Ian's S4s refurb

[Chillidoggy]

And I'm nearly ready to pull my pipes. I swear there's double the amount of coolant in this car than Lotus say. I've had a shower in most of it, too. Almost as much as in the balance pipe from hell.

[Barrykearley]

Haha - at least you'll smell better after a wash 

[Chillidoggy]

Gearchange master had to come out, there was no way they would wriggle past, so another hour's work taking all that lot out. So, there's the good ends, and the bad ends, both pitted to hell, but the forward ends are the worse.

 

[silverfrost]

Good call Ian on replacing them  

[Barrykearley]

Hmmm - I had a pipe like that leak on the v8 - I replaced that with copper

[Chillidoggy]

Was it one of the main coolant pipes? I did think about replacing them with rubber pipe and a couple of plastic tails, but I'm undecided at the mo.

[Barrykearley]

No it was the t shaped pipe that linked the heads. What size are those pipes you have

[Chillidoggy]

Haven't measured them yet, but they're identical, and have a flat depression in them to clear the gearchange master. They also have a very slight curve in them. I'd guess they're around 40mm OD.

The V8 pipes are the same on the RHS, but V* LHS has a small pipe welded to it somewhere.

[Chillidoggy]

I suspect the reason why the forward ends are in such a bad state is the addition of the steel bracket to hold the jubilee clips onto each pipe to stop them slipping back and forth. Steel jubilee over the alloy pipe, a bit of road salt and moisture, and off we go - instant battery!

[Barrykearley]

Don't like the looks of them pipes below those ones 

[Chillidoggy]

Don't start.

[Loose Cannon]

When I saw how awkward the power steering pipes and brake pipes would be to get at above the rack I drowned it in Dinitrol. Hopefully some got on that pesky spring tab alaso!

Well spotted, doubt anyone at he factory foresaw that problem.

[silverfrost]

Bugger,   What a crazy idea, I am more suprized it has not become a common problem with all later esprits, not the corrosion problem but more the that the vibrations or movements of the pipes has not had that metal clip actually rub through the pipes ? 

I have never seen this on the G cars so i have either missed it or it was hopefully a later upgrade, or downgrade by the looks of it. 

As Barry says those pipes below look suspicious 

 

[Barrykearley]

Don't mention those pipes. Your only ruining next years new thread 

[Chillidoggy]

I've a feeling this thread will still be running next year.

[silverfrost]

Haha   Barry to true to true ,  more to add to Ians parts shopping list   

One thing on those alloy pipes that keeps bugging me though,  are they generic through the lotus range ?  Maybe not given the different cooling requirements of each different engine over the years,  but what diameter are the pipes, are they a strange size or something, given lotus use to try and use off the shelf parts i would of hopefully thought they would of purchased pipe of the shelf also,  200 quid for two alloy pipes seems expensive for something you probably purchase for about 25 quid and flare the ends out yourself with a cheaply made flaring tool ? or tig weld a raised seam at the ends imo.  

[Chillidoggy]

The main chassis coolant pipes aren't symmetrical, they have a flattened area about a third of the way down in order to clear the gearchange master. I don't reckon they would fit any other 'car, and at £47.52 each including VAT from SJ, I'm not fannying around trying to make them for that money.

Moving on, I managed to get the fuel pump out without too much of a ballache, and the fuel has now been sucked from the tanks. Sadly, I couldn't muster up enough enthusiasm to remove the balance pipe from hell, so will tackle that tomorrow. Dispelling some of the gloom caused by the thought of being covered in Shell V-Power, my new Teng 1/4" drive torque wrench arrived which looks really nice. No doubt I'll use it once and never have another call for it, but that's what happens with band gear so who cares?

[Rolls]

The Alloy pipe is a nightmare to bend.

For starters, it's an unusual size so most mandrel bending machines don't have the correct tooling size. The pipe is so soft and the angle so sharp, it tears.

I'm sure it can be done. Im going for my third try - I will heat it this time.

[fjmuurling]

An idea for bending "soft" pipe is to plug one end, fil the pipe completely with very fine sand and then plug the pipe on the other end. Used to work for bending pipes in the past for my model airplanes

[Chillidoggy]

Hoorah! The pipe from hell has been vanquished, royally defeated, and banished to the hinterlands of Margate! Translated, it means I managed to get the hateful thing out without getting covered in fuel, although according to the wife, I reek of it, so am not popular with the wife at the moment.

It definitely has to be removed, you cannot get the four lower coolant pipes out intact without cutting them up, and the new ones certainly will not go in with it in the way. At least on an S4s, I can't comment on other models.

The photos show the extent of corrosion, again the forward ends are worse, although it should be noted that the enge bay ends were cleaned up by me when the engine was out last time around. There is evidence of pitting on them beyond where they protrude from the chassis, and thus far I think it's a good job. You mayu also notice the slight curvature on the main pipes, but that could be as a result of where the flats have been pressed into them, or it could be in order that they clear the master, however I really can't say.

[Loose Cannon]

Is there any reason the through-chassis pipes can't be flexible rubber?

 

[silverfrost]

If you mean the whole pipe Mark, i would presume it would rub through easily,  also sag been so long when full of coolant,  possibilty of internal things rubbing

and also be an absolute nightmare to thread through to the other end if non of the above problems listed did not knacker up the idea in the first place imo., 

 

[Sparky]

I repaired a GT3 with a rubber section a couple of years ago - it was holed directly underneath the master gearchange.  The owner elected to have this done (an hour or 2) rather than pulling the engine.  Also (shock! horror!) I replaced mine with copper ends/rubber centre shortly afterward, and did the whole job through the gearchange aperture.  The rubber sits static in the backbone clear of moving parts and doesn't rub on anything.  I'd argue it has greater longevity than the original pipes.  Of course, should I need to pull the engine, I'd evaluate things then.  And I wouldn't do this with the main cooling pipes.

[silverfrost]

Ah sorry I thought Mark meant the main coolant pipes     

[Sparky]

You may be right!