Stupid car.. [ I hope it never reads this..ha ha ]

Well some of you may remember me lamenting last spring about my frozen clutch in the Elan. I tried every trick I know to release it, including adjusting the slave so far out that it should have been released even without stepping on the clutch. After numerous trips around the block and much bunny hopping I finally gave up and parked the car for the rest of the summer. I tried a few more trips around the block during the summer, but to no avail.

So because my summer business uses up my garage space, I couldn't take the body off to pull the drivetrain until things slowed down, which they have at last. Pulling the body off is not my idea of fun and has the potential to damage the paint work on the car through mishap, but what else can I do...

So I fire the car up ( after cleaning the moss off the spark plugs??? )and warm it up in anticipation of the drive around to the front yard and garage. Then shut it off and stick it in reverse and hit the starter. The car bucks backwards for a bit then starts, but the motor just kind of revs and slowly drags the car backwards! Eureka! The clutch let go! I guess the constant pressure of the over adjusted clutch cyl must have weakened whatever was holding the clutch fast over the summer.

I adjusted the slave back to where it should be and took the car for a quick blast and everything is fine. Too bad the weather has turned... I was going to switch the 4 speed back into the car, but I guess I'll leave the 5 speed in now. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/driving.gif

I read your post with interest (as well as the one you left me in the other thread). Which 5 speed are you using...?

Type R, I admire your tenacity to restore this lovely car.

A noted LBC mechanic near here once told me what the "acronym" for Lotus was:

Lots Of Trouble Usually Serious. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/crazy.gif

Regardless, wish I could have one!

Ha ha, wish I had a nickle everytime I heard that! My experience with the early Lotus cars is just the opposite. They are well engineered, and when put together with care they are tough to break. You do need to keep ontop of the service aspect, but then the cars are 40 some odd years old after all.

I am running an Alfa 5 speed from any old GTV or sports model. The adapter plate is a custom job of course, but no other mods were necessary except the driveshaft. the shifter comes out about one or two inches further back than the stock one, but no one has ever noticed even at concourse events. The ratio's are not too bad, very close really to the stock tranny, just a little higher all around. No problem with the torque from my tall block.

Sure is nice to have a 5th gear on the road, and the Alfa tranny is beautiful to shift, and very smooth and quiet..

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Ha ha, wish I had a nickle everytime I heard that! My experience with the early Lotus cars is just the opposite. They are well engineered, and when put together with care they are tough to break. You do need to keep ontop of the service aspect, but then the cars are 40 some odd years old after all.


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My Experience is like yours. I am going to stay away from the 907 powered cars though. I had a couple of them. Too many parts.

Why do you remove the body to remove the trans? Is that because of the Alfa conversion?

BTW, your Alfa trans sounds a lot nicer than the one in my Berlina. The 3 rail Ford box is a very sweet shifting box, but an overdrive sure would be a benefit. I actually decided to buy a Cortina to drive because of how nice the trans in my Elan was.

Yes the Elan/Cortina tranny is slick, the Alfa feels the same. The body has to come off because the trans is in the tunnel and not accessible with the body on. While you maybe could pull the motor trans combo out by undoing all the bolts and leaving the driveshaft attached to the rear end, you could never put it back in. It is a pain, but removing the body is really only a few day job on and off. i just hate doing it..

Good Grief, having done a number of powerplant R&Rs in our shop, I don't ever recall having to remove the body, except for a couple of cars with extreme chassis damage. Of course, that was long ago and far away.
Dave T bluspit@yahoo.com

Re: Stupid car.. [ I hope it never reads this..ha

haha - at least it works now eh? Nothing has "character" like a Lotus!

Re: Stupid car.. [ I hope it never reads this..ha

Well what do you know, maybe I'm wrong about having to take the body off. I'm not sure how you would get the driveshaft back into the tunnel and hooked up, but there must be more access there than I remember. Anyway, looks like I can pass on that job anyway, thank God!