Esprit Turbo project car - part3 - the further continuation

[Lotusfab]

Thanks Dan. Put the ski racks off until the end as I hope to move house soon. So need to get all the bits back on!

[silverfrost]

The racks will be a great finishing bit to this entire project and will look the mutts nuts when fitted on that car. 

You need a full lifesize Roger Moore to go by that thing in the garage or at shows. Would look awesome imo

 

 

[21gg]

What, like this 😁 

[silverfrost]

Awesome !  I don' own a copper turbo esprit or a white S1 but I am tempted by having a full size Rodger Moore pointing a gun myself.!

[Lotusfab]

I am still working on this! I have been busy getting the bonnet ready. The metal Grille needed to be replaced so I have one on order. Then a small piece of rubber seal and it's ready to refit. I am hoping to get the doors back on and bonnet done next week. I have sorted the original loop pile car pet for the boot. I will be replacing the bulkhead carpet and all the rest. I hope to refit the engine also in the next two months. Happy days!

[Lotusfab]

The curious world of Lotus Esprit Turbo decals.

Im soon to affix the decals to the car, but am in a quandary. There appears to be a discrepancy between the manual decal  

position and pictures. Pre 1985 here's the manual.from the pictures it looks like the LHS lower air intake line in the spoiler is left of the P and RHS is right of the P. This is the opposite of the manual guidance??? Any ideas? 

Ahh have just noticed a line drawn from the RHS decal pic to the LHS of the car, which would make it correct. Maybe the LHS and RHS does not refer to the car sides but the  location as you look head on at the car? Very strange terminology, but probably has its roots in some sort of farming reference used in Norfolk factories? 😋😋😋

[Lotusfab]

Incidentally, these decals got smaller after 1985 and the location reference changed to a measurement. I normally locate pinstrip masking tape first in the manual location first then align the decal to this, so I don't need to move it once affixed. 

It will be a major achievement when this car finally moves up under its own power. The last time it moved was NOV 1st 1990! 28 years ago! 

[Andyww]

Yes Surface & design who did mine noticed this as well. We concluded "right hand side" means if the decal is on the right hand side of the side of the car when looked at from the side, ie on the left side of the car. Simple

 

 

[Lotusfab]

Door brackets handmade and nearly ready!

[Fridge]

I decided to make mine from very thin rubber, which I had left over from restoring the heater box baffle seals. 

They don't mark the paintwork when adjusting, and won't rot either. Both sides are non-slip too, which is an added bonus.

[RichardJGC]

Hi Fabian

Ive looked at the photos of my original decals pre-restoration and they look just like your sample photos.

I think the Lotus graphic page is confusing....so have edited it to how I think it should look.

Does this look better?

[Lotusfab]

Much better!

2 hours ago, Fridge said:

I decided to make mine from very thin rubber, which I had left over from restoring the heater box baffle seals. 

They don't mark the paintwork when adjusting, and won't rot either. Both sides are non-slip too, which is an added bonus.

Good idea. I'm old school and have copied the originals on this and my S1. I like your solution better.

[Lotusfab]

Front. Bonnet

have just replaced the front grill. I have a bister from all the cutting and trimming required. Just have to Bond it in. There are two types of bonnet seal. A flat early inner tube type one. The second a moulded profile. The latter is far superior. Unfortunately the Bond car has the inner tube type so that's what I have fitted! 

[Lotusfab]

I wouldn't recommend the old inner tube tight seal for the bonnet. It will not stay flat around corners, which makes it look untidy. Of course if it's not flat it won't seal very well either! My bonnet is now ready and with Andy on here helping I should have it back on tomorrow and hopefully the doors, although it's a little hot for this at the moment, 30 degrees! 

The S1 wire mesh screws in. On the Turbo it's glued. Don't take the old mesh out unless it's damaged. It's a lot of work shaping it. Here's a pic after about an hour of cutting and shaping. It looks pretty good now its in. 

[Lotusfab]

[silverfrost]

Not long now by the looks of it before its all bolted back together ! 

Great work.

[Lotusfab]

👍🏻

BOND Triva

Im going to share with everybody the  culmination of over four years of bond research. I am making the best possible copy of the original FYEO car. so here's my car and themuseum car.im an expert on the decals. Look closely at the Turbo Esprit. We all know the bonnet on the museum car has been changed. Sadly it was damaged on its travels. It then had to be resprayed and the decal was replaced. Unfortunately the decals supplied out there are mostly incorrect. I worked with decal fever some years back and produced the correct decal which is now on my cars! Notice theS and P on Esprit. Bigger loops in the museum car. Here's a picture of the original before the bonnet got replaced.

QED. Sadly when the changed the car from white to Copper Fire they hastily applied the front decal and put it in the wrong place, it should be offset to the right of the badge!

[Lotusfab]

At least the resprayer got the position correct.

Notice the different bonnnet! 

Car in the states before damage!

Notice in this picture the wheels are incorrect!

[Andyww]

Seems an appropriate moment to remind ourselves of the reason the bonnet had to be replaced and not to try this at home! Wonder where this was taken? Looks like one of the London squares. The cars look European but thats a good old British keep-left sign.

 

[Lotusfab]

That's odd. The decal position looks correct on that picture?

I won't be recreating that picture on my car!

[Andyww]

Is the car in the above picture near the wall is the other car, with the plaque? I once worked out what the logo was on the stickers on the windscreen of that car but cant remember now.

 

[Lotusfab]

Yep you could be right. Here's another picture with Roger and the decal position is correct!

[Lotusfab]

Thanks to Andy, bonnet and both doors on!

[PhilW]

Fabian

Car in Cambridge where my Dad worked on 23/04/82 if its any help.

 

[stephenwhyte]

Further reference of early decal positioning if needed - mine and a close up of a period Turbo poster 😎