S2!

[Fridge]

New instrumentation masks are available from SJ Sportscars I believe. Get the instruments professionally restored and calibrated, or do it yourself as a winter project.

Get an auto-electrician to test and assess the wiring in situ, and labeling, before removing from car.

Ignition barrels are a bit of an issue I gather, but hopefully wrong and available from somewhere.

[JonSE]

Thanks Fridge, I’m debating between leaving them alone until the underpinnings are up and running again versus doing them in parallel but risking losing any identifying marks that may remain and adding complexity / time (loom is partially disassembled at back (this is OK) and at the front (not so ok as a rats nest).

I don’t think now other than the binnacle shenanigans that the loom is that bad and your guidance regards a mobile auto electrician might be the way forward to get the car going again and tackle a wider electrical refit when everything is back where it’s supposed to be. Note the electrical gremlin in image below.....

 

 

[JonSE]

Checking underneath, don’t know if these dampers are original (therefore worth rebuilding) or are later units in the 60K mile journey.

V5 arrived today and car was registered 01.08.1979 so is later than I first thought.

Really looking forward to getting stuck into all this rust and making good again....

Battery box is a hybrid metal GRP unit, original probably cracked or failed a while ago and they glassed in a new one.

Car is right way up, photos less so!

Instrument masks are £50 new so I’ll be getting one of these in the parts order, thanks Fridge!

[LOTUSMAN33]

They look like original Armstrong shocks so if good save them Jon 👍🏻
The battery box has a heat proof metal shield so may be original, I can do a photo if you like to compare.

Your underside is looking pretty good and seen lots far worse.

Dave  

[Fridge]

Yes, (AGAIN!) I agree with @LOTUSMAN33 We need to stop meeting like this!

I mentioned that I've heard that there's a race place not far away which is owned by a chap that can refurbish shock absorbers to their manufacturer's original specification.

Bring it on!

[JonSE]

If you could let me know on the shock guy that would be great. Do springs get “tired” and warrant replacing on top of the damper rebuild or ok to reuse?

[LOTUSMAN33]

You can just get the springs refurbished by blast and paint provided they are sound and not heavily pitted, powder coating is popular.

PNM sell the top donuts if you want them as they really perish and go hard.

Dave  

[JonSE]

Thanks regards springs,

Regards the dampers, can any rebuild place handle them?

[Fridge]

Yes, but possibly not to the right specification. Remember businesses will often tell you anything. Especially now.

Edited November 19, 2020 by Fridge

[JonSE]

Can anyone recommend a damper rebuild firm that I can trust?

Maybe that could also assess the springs?

PM me if preferred, thank you!

[EXCEL V8]

I had some dampers measured on a dynamometer earlier this year with a view to getting them re-valved for my Elite.  It's only a small company but they rebuild all sorts of dampers and I was impressed with the set-up/people there.  It's business name is Leda Dampers/Harvey Baily Engineering near Lincoln.  Google Leda.com

Pete

[JonSE]

Slowly started to take off the bits I need to remove to get the body off.

Very enjoyable pottering around, schedule won’t be happy but nice to dip in and out when the mood takes.

Not much time this weekend, had to do a lot of garden tidying and wood chopping. Then think I got bit by some kind of creepy crawly when I disturbed some wood and Sunday spent hallucinating, so thought it best to rest up 😁.

The expansion tank although rough has been done before, the outlet though is rotten through. Think some of the outlet is now very mobile in the cooling system. After the brown was drained down, some evidence of green antifreeze, so hopefully the engine internals aren’t too bad.

The whole thing will be stripped and cleaned though and I’ll probably also flush the whole thing through before rebuild in the hope to dislodge any bits that might be left.

I’ll get this tank shot blasted and repaired, a friend of mine is a welder but I’m going to need a bulk deal! 

There was an aftermarket engine blower, I think somewhere along the way the car picked up the air filters it has now and maybe someone removed the cooling ducts from the engine cover. I’ll probably go back to the original specification for this and get a replacement air box fitted.

The chassis has been painted red in the past, I’m wondering if the body has been off before, which I wouldn’t think would be too unusual.

Only thing is, it’s the only reference I’ve got, so if I reassemble it and there are some errors, I’m going to also replicate these.

Some images below of the slow progress.....

Timing gear slot literally covered in cob webs.

Should I be worried about these missing bolts in the bell housing? I’ll replace them but wonder if they tell a story?

Chassis near manifold looks good under the heat matting, paint looks well.

Coil just resting on engine, stainless bolts so was job to remove.

Expansion tank out and ready for shot blasting later on.

Last image - is this the crank breather vent, seem to recall it is from memory....

Found the battery clamps under the car, they are ring connector type so may switch for clamp type.

Battery box on closer inspection seems to be a metal GRP hybrid. Metal is showing though, will need to think about what to do with this as not sure if it’s up to the job.......

Reading up on the forum, saw a thread on sympathetic galvanisation somewhere in the West Midlands for the chassis.

I’m really tempted by this, would also paint over it afterwards in a silver cover to enable touching in for chips etc. Rest of suspension satin black or raptor type paint. I’d then also coat the internal box sections with wax, and spray the outer components with same (clear dinitrol or similar).

Does this sound sensible (paint reaction etc / longevity).

[Fridge]

Looks OK to me Jonathan.

All present and as expected. There's a place in Hartlepool that can refurbish the fuel tanks, but you need to remove and check them thoroughly. Mine still had their original paint intact. Alternatively,@Paul Coleman opened his tanks and used POR-15 (?) to reseal. They looked good 

I had the expansion tank repaired as it had similar deterioration on the outlet. Simple fix. Again, you'll need to check that it's not porous. Due to the low cost of repair it is something you can easily fit and test when the car is up and running. 

I can't speak for all of the bolts, but not all of the lugs on the bell housing are used in this configuration. I'm sure someone else will have more details.

The battery cables look original. I'd just check them and give them.a clean. I refitted mine and they work well. As stated by @LOTUSMAN33 in his post yesterday, try and reuse as many original parts as possible. They are often better, help retain originality, and it also keeps the costs down.

The chassis looks OK from what can be seen. As you say, it seems that the body shell has been removed previously. Hopefully there'll be no nasty surprises. There's plenty of folk on here, myself included, that can help with getting it right once it is ready to be refitted.

You need to find those air ducts, as I'm not sure how available they are.

As mentioned previously, the battery box could be original, as it has a heat shield incorporated. Need a photograph to comment further.

If you find that you can climb walls and leap from building to building you may need to consider buying a Lycra skin suit and some mirror shades. Just a thought.

[JonSE]

27 minutes ago, Fridge said:

 

If you find that you can climb walls and leap from building to building you may need to consider buying a Lycra skin suit and some mirror shades. Just a thought

 

I’m good with coupes, not a fan of 🕷’s 🤣🤣🤣

[JonSE]

Think it might have been a false widow, which, after an extensive five minutes of googling, are active now and don’t like being disturbed. 
 

Puncture marks in my upper arm and then felt the poison spread towards my chest, got slightly worried as it felt like a hot poker, but alcohol calmed me down nicely and it was OK this morning. Interesting year to have avoided Coronavirus but gone out with a spider bite.

[LOTUSMAN33]

The missing three bolts you are looking at are for the air pump on federal cars so not needed with domestic vehicles.

Dave  

[JonSE]

Thank you!

[JonSE]

What are the best options please for a replacement manifold? Anyone with recent feedback? I’d like to replace the cast item once the engine is out....

 

[LOTUSMAN33]

Is your manifold cracked? If not stay original all day long 👍

Dave  

[JonSE]

I think it may have seen better days!

Is the stainless replacement any good that you can buy? I’m just browsing for a new blowtorch.......

[LOTUSMAN33]

I’ve had one fitted before and had no issues, didn’t really notice any performance change either.

[Fridge]

I've ran stainless steel systems for 30 years without issue and have a new one on my Esprit, but that has only had 2,500 miles of use in 12 months.

However it seems that they are not all made the same, and it seems dependant on who actually makes them. This being the actual fabricator, not the company.

The exhaust running the longest was made by Double S in Hove/Sussex and if thoroughly recommend them as a manufacturer. However this was for a different vehicle. My Esprit one was sourced from SJ Sportscars and seems well made, and accurate.

Pals have had them from both PNM and LotusBits, and when asked it was the feeling that LotusBits had the edge, but I'm not sure how much this opinion is quantifiable.

However others have had various issues with a number of them and the usual Esprit suppliers. Apart from Alunox, who appear to escape criticism. Though they are very expensive, certainly for the Turbo Esprit systems they make.

I think you're going to have to ask around further.

[JonSE]

I’m now looking at quotes for bodywork and painting.
 

As I’m not performing surgery anymore on the front end and just filling the sunroof, it’s made it a little easier in terms of who I might be able to use so thank you to everyone who has made suggestions on good places to talk to.

Ideally I’ll be getting the shell to someone by around June, which sounds a way off but as Fridge says, most good places are booked out anyway until Spring next year. If it’s sooner then I’m better than I thought!

My latest thoughts are much simpler thanks to all your feedback....

It will be fully a white S2 but with the sunroof deleted and no mirrors.

Interior will stay as is as the priority will be to get the car fired up after the chassis and engine have been stripped / refreshed and the body back on.

I’ll live with the electrics and get a local auto mobile guy to make the car functional once it’s back together, then refine this (getting all the original switches etc) as I go along, maybe requiring later but if OK, not bothering.

I’ll eventually colour the seats to mimic the effect below which I’ve really taken to. Maybe have the leather pulled in a bit as my seats look fat or bite the bullet and refinish in distressed leather....

I’ll retain the quick start for now so as not to delay the process through finding ignition barrels etc (unless one jumps out at me). The dash and cards I’m going to retain as much as possible.

Main areas of concern are the level of detail needed to finish the body that I’ve seen in the other threads and maybe hitting some wall regards my technical reassembly skills! The heater matrix I’m not looking forward to, everything that can be broken related to this is. It’s disconnected, the dash controls themselves are seized, arms broken etc. I may still go fully electric on this as a concession.

Otherwise, my first item, the expansion tank, goes to my mate on Friday for blasting and repairing, the first part of many I expect but it’s a start!!!!!

[JonSE]

Received the U.K. documents back a week ago (very quick) and also a reminder yesterday to tax the vehicle or declare it SORN (a U.K. requirement to declare the car isn’t being used on the road and therefore not subject to taxation).

As the car is now tax exempt (40 year old plus in the U.K.) I thought I would ‘tax’ it but without the need to pay the fee. You still go through the process but no fee is levied at the end.

The car is also exempt from the annual MOT safety test, which is normally a requirement before you can proceed to tax it.

As the car doesn’t have an MOT, didn’t think this step would  be an issue as its also MOT exempt did to its age under the same rules.

Aha!

The process requires an MOT certificate (or if the vehicle is exempt due to age, a form downloading and completing to declare this, to allow a new log book to be produced that records this).

Without a valid MOT or an exemption, you can’t proceed to the tax free section of the web site.

So as an interim, I’ve placed the car on SORN and will take the MOT exemption certificate and the V5 registration document this week to the post office to apply for a new tax exempt log book.

The car must have tripped into 40 years a couple of years ago and the owner, with it being a laid up project, just continued to SORN the car instead of applying for exemption (unless you have to go through this process every time you sell a tax exempt classic?)

Looking forward to a little work on the car this weekend, the expansion tank was dropped at the welders for blasting and a new base fitting.

 

 

[JonSE]

Went to visit my friend who own a car painting business. He’s going to view the car for me. He’s painted hundreds of cars but his experience on GRP is limited, although he’s started to fit high tops to vans / paint them and these are GRP.

What are the major differences to painting GRP versus metal / plastic?

Is there a block coat you can apply to limit reactions?

He won’t take on the GRP sun roof delete so I may have to tackle this myself, plus filling numerous holes for the old wing mirrors.

Should the wing mirror holes be ground back and GRP filled?