brianc

Thanks for the tip on the Excel manifolds. I'll check the part numbers against the one for my Esprit but I have a nasty feeling that they are slightly different.

Managed to make a temporary repair using some high temperature JB Weld putty until I can get down to Malcolm and pick up his 2nd hand manifold. Not given her the full beans yet but it's held up for the last 30 miles or so of 'normal' driving.

Sorry for the delay, busy weekend with family commitments etc. I managed to get a look last night from underneath using a mirror. Looks like it's actually a small hole near one of the mounts on the rear cylinder and not an actual crack. Couldn't get in to take a picture of the actual problem area but managed to get one taken of most of the manifold from underneath (attached).

Malcolm, Your replacement system looks great but the rest of my exhaust is in pretty good shape so not sure it's worth replacing the whole lot. I would be interested in what was wrong with the SJ manifold with regards to fitting. Could well be interested in your old one if I cannot sort out something new so if you can PM me a couple of pictures that would be great and I can make an offer as necessary.

Thanks Choppa, can you PM me your details as I'd like to take you up on the offer of a look at the SJ manifold? Brian

I'll take a couple of pictures and post them tomorrow.

Hi Sparky, no problem. To be honest I'm having problems sourcing a manifold. SJ Sportscars do a stainless one for the NA but apparently people sent them back as 'does not fit' despite the fact they were used. So maybe they fit but rub against something. SW Lotus do a cast manifold but apparently the flange to the downpipe is inverted so I would need to have the downpipe modified. I have also been told that a new NA manifold is made of unobtainium anyway so my only option is used or the SW Lotus one and get a custom downpipe made. Not having a good day!!!

Thanks for the detailed description Jacques, still sounds like an absolute bugger of a job. First thing to do before starting is to gather all the bits together. You mentioned the Alunox manifold - can you give me a couple of pointers on who can supply? I have seen some non cast manifolds listed but they are for the Turbo cars and as mine is normally aspirated I guess they are different. Is there an Alunox manifold available for the NA cars?

Thanks Sparky, speak later. Brian

Interesting reply Bibs... If Sparky was willing to do it in return for a suitable payment of coin of the realm and large quantities of suitable refreshment, than I'd be more than happy to take up such an offer - Think I'm getting old and past it these days to be trying to contort my less than nimble fingers into tight corners on my own. No pressure Sparky, but if you were interested in helping me, please drop me a PM.

Thanks for the replies guys. Sounds like it's worth trying in situ with the exhaust cam tower removed but being prepared to pull the whole lump if necessary. If I do have to remove the engine & gearbox, can it be dropped out from beneath or does it have to come out the top? The reason for asking is I have access to a scissor lift so could raise the car to remove the engine/gearbox assy once unbolted and supported.

So after a fab day out at The Lotus Festival on Saturday, i got home and noticed that there was an 'exhaust blowing' sound coming from my NA Esprit. Closer inspection and a feel around (and a couple of burnt fingers - ouch) shows that the exhaust manifold has developed a bit of a blow near cylinder number 4. At the risk of sounding stupid, can anybody confirm if I can replace the manifold without taking the engine out and does anybody have any useful tips covering the process? I'm particularly worried that the nuts / studs will be seized solid making the job even more difficult. TIA

Sparky, I will be first in line for your services when the next change is due.

I must admit I was a little surprised at how much is being charged. If I hadn't needed the C Service and I wanted a professional to look over my car to make sure all is ok overall, I might have had a go myself. My main other concern though was getting the tension right without the proper tools.

Not sure if it's been reported before but the monthly classic car meets at White Lion Antiques on the A30 in Hartley Wintney in Hampshire have recommenced as of the end of January. Open to all classic cars (older and modern) it starts at 08:00 and runs until noon on the last Sunday of the month. Generally a good variety of cars make it from old Fords and Morris through Jensens, Lotus, Jaguars etc through to more modern classics such as BMW Z3s, Aston Martins etc. Informal and well attended in the past.

I took mine to MAX500 (Esprit specialist) and had it done as part of the full C Service. I think they charge around £600 for just the belt change - but then they are based in Surrey and things are a bit expensive down here ;). Great service from them though and they sorted out a lot of little niggles as part of the scope of work. Max (the owner) also spotted that the tensioner had been incorrectly fitted by the 'specialist' who did the last belt change!

Pretty sure that 1990 ones don't and my 1988 certainly doesn't, so no issue with ECM codes

An example where the bigger bumpers in America are quite good

Good practice to ensure that the speakers are not damaged. The problem with running a small amp flat out into speakers is that the clipping that occurs basically means that there is an excessive DC component which will fry the speaker coils. And remember the golden rule with audio output power (which follows a logarithmic scale) - to double the perceived volume - 10x the input power is required.

I assume youare not talking about the metal ring that goes around the rubber gaitor underneath the leather one but something different on your car? The rear linkage on the system was replaced shortly before I bought my car and hence has little free play. Maybe if it's worn it allows excessive movement?

Right after an afternoon of fiddling it turned out I needed to adjust both cables. The whole process was a bit of a pain but I did end up working out that it's a lot easier to do from above than below (even with the use of a scissor lift) which hopefully will be a useful tip for others! Much better than before. The whole problem originally was that although the previous owner had replaced the translator linkage, he managed to break one of the locating pins for the actual gear lever which stops it rotating. The result was that the reverse interlock wasn't working because the plastic bush was not in the correct place due to the lever being put back 90 degrees rotated and this allowed the whole system to be set up with 1st and 2nd too far left in the gate - if that makes sense. It also made reverse rather too easy to find when moving forward!!

Thanks. It seems to need the gear lever moved back and to the left to engage. 1st is fine so I don't think it's the reverse inhibit block. I'll get a helper to move the lever...

I've had problems engaging gears from time to time and yesterday decided to check the cable adjustments on the translator. Both cables were set wrongly and everything is working much better except 2nd gear is a real struggle to find. Without going through too many 'trial and error' minor adjustments of the cables, is it possible to work out which one needs adjusting? All the other gears slide in easily including reverse & 5th.

Thanks for the update Bibs, I must admit that until you posted the fact that you were out of the office I was going to drop you an email as I've heard nothing regarding payment yet.

Thanks Bibs, Just put a small order in myself