A run in the country, a photo shoot and a new alarm key fob

As the weather forecast was fine, I decided to go for a drive in the country today. We covered 260km and although it was cold when we left at 8am, it was quite pleasant by the time we stopped back in Perth for a photo shoot with some friends in the industry.

A coffee stop in Toodyay.

Oil industry rev-heads.

I also recently added a new alarm fob using a little dongle from the UK, which saves the hassle and expense of going to a dealer!

Old fob, new fob, updater dongle.

Further updates - and a fix!

Since getting back on the road there have been some triumphs and some disappointments.

I managed to do quite well at the sprint, getting a faster time than my friends, although a spin cost me a final victory.

I have refitted the undertray, which needed some work to make it clear the new exhaust, enlarging a hole and using some spacers to lower the tray about 1cm.

I have also ordered some new wheels. Not because I need them, but because they are genuine Lotus 12-spoke wheels and are a bargain price. Although shipping from the UK to Australia is expensive, I have ordered 4 wheels for less than the original cost of one!

On the negative side, I'm not sure I have completely removed all the air from the cooling system and I may need a new temperature sender. These aren't expensive so I will order one soon. 

** Update: Ordered, along with a new set of brake pads.

** Update 2: The wheels have arrived. Less than a week since ordering them. I doubt they would arrive so quickly from the other side of Australia!

** Latest update, 24 June 2013. Completed the second State Sprint, and due to the afternoon session being hit by heavy rain, I managed to grab a class win!

     Also, I fixed the erratic temperature issue. It was, as some suggested, a bad earth. Some idiot (me) had forgotten to attach the earth strap to the gearbox. I bolted it on and the temperature was stable, and the fan came on as expected and cooled the system down. Result! A simple fix but not worth all the worry about a bad head gasket seal or some other problem. Very relieved!

On the road

With the new windscreen fitted, the bodywork went back on.

There was a problem with the engine, however. There was goo in the header tank of the cooling system, which really annoyed me. Surely I hadn't cocked up and the head gasket had blown already, even before I had driven on the road?

A bit of reading on the Lotus forum eased my mind. A bit. It was most likely a mismatch of coolants. Some old coolant must have remained in the system and reacted with the new coolant.

I drained the coolant and flushed with water, then ran some flush through for 20 mins and refilled with new coolant. I also had to remove the the header tank and clean the goo out of it. :-(

Today I took it to have the suspension aligned, as I had replaced the rear toe links, and 4 ball joints. On the way there the car was quite fidgety, on the way back it was very stable. Let"s see how it goes on the track next weekend.

What's left to do? New tyres; refit the rear arch liners; trim the undertray to fit the new exhaust and refit it. Then win my class at the State Sprint! Hopefully.

New Windscreen

The car went off on the back of a truck this morning to have a new windscreen fitted. The old one had a sandblasted look which was worst when driving at night or into the rising or setting sun. Time for a new one, paid for by insurance.

Had to adjust one rear brake as it was binding, making moving the car around more work than it should be.

The painted lettering is just visible through the engine cover. :-)

There is life!

Today is a public holiday in Oz, so a chance to get some work done in the garage.

I finished fitting the exhaust, connected up the lambda sensor and filled the system with coolant.

First thing to do was to turn the engine over with the plugs out to build up some oil pressure, then put the plugs in and see if it would start.

Good news! It started instantly! The tappets were noisy until oil pressure built up. Temperature built up to 86C and all seemed well, just a little topping up of the coolant as it filled the radiator and heater matrix. After a spot of lunch I restarted the engine and ran it until the radiator fan cut in. All seems well!

I fitted the rear brakes and tightened up the large hub nuts.

So now it is possible to put the wheels on and move the car around. I hope to get the windscreen replaced next week, then put the bodywork back on and have a proper suspension geometry set-up done.

Hopefully it will all be ready for the next sprint on 12th May.

With the wheels back on I reversed it out of the garage. It looks so small next to the Fiesta!

Update: rear bodywork is back on.

Windscreen replacement is booked for next Monday.

Getting ready to fire up the engine

After a break of a couple of weeks due to my wedding and honeymoon, I have made some progress towards getting the engine running.

Marty made some brackets for the new exhaust heat shield and it was trial fitted, along with the new alternator heat shield.

Today I was going to replace the CV joint boots, but after cleaning up the old ones they were in such good condition that I decided not to change them.

This probably saved me 4 hours' work. The driveshafts are now back in which means I can fill the gearbox with oil, then the engine with oil and coolant. I've bought some Redline oil for the gearbox. Expensive but recommended by other Elise owners.

I also noticed that I have missed a washer on the inboard right toe line, so I that will have to be fitted. (Now fitted!)

I also bought a new battery.

Refitting ancillaries

Now the engine is in, refitting the ancillaries has started.
I've refitted the inlet manifold, which has had a bit of a clean. I also fitted a new fuel filter and connected the fuel lines.

I also bought some oil for the engine and gearbox. On the recommendation of fellow Lotus owners I bought Redline gearbox oil at $150 a can! Luckily the engine oil was on special. I don't have any coolant as I forgot to note how much I needed!

Marty should have the exhaust heat shield brackets ready tomorrow so I can fit the exhaust manifold and the alternator which also has a new heat shield.