neill1607

Absolutely stunning. Jealous - no. Envious - you bet. Have fun!

Brake warning light had started coming on. Found another thread which linked the two together. Vacuum pump had slipped on it's bracket causing the belt to loosen. I assumed there was one belt for the cams & another for the alternator water pump & vacuum pump. I'd checked the tension on the one by the alternator which seemed fine. I didn't realize there was another belt further down! Adjusted now & all seems perfect again. At least I can now put off changing the radiator 'till the weather's a bit warmer.

Malc at Loutus bits/espritism had one a couple of weeks ago. By the time i got in contact - a day later, it had gone already! At

SJ's have got it listed on their website - with the part number - good thinking. Local dealer is less than helpful - I'll try one in the UK - thanks for the suggestion Got access to the parts maual via LEW, which has been a great help, but still the manual for the info. I'm happy to tackle most things as long as I've got something to refer to.

I've been to the local Lotus dealers who are unable to answer the question. If so, if anyone can give me a part number for it? I may be able to order it then!!

I was going to post in the overheating thread I'd started, when I noticed this one. Had to take the esprit out today as it was the only car left. As I was driving I noticed a subtle change in the feeling of the brake pedal, followed by a rise in temerature, followed by the brake warning light coming on. After reving the engine a few times the light went out & the temperature started to drop, brake pedal feel back to normal. I was going to post to ask if there was a link between the cooling system & the vacuum system - obviously, from the comments in this thread - there is. Do both the vacuum pump & the water pump run off the same belt?

The good times never fade - remember them well. Sorry to hear. Neill

I'd leave it soak with penetrating oil then use one of these http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Impact-Stud-Extractor-Laser-3986_W0QQitemZ230428903095QQcmdZViewItemQQptZUK_Hand_Tools_Equipment?hash=item35a6a206b7 I've used before & been amazed at how little they need to grip onto. 10mm shouldbe plenty.

I guess down under we'll be getting them called ute's now. Is that the right term?

You certainly are. Which number is that one then?

Nice to be getting such a varied range of cars on the site now. Welcome - I'm you won't be disapointed by the help & advice on here. Neill

Excellent suggestions. If a came to a vote - I'd have to vote twice!

Well done guys - great to see!

Fuel gauge reading is stable, so I guess it's not the voltage regulator. I was intending to flush & refill the system soon anyway, so I guess that's the next step. Peter - what's this magic stuff you have? you can PM me if you'd rather. I seem to remember reading in another thread that the recomended mix for the UK was 50% anti-freeze/50% water - can anyone confirm? also whats the total capacity of the coolant system (I don't have a chargecooler)? I also recall mention in threads of a very particular bleeding procedure for air locks in the coolant system, but never what the procedure actually is - can anyone enlighten me? If that doesn't work, I guess the next step would be the radiator? although I still don't think the radiator would cause a "blockage" in the coolant system. If the car was always running hotter or fans coming on all the time, that to me, would indicate a lack of cooling efficiency from the radiator caused by debris blocking or damaging the fins, but that's not what's happening. Does the belt that drives the water pump drive anyting else? Could it be that at low revs it's slips, at higher revs it's got enough friction to drive the water pump properly? This would seem to match the symptoms of the rates of temperature change (slowish rise, but real quick drop)?

I'm not near the car at the moment so can't check, but I'm beginning to think I'm rememering the markings on the gauge wrong. Thinking about it I guess it starts at 40, 80 in the middle 120 at the right. With red from 100 through to 120. If that's the case, then my fans would start to come on & switch off at about 90. I've never see it hit the red before this recent problem, the fans have always kicked in & brought it down, even when in 35-40 degree heat stuck in a traffic jam in Italy. I did take the cap off the header tank when I started it, after changing the thermostat, & water seemed to be pumping through fine (feeds back into the top of the header tank from the turbo housing?) - but I don't know what the "normal" flow is supposed to look like, & at that point it wasn't overheating. Is it ok to leave the header cap off whilst it's running at normal operating temperature? If so I could wait until it does start to overheat - then see if the water flow is still the same. I'm sure the radiator is original - so 1988, but I don't believe that's the problem, due the rapid change in temperatures. It seems, to me, as if water is not flowing for some reason, causing the high reading, & then when it does start flowing (i'm assuming), the reading drops down from in the red to 82 in about half a second or so.

Thought I'd try the easy thing of changing the thermostat first, in case that was sticking shut, but it's not made any difference. First happened when stuck in a line of slow moving traffic. Engine was getting warm - as you'd expect, fans came on but reading on temperature guage was still climbing. I thought maybe I'd sprung a leak so pulled into a car park to check everything out. No leaks - all fans working. Waited for 10 minutes or so & the traffic jam had gone, so pulled out & on my way. Engine was still warm but as I drove along it fairly quickly dropped down to normal (85 degrees ish). There have been several occasions since, when starting up & setting off the temperature seems to rise quicker than usual & heads toward the red. A bit of "gentle but spirited application of the throttle" (I know the thing's not really warmed up) & the reading very rapidly drops down to 60ish. Went out after changing the thermostat & thought the problem was cured. Sat at 82 degrees even when stuck in a jam for 5 minutes. But when I parked in the drive it rapidly started climbing into the red again! Everytime I check the fans they all they seem to be working fine - tripping on at about 100 degrees. I'm guessing that the guage takes its reading from a point just below the thermostat?, but the fans are switched on/off from somewhere else. I presume this is the otter switch I 've seen mention of? There seem to be a couple of electrical connectors in the pipe that leads from the thermostat over the alternator then down the side & dissapears into the centre of the chassis. Is one of these the otter switch? Possiblities: There's an air lock - I think unlikey. Water pump is on it's way out. Any confirmations or alternatives? Thanks

Are you sure Bibs? I thought the GT1 was on the "documentary" that I've only ever seen on Men & Motors.

Always good to see someone new joining up. Have fun.

And for the past couple of years I've using the manual choke to do that! Off it comes. Thanks guys

Reminiscent of the the Vanquish from Die anoher day........ but much better.

It's seems there's no telling! Sometimes claims get settled real quick then with a similar claim - it takes ages, even with the same company. Which insurer have you got the claim with?

I've been having a few problems with overheating recently, so I thought I'd try the simple thing first - change the thermostat. Unfortunately the forward bolt holding the thermostat housing sheared. Luckily there was about 1/2" left sticking out once the housing was removed, so with the help of a borrowed stud extractor (a week later), I've changed it. Took it out for a spin this morning & I still have the same overheating problem, only now the tick over is a wee bit high too (2500 - 3000rpm). Must be somethig I've caught whilst doing he thermostat so after a quick inspection I found that the bracket/housing circled below (one of Sparky's pics) has cracked where it attaches to the carb. Inside is a little plunger that rests on a screw which affects the idle. But what is it? What does the plunger/switch do? Can I get the bracket/housing on its own - or do I need get complete with plunger? Here's the picture!

Green & Yellow - the way a lotus should be. As Alex says, would be nice to se the whole car.

I was looking to re-trim mine with Neoprene (the same stuff they make wetsuits from). I did my mini & impressed myself with the way it turned out; I guess from comments, others were too. Neoprene is reasonably hard wearing & has good UV resistance. It's available in different thicknesses, nice & stretchy too, so good for working round those fiddly bits. I know purists will say "never", but I'm not good at selling vehicles (bought 10 so far & only sold 3) - I reckon this one's mine for life, so I can do what I want without having to worry about the value. I think the original color co-ordination leaves a lot to be desired. As time goes by & materials fade & wear, the carpets are about 3 shades of bluey grey, the headlings a different grey. The blue & grey leather doesn't give the right feel & there are black bits ditted around as well like the top of the dash etc. Just think it needs bit of co-ordination. I have to say, I think the later model interiors were a bit better co-ordinated. I've sent Nick a message & he's been in touch - I'm sure he'll come back with a figure soon. Dave - did you do the whole car, or was it just parts.

The interior in mine is looking very tired, so I'd like to re-do it. I've never been a great fan of leather (not in car anyway) so was looking at alternatives. Does anyone know how much material would be needed to retrim everything? When I say everything, I mean roof, A pillars, dash, Binacle, centre console, seats rear bulkhead, sills, floor, seats, bit on engine cover, bit on tailgate & luggage compartment. I'm sure Nick (Fulcher) would know the answer, but I can't hear well enough to talk over the phone at moment! Thanks