford transit, I had to replace mine this year, it was about £12 and ford had it in stock (just for future reference)
Re: Hi all - planning to buy my first Lotus
Posted: Thu Dec 01, 2016 3:52 pm
by RFM
Dennis wrote:The brake light switch if off a ford transit, I had to replace mine this year, it was about £12 and ford had it in stock (just for future reference)
Same as the hazard light switch?