Calling All S1/S2/Pre '85 S3 Owners Worldwide!

[rnewscates]

Hello all, Count me in 100% for one set for my S2, I am soon moving it from my brothers garage far away, to one minutes away to keep company with my '73 Europa Twin Cam Special project (Duratec 2.3 L engine, NG1 5-speed, cable shift, rear discs). I hope to have the Esprit driving in a month or two. Bob Scates, Springfield, Virginia

[catalina8]

I would be up for an upgrade in the suspension for the s1 if the price is right. Its the time in my restoration to replace the suspension anyways. But, i agree with earlier posts about the tire issues. What good is a suspension issue for the car going to do if the tires available are crap... or in the USA completely unavailable in the correct sizes.

[Sammy]

Count me in.

[simonb]

Appreciate that Lotus have had higher priorities recently, but is there any update?

[rajesprit]

Im very intrested, is there any news?

[yeller77]

OK, Gents, sadly, this needs to be said. In the wake of the management turmoil at Lotus and Brian Angus' retirement, this project appears to be dead on the vine. In the so close and yet so far department, the shock and spring specs were finalized, but all Lotus Aftersales projects have been indefinitely canned until further notice. As this information is proprietary, one would assume it won't be released to Bilstein and Eibach for open sale, group buys, etc without express intent from the Group. (I hope Gordon has his car back) I think it's probably safe to say that Lotus Aftersales will soon be a relic of the past along with our cars as they are so far down on the Lotus survival checklist.

 

So we can all go back to breathing again at this point and resume searches for good aftermarket suspension solutions for our aging cars.

[Bibs]

Err, ok. I'm in touch with ASO about seeing this project through.

[yeller77]

Err, ok. I'm in touch with ASO about seeing this project through.

 

I hope you're correct, that does not appear how it was left with Mr. Angus, from whom the info was relayed. More than happy to be wrong about this one!   Some effort with someone seeing it through is precisely what it's likely to take.

[comem47]

Here we are after 5 to 6 years and as I suspected my car has passed on to new caring hands in the meantime (after 25 years of ownership). I never signed on for this because I had a feeling about this one as the years rolled on. Lotus has bigger things to deal with these days (just saying). I'll keep watching out of curiosity though. Good luck to you all, but I wouldn't stay up late waiting for this one to come home. Tires availability was always the big issue I feared (wanting to keep stock 14" JPS wheels) and if there is no 14" supplier coming to the rescue the suspension setup should really be designed around tire sizes likely to be around a while IMHO. (in the Lotus tradition the whole big picture being considered in suspension)

[GordonMasson]

Hi folks, time for an update on the suspension upgrade programme.

I didn't update this topic earlier Yeller (following discussions with Bibs) because he is still talking to ASO about it, however what I was going to say was..........

As you will probably know, Brian Angus left Lotus earlier this month and unfortunately I have to announce that the planned development of the suspension package for Esprit S1’s has been cancelled.

Despite Brian working incredibly hard to complete the development and make this an official Lotus product, the changing situation at Lotus over the past few years has stalled and eventually halted the development.

What I can tell you is that Brian got as far as getting a set of springs and dampers completed, they are on my car and have been tested. Although advance testing wasnt completed on the components, which would have been the final sign off for production, Brian believes that the setup on the car is pretty much perfect for the S1.

The car is still at Hethel at the moment and it will be there for another couple of months, so if there is a sudden change of mind at Lotus who knows...........Bibs ???

Thanks to Brian for putting in a huge effort behind the scenes to make this a reality but unfortunately after 6 years at Hethel, i think my S1 is likely to be coming back to Aberdeen.“

P.S. Does anyone know what the rental rate is for an S1 over 6 years???

Edited January 31, 2013 by GordonMasson

[yeller77]

Thanks for the definitive update, Gordon, and thanks for sacrificing your car to a noble cause for so long. I hope you get your car back soon and are able to drive and enjoy it as it was meant to be both the first time and the last time it rolled out of Hethel. It's got a pretty special mojo now, thanks to Brian, and Matt.

 

It looks like the only hope for the rest of us may be if the Group would authorize the specs to be released to Eibach and Bilstein so that they could be added to their catalogs in model-specific fashion or allow for group buys.

 

 

[simonb]

If Lotus are going to can the project, would they release the final specification? If Eibach & Bilstein were supplying on development, that would be a logical starting point, if not, I am sure someone would take the spec. I could ask nigel at Avo to price sets if he had a spec to work from

[Guest surferphil]

Gordon, if you get your car back with the new shocks and springs all set up I'm sure you could take them to the factory and find out all the specs: shims valves etc. I don't think its as simple as just what spring or type of damper so it would not be worth getting them made by Avo or anyone else, I'd stick with Bilstein and Eibach.

[Bibs]

^ What he said. Not all springs and damper were created equal and all that. 

[GordonMasson]

Thanks for the definitive update, Gordon, and thanks for sacrificing your car to a noble cause for so long. I hope you get your car back soon and are able to drive and enjoy it as it was meant to be both the first time and the last time it rolled out of Hethel. It's got a pretty special mojo now, thanks to Brian, and Matt.

 

Absolutely right Yeller and its also worth pointing out that other than Brian Angus and Matt Becker there were quite a few other people behind the scenes at Lotus working on this project over the past 6 years. Matt did take me out in the car on the track once while i was at Hethel but as luck would have it we ran out of petrol on the first lap and we couldn’t get back on due to testing of other cars.

Matt did comment that the car was quite a bit nippier than he expected it would be

 

Gordon, if you get your car back with the new shocks and springs all set up I'm sure you could take them to the factory and find out all the specs: shims valves etc. I don't think its as simple as just what spring or type of damper so it would not be worth getting them made by Avo or anyone else, I'd stick with Bilstein and Eibach.

?? The car has never left the factory in the past 6 years

[Guest surferphil]

"?? The car has never left the factory in the past 6 years"

 

What are you implying?

[Bibs]

That the car has been on site in Hethel since 2006, as is the case.

[Guest surferphil]

We all know that, so why put it as a response to what I wrote, it makes no sense unless there is an implication I'm missing. Hence the question:

What are you implying?

[GordonMasson]

Gordon, if you get your car back with the new shocks and springs all set up I'm sure you could take them to the factory and find out all the specs: shims valves etc.

Not implying anything...."I'm sure you could take them to the factory" .....They are on the car which is at the factory,

[Guest surferphil]

Hahaaa! I see the misunderstanding. You are implying there is no point taking the shocks back to the Lotus factory! You are right, there is no point at all since the Lotus factory hasn't got anything to do with it.

 

It would make sense if you took them back to the Eibach/Belstin factory where the shocks and springs were made, which was what I was suggesting following the conversation with SimonB who suggests going to Eibach as a logical starting point.

 

From past posts discussing the project it was established that Lotus would use their suppliers Eibach and Belstin for development only and recent posts saying development at Lotus has been cancelled therefore they would not be supplying new shocks or springs as a Lotus part.

 

I hope that clears up the misunderstanding.

[GordonMasson]

If Bibs can swing it and we can manage to get ASO/ Lotus to pick this up and complete it with Eibach/Bilstin then i am more than happy to leave the car at Hethel for the time being.... but  not indefinitely. Clearly, this would be the time to do it since the car is sitting there with the kit on it.

 

I think since the development was instigated by Brian / ASO then the IP would belong there.

 

Eibach / Bilstin were really doing "us" a favour based on all the other work that Lotus put their way, therefore there was a bit of gravitas behind the project.

 

As a "stand alone" third party approaching these companies and asking them to do the tooling and production for perhaps a hundred units, i think is a non starter.

 

I am still 100% behind this project because if anyone could make it a reality it would be Brian and that’s the reason the car has been at Hethel for 6 years. I would love to see it get completed for all the effort that Brian has put into this.

 

As for me taking it to Eibach / Bilstin myself, I’m afraid that won’t be happening.

[Guest surferphil]

I think it would definitely be worth quantifying what parts are off the shelf and what may need to be machined.

It's possible we could make up a kit to go with the 'off the shelf parts'.

 

I'm not suggesting this is definitely going to work, but like Gordon wrote, I think given the massive amount of work gone into what we have so far it's worth finding out what we are up against and how feasible it will be.

[Copenhagen]

i know that the company varishocks will do custom valving in very small series.... so if we could have the damping rates its a short turnaround order... another and much more expensive option is penske... but i have worked with varishocks and they are really really a top notch quality shockabsorber

[Freemason]

So it's looking like nothing will ever come of this? What a tragedy! I have a 1978 Esprit S2 that needs a suspension overhaul and I would have snapped up a Bilstein/Eibach setup in a second.

[skiing]

Has there been any update on this? If we could hold of the specs, could we not get some made etc?