SOUP - My new series about my Series 2

[NG5]

Re the inner door latches, as far as i am aware on all early esprits right up to the x180 are British leyland ones fitted to just about all their cars in the 70s. Mgb's, austin 1100s, allegros, marinas, etc, but not minis or jags. Tons on ebay and from specialists

[Fridge]

Actually the interior and exterior door handles were designed and made by the Birmingham (now Worcestershire) company Wilmott-Breedon. They were also used on Range Rovers and Reliant Scimitars.

[910Esprit]

I always find it odd & mildly irritating that only the Esprit gets ridiculed for using 'Marina' door handles!

[Fridge]

I hear it all the time at car meets and shows. Bizarre. It's as if it's the only thing they can see. However, saying that I get at least 2 favourable comments and thumbs up for the whole car each day when at filling stations or out driving the car. Or from folk passing by when it's on the driveway. Guaranteed.

[GTK]

Yes the Marina door handle thing and "Lots of Trouble Usually Serious".... lots of twits usually say.

[910Esprit]

I see what you did there!  Good luck with the seat hunt, I'm sure some will find their way to you

[NG5]

Despite what most people think, i remember a magazine article in the late early 90's stating that Lotus manufactured in house a significantly greater proportion of their cars than any other British car manufacturer. At the time of course they produced engines, body, seats, trim and most of the suspension. The other manufacturers subcontracted out most components other than engines, only doing final assembly at the car plants. Not sure that's true anymore. 

[Fridge]

Perhaps complete engines, but as castings not so. Like many manufacturers, certainly around Coventry up to and throughout the 1960s, castings were made by specialist companies.

[EuropaSman]

@GTK there's a chap on the Lotus Owners Facebook group who says he's got a pair of S2 seats and door cards. Not sure if he's on TLF, but possibly worth contacting on FB. Will DM you the name.

[Djs44]

On 11/09/2024 at 22:44, GTK said:

Thanks Jon, I put the calls in to Lotus Bits/SJ/PNM right away, no joy there unfortunately. Keeping all options open! Thanks 

George 

I've sent you a mail - give me a call 

[Tocus]

On 12/09/2024 at 19:20, GTK said:

Thanks all for the words of support and networking. I have met Matt Oxley before at the NEC and will give him a shout, he's a lovely man. Since posting I have a couple of leads but I'm not counting my chickens because I've learned how easy it is to mistake S2 seats for ones from another model.

A list is a great shout, just for reference so here goes:

1 pair Esprit S2 seats

1 pair Esprit S2 door cards

1 pair Esprit inner door locks (the item that opens/locks the door)

1 full set (both sides) Esprit S2 aluminium door trim strips and retaining clips

I'm 99% certain I have a pair of seat runners, just need to confirm. Leads on any of the above would be amazing. I do know that the door locks and aluminium trim are available from the Lotus specialists, but as skiing said above, if they can be found in someone's attic it might be feel good all round.

I wish you all the luck in the world, and yess i also follow your youtube channel, i love the vids.

i dont can help you, but i hope Matt will can, i know he has a lot of parts, but selling is a strange / hard point for this (lovely) guy (great guy!)

 

hopefully it all will become good, (it must be!)

[GTK]

On 22/09/2024 at 20:17, Tocus said:

I wish you all the luck in the world, and yess i also follow your youtube channel, i love the vids.

Thanks man, just keep a 2.2 engine on ice for when I come looking for more power   

[GTK]

Thanks all, the help and support puts a massive dent in the worry about the interior. Just today I had a really good chat with someone who it looks like will be a saviour, don't want to jibx it but just to say things are looking really positive.

I need some help on a bit of a fudge today if anyone has definitive knowledge. Started changing the timing belt in prep for trying to start the engine. Lined everything up and removed the belt but the distributor pulley moved on me. Yes I should have marked it, but when working so intensively with the camera I usually have a bullet proof fail safe. Not this time. 

So I've pulled the distributor cap to see where the rotor arm is when I line the pulley dimple so that it's at 12 o'clock (approx) which puts the "EX" marking almost at 6 o'clock and both roughly in line with the crankshaft centre. When orientated like that the rotor arm is more or less pointing at No.1 spark lead. Am I on the money or fixing to be broke?

[910Esprit]

George - Yes, pully dimple at 6 o'clock is correct.  (maybe around 6.32 if I was splitting hairs)  which gives a rotor arm position of maybe 10:30.   It's illustrated in section EA of the manual

[Fridge]

There is a timing mark on the distributor pulley which should align vertically with the crank timing marking as per the WSM.

You're right, cylinder one firing is about 11-12 o'clock when looking at it from the rear of the engine.

[GTK]

Thanks Steve and David. Glad I asked because I have the dimple at 12 o'clock, and that's putting the rotor at roughly 12:30 / 1 o'clock (looking down the engine from the front). I've been disappointed by the manual a few times. There were a few things in the past I don't recall just now, but today I looked for a reference for the sprocket dimple position, nothing. It just says align the timing marks or similar. Happy to be proven wrong! No guidance either for locking the engine to release the crank pulley bolt. 

Is there a chance the sprockets can be different car to car? Or that I have the whole thing on the wrong stroke? 

The other thing is that the cam sprocket marks are just a hair off each other, is that normal? I'm attaching two images, one is poor quality but I've marked the crank pulley timing mark / IN & EX marks on the distributor pulley, and the dimple on same. The second image is the slightly misaligned cam sprockets.

 

[Fridge]

Be careful which dimples you line up. My cam pulleys have white notches.

Unfortunately I cannot post photos on here.

Your cam positions are pretty standard. They may align better under correct cambelt tension. You'd need vernier pulleys to adjust to be spot on. Your engine doesn't need that for road use.

TLF member in Florida Bill Galbraith did a good reference video which is useful.

 

https://youtu.be/t4n33t22zbY?si=U-skERf-JHz1eZ-s

Edited September 23 by Fridge

[GTK]

I studied all three of mine and the distributor one only has one dimple (although pimple would be more accurate as it's raised rather than concave) and the IN and EX markings. Anyway I need to have the dimple at 12 so that it's a straight shot through the pulley's centre line and down to the centreline of the crank, right?

[910Esprit]

We are talking about the 'punched' dimple on the periphery of the aux pulley (not any of the cast dimples).   Take the centre line between the axle of the aux pulley and the crank centre.   The aux pulley dimple should align to this centreline  (dimple at 6pm not 12).    

If you were to Google 'Lotus Esprit Service Notes PDF' you would find a manual with the pictures described - No change between S2/S3 in this regard 

Edited September 23 by 910Esprit

[GTK]

Ok, crossed wires. I was thinking of the wrong mark. I didn't think there was a dimple like the cam pulley ones, on the distributor pulley. I'll study harder tomorrow 

[910Esprit]

And I believe you are missing the earth strap from your tensioner!   

[GTK]

There’s a tiny little strap, maybe two inches long and a light wire gauge, pinched between the alternator adjuster bracket and the tensioner. That it?

[910Esprit]

Yes, that's the one!

[Fridge]

Note: If you'd bought the higher quality tensioner with a phosphor-bronze bush it doesn't need the earth strap.

[GTK]

Seems mildly accusatory 😅 

The tensioner came as a combo offer with the rest of the car 

I’ll say this: the 4mm pin in the tensioner to hold it in a retracted state, simply doesn’t.