Richard_W

I have a pair of cloth seats in decent nick which I think are S type seats... Can send pictures this evening if useful.

Thanks both, that is really useful. If I can I'll take some pictures and post them. By the early 90s the cars seem to be cross overs with a mix of what is now and what was in the past. It's never easy... :)

Hi, It's a 93 car so still has the handbrake under the dash etc, guess it may fit??

Doh! Should have mentioned that! It's a dedion

Title says it really. I'm about to overhaul the suspension on the car so with the rear dismantled it would be a good opportunity to change the bar if anyone has one kicking about. Not to bothered about how it looks as I can tidy it up easily enough if need be.

Hi, I have some older style S3 cloth seats. I'm not sure if they are a version earlier than you are looking for but can send pictures etc if interested. Richard

Not easily, there really isn't any space behind the seats. You could squash it in but that wouldn't be good if it was wet. The Elise roof was / is a complete afterthought, it was not meant to have one, so its not the best as far there was no real provision to store it once its off.

I've not owned an Elise 250 but I have owned an S1 Elise, and S2 Exige and a series 2 Europa, the latter being very much maligned but when set up properly probably the best of the lot. Putting aside performance if you are looking at useability the Caterham is no better or worse than any of the Lotus cars. With the roof on, the Elise is much harder to get in an out of, not just because of the entry slot but also the Elise has a very deep sill that you have to get over. Linked to this, I think the Caterham with the hood off is a much nicer place than any Elise variant with the hood or roof on. I have never used a hood of an sort on my Caterham, but in an Elise with the hood on there is not much headroom and with the engine behind you it can get very noisy, plus they steam up a lot in the winter! I love all the Elise variant cars and if I had garage space would have another S1 in an instant. But, if useability is why its being considered then think really carefully as you may not get what you want in terms of comfort etc and for a pure driving experience the Caterham is better. Have you considered a Boxster or a Cayman? Not quite a pure as a Lotus, but not far off, but much more useable day to day.

Thanks, that is great; 11mm will make a difference! I also thought that 205s would be OK... The car is a standard S3 and is 1.4 Supersport so currently it is probably a tad over-tyred on the rear. I'm looking at R888r's as it is currently on ZZRs. Richard

Hi all, I'm sure this will have been asked a lot of times but I can't quite suss out a couple of questions about tyres and wheels. I was running 185/60 tyres all round on 14 inch wheels, but have shifted to 13 inch wheels with 185/55s at the front and 215/55s on 8 inch rims on the rear. I much prefer the the 13s but in the switch I have lost a lot of ride height... I haven't actually hit the sump yet but I do think I have touched down a couple of times! :) I've been looking at options for getting some ride height back, mainly around changing the shocks and springs and adding adjustable platforms, which I will probably still do. But I also wondered whether changing he tyres to 60 profile would actually get me a more useble height, obviously. It will, but is it going to be noticeably worthwhile! So a couple of questions... 1. How much extra clearance would 185/60s and potentially 205/60s actually give of 185/55s and 215/55s 2. Can 205/60s be fitted to 8 inch rims? I think its on the margins but there seems to be a lot of mixed opinion across different sites I have looked at. Apologies if this has been asked a lot before but any advice is appreciated! Richard

Indeed! Its all being pulled apart anyway so it can be done then. I'm not much of a cleaner really but that will just brush off with a bit of encouragement!

Thanks Stu, Thats great, exactly why I asked, now I understand that through the tube means the mounting bolt it makes complete sense... I was probably being a bit slow!

Hi all, I am about to replace my aged rear shocks and springs but I need to work out whether my current shocks are mounted through the De-dion tube or outside it... To me they seem to be outside but one persons definition is probably different to another! The picture attached is taken from below the rear left shock, at the bottom of the picture you can see the De-dion tube and how the shock is mounted. Can anyone advise as to whether this is defined as through the tube or outside. Thanks!

Hi Brett, Just replied. Thanks Richard

Hi, PM replied Thanks