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Applied a couple of strategically placed pieces of self adhesive foam to the underside of the pipe where it gets particularly close to the bell housing and the clutch master cylinder to prevent contact damage between either and also to prevent any annoying rattles when driving. Pipe all fitted and secured with fresh jubillee clips Boot floor should go back in over the weekend and then its good to drive again

I can confirm that the gauges do not mist up anymore. The small holes drilled in them has worked to allow air too pass freely through the gauge.

Well anyone who has seen either car can decide for themselves. I think I must have some skills at restoring. Brooklands a little while ago up against some very nice cars.

Well - sitting and waiting appeared to pay off.... I thought earlier that I'd not heard anything back from them - so put my reg into the checker, and now it's showing as being ULEZ compliant. If I log into my account I can't see any responses to my queries, but it looks like they have updated the database using the VCA link I posted way up top as proof of compliance Hopefully this will be helpful to anyone else if they run into this in the future

I know what you’re thinking, but it’s not something that happens in the Watford public conveniences, I’m talking about an automotive electrical issue here. A couple of years ago, I had a purge on incandescent bulbs, and fitted out the Esprit with as many LED's as possible. I was impressed with the much brighter sidelights, indicators and most of all the awesome power when on main beam. I hadn’t noticed any problems until last week, when I did the usual pre-MOT walk around, crawl under, and poke everything checks. The car has not been used for about 8 months, which is unusual as ordinarily drive it on a regular basis. I noticed that the hazard warning lights were flashing in time, but were intermittent. More worryingly, when the right-hand indicators were switched on, the left-hand side also flashed, but at about half brilliance. And vice-versa. My first thought was grounding issues, so I did what anyone in the same situation would do when faced with the prospect of pulling the dashboard to pieces, I retired for a few beers. Revisiting the circuit diagram, and thinking about how voltage could track from one side to the other, the only thing I could find was the incandescent dash warning lamp. But this made no sense at all to me, so the following day I spoke to Duncan at Classiccarleds (top bloke, and very good service), and he confirmed the suspicion. Voltage was passing through the incandescent bulb filament, and powering the lights on the opposite side of the car, albeit less bright. This is apparently not uncommon when LEDs are fitted as they use far less power to illuminate. Sadly, the binnacle cover had to be removed, however it’s now a rather slicker operation these days, due to the new windscreen having been fitted properly (sitting further away), my own modifications to the GRP, steering wheel removal, and driver’s seat removal. What used to take a morning can now be achieved in about 15 minutes. Once the cover was removed, the addition of a small wiring loom with a diode cured the problem. I also fitted a new electronic flasher relay just in case. The intermittent hazard warning switch was cured by removing it, cleaning it with electrical cleaner, and replacing it, before punching it on and off numerous times. I suspect the contacts were a bit dirty, because most of us only ever use them once a year to pass an MOT, unless of course you’re the driver of a Range Rover picking up Peregrine and Melissa at the local primary school. So, if you suffer from sympathy flashing, a cure is at hand. As to why it chose to manifest itself after 2 years, is anyone’s guess.

Final update on this thread All customer pairs are in shipping or have been collected. Final image of the production run items These are available via JAE Parts.

Hmm. Got to be either fuel or spark timing, one would think. Sticking distributor advance? Vacuum leaks? I'd investigate vacuum first.

Nice job! If there's any contact though, stick-on foam will last about 5 minutes. Rubber insertion would be a better choice, it's much more robust.

OR you can ask for distributor stuff to fit a 1980 MGB. Just don't use any rotors that are riveted. 😡

Wordle 678 5/6 🟨🟨🟨⬜⬜ ⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜ 🟨🟩⬜🟨⬜ 🟩🟩⬜🟨🟨 🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩 I guessed this 5-letter word in 4/6 tries. ⬛⬛🟨⬛⬛ 🟨⬛⬛🟨⬛ 🟨🟩🟨⬛⬛ 🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩 Can you guess this word? https://wordlegame.org/uk?challenge=cGFuc3k Daily Quordle 459 4️⃣8️⃣ 9️⃣6️⃣ m-w.com/games/quordle 🟨🟩⬜🟩🟩 ⬜⬜⬜⬜🟨 ⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜ 🟩⬜⬜⬜⬜ ⬜🟩🟩🟩🟩 ⬜⬜⬜⬜🟨 🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩 ⬜⬜⬜⬜🟨 ⬛⬛⬛⬛⬛ 🟩⬜🟩🟨⬜ ⬛⬛⬛⬛⬛ ⬜⬜⬜🟩⬜ ⬛⬛⬛⬛⬛ 🟩🟩🟩🟩⬜ ⬛⬛⬛⬛⬛ 🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩 ⬜🟨🟨🟨⬜ ⬜🟨⬜🟨🟨 ⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜ ⬜🟩⬜⬜⬜ ⬜🟨⬜🟨⬜ ⬜🟨⬜🟨🟨 🟨🟨⬜⬜⬜ 🟨🟨⬜⬜🟨 ⬜⬜⬜🟨⬜ ⬜⬜🟨⬜⬜ ⬜⬜🟩⬜🟩 🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩 ⬜🟩⬜⬜⬜ ⬛⬛⬛⬛⬛ ⬜🟩⬜⬜⬜ ⬛⬛⬛⬛⬛ 🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩 ⬛⬛⬛⬛⬛ Daily Octordle #459 🔟🕚 8️⃣9️⃣ 5️⃣6️⃣ 7️⃣3️⃣ Score: 59 I solved 15/16 words in the Sedecordle puzzle. 🟩🟧🟩🟩 🟩🟩🟩🟩 🟩🟩🟩🟩 🟩🟩🟩🟩 Can you guess these 16 words? https://sedecordlegame.org?challenge=c3Bhd24sY2FkZHksc2NvcmUsYmFzaW4scm91dGUsZmVhc3QsYWRvYmUsYm94ZXIsYmVyZXQsc2hvb3QsZGVwdGgsYW1iZXIsZ3Jhc3AsZ3JpZWYscmFuY2gsaGF2b2M6dWs I really wish it didn't annoy me as much as it does.

Victory demo laps. 30a3a844-ecc5-49fb-8962-288b77d10bb9.mov

I was charged for a new air filter on my Evora earlier this year despite it being fitted with a K&N. Didn't make the papers though.

Progression takes place prior and independently of the idle mixture screws, so the larger jet will significantly enrichen progression. But as you say, you could achieve a similar mixture at idle by manipulating the idle screw - until you touch the accelerator (although there will be some extra 'bleed' from the progression holes, as the throttles are still cracked open slightly at idle - which can be counteracted by turning in the idle screw). I personally wouldn't recommend going from a 52 to a 58

In this episode: brakes, redux. I now have a fully functioning braking system... all it took was replacing or rebuilding everything. It's been a while since my last entry - I spent a lot of time chasing the problem I was having with my rear brakes. Going down that path lead to, as is often the case, many "while you're in there" tasks. I also built a deck, bought a car, took a couple trips - life stuff. Sooo... brakes. After my last entry, I thought I had my brakes sorted. After replacing the wheel cylinders, I drove the car from storage to home (~15 miles), then a car show (about 50 miles round trip), then back to storage - all without a hitch. When I went to get the car back a month or so later, I thought I felt the rear brakes binding again as I left the storage facility - which seemed unlikely, considering all the work I'd put into the braking system over the previous months. As I got closer to home, however, it became apparent that the rear brakes were still binding - even locking up as I came to a stop. Sometimes a stab of the brakes would release them, other times I'd have to roll backwards a few inches to get them freed up. Fresh out of ideas, I decided to just throw money at the problem & called up a specialist to ask if they could have a look at the brakes. They said they could, but not for another 3-4 months. They asked if I'd turned the drums yet - which I hadn't (This is the first set of drums I've ever owned & I simply missed this basic reconditioning step). Rather than wait the 3-4 months for the specialist, I decided to have one more go at it - I'd have the drums turned and replace shoes while I was at it. I thought I'd also replace the brake hardware too - leaving no stone unturned. I ordered shoes and brake hardware from Dave Bean here in California (they didn't have the little H-shaped spacer for the parking brakes, so that tiny little part had to be ordered from SJ in the UK). The shoe return springs were noticeably different from the ones I took off the car. Not only a different shape, but they were *much* tighter & more difficult to install. In hindsight, I believe that the return spring was at the heart of my braking problems. Putting on my detective hat: I believe the old return springs - which were pulling the shoes together with *much* less force than the new ones - weren't able to overcome the friction of the shoes sliding on the backing plate and/or the wheel cylinders sliding in their slot(s). As such, a shoe could/would drag on its drum, which would eventually overheat and warp the drum, which, in turn exacerbated the problem by giving the shoe a "high spot" on which to bind. I think that all the work I put into replacing the wheel cylinders was worth while, but something tells me that if I'd replaced these return springs and turned the drums as step 1, I'd have solved this problem months ago. I guess this is why I'm not a mechanic. Moving on, after replacing the shoes and return springs, I brought the drums to a shop to have them turned. Sure enough, they were about as round as my foot. After a few minutes on the machine, however, they were back in spec and I was ready to test them out; but not before drilling holes in the drums to make it easier to turn the parking brake adjuster. I ended up doing two holes on each drum - directly across from one another. One hole is 3/4" from the outside, the other is 1-1/2" from the outside - the thinking being that I can tighten the adjuster through one hole and/or loosen through the other. During my troubleshooting, I disconnected one of the bleed lines from the diff - I did this just to be sure that the hard bleed line wasn't interfering with the wheel cylinder's front-back motion (turns out that the bleed lines, if bent, can impede the forward/backward motion of the wheel cylinders by clocking it in such a way that it binds in the slot, though this was not my problem). After determining this wasn't my problem, I reattached the bleed line to the diff, but I guess I didn't tighten it all the way. When I came back to work on the car the following weekend, I notice all my brake fluid had leaked out through that line, so I needed to bleed the whole system again. Drat. Having no helper that day, I did a quick gravity bleed just so I could do a brake test. The test went well - I was all but certain that the rear brakes were now sorted, but I was going to have to do another, better bleed. On my quick test drive, however, I noticed something I'd noticed before - the brake pedal sinks to the floor if constant pressure is applied. I figured it must be leaking fluid past the piston & that the way to solve that is to rebuild the master, so before I did a proper bleed, I thought I'd go ahead and do the rebuild. For whatever reason, someone in the past decided that there needed to be a gasket between the master and booster, and, more egregiously, decided that the master should be *glued* to the booster. Removing the master required considerable time/effort: I eventually got it off and got to replacing seals. I should note that I was never able to remove the reservoir completely - I only disconnected the screw-on side. The press fit wouldn't budge. I didn't want to crack the reservoir and I don't believe there's anything serviceable in the front section of the master, outside of the reservoir seal that wasn't leaking. The master was in a pretty sorry state when it came apart. Lots of rust where the master and booster meet; and where the reservoir mounts. After replacing the [very worn] piston seal, I noticed that the cylinder bore was pitted. I managed to find a master cylinder hone at the local parts shop & went to town trying to clean the bore, to no avail - the pitting was just too deep. After asking around, I found a shop that would sleeve the master cylinder. As I've been told, our master cylinder is a little difficult to sleeve being that it's graduated - two different bore sizes. This means that the sleeve has to either come in three pieces (one for each bore and then a third piece to join them), or the sleeve, itself, has to be graduated. Lucky for me, there's a company in the area that performs this one-piece sleeving service. Unfortunately, like all things Lotus-service related, they take *ages* to do the work. I dropped off my master in February & asked for an approx ETA - they said they were busy, so it would take 2-3 weeks. I called the following week to check if they'd received the replacement piston return spring I'd sent them and to ask for an updated ETA - they said they'd call me when it was done. Giving them the benefit of the doubt, I didn't call back until week 7. It still wasn't done, but I was assured it would be done by the following Tuesday. I called back the Thursday after that Tuesday & it still wasn't done... or even started, for that matter. So I raised hell, and wouldn't you know it, the master was done the following day. Wonderful. Unfortunately for me, they also "rebuilt" the master in addition to sleeving it (and charged me for the rebuild). This was wholly unnecessary, as I'd just rebuilt it myself - which is how I knew it needed to be sleeved. I didn't catch this until I'd gotten home. I figured that I'd already yelled at them enough (and was given a fairly convincing sob story as to why it took so long), so I just ate the cost of the second rebuild & will do my best to avoid doing business with them again. Picture of the bore and piston with the sleeve visible between the two: While waiting on the master to be sleeved, I took the opportunity to replace the worn front brake lines and calipers. (Early in my braking woes, I thought that the problem was a sticking caliper, so I bought new calipers & had them waiting on a shelf). Caliper install is straight-forward. Not much to mention, but they look nice: Again, while waiting on the 5-week-behind-schedule master cylinder, I started ticking off other items. My car is a '74, but it's running S2 bumper and tail lights. Those lights protrude further into the trunk/boot than the originals. The previous owner did the conversion, but never *really* finished it. There were interior covers for the tail lights included with the car, but they hadn't been mounted. When I tried to come up with a mounting solution, I saw why: in order to cover the lights, the covers would have to sit between the trunk floor and the lights, but the trunk floor was too big - it left no room for the light covers. Looking through my cast-offs from previous projects, I found a good quality piece of 1/2" plywood that would make a good trunk floor. I bought some automotive carpet from amazon & got to work... Test-fitting the new trunk floor with recesses cut for taillight covers (the covers are installed in this pic, but they are hard to see): ...and after carpeting: Now, at least, I no longer have to worry about something rolling around in the trunk and taking out my taillight wiring. While waiting on the master, I decided to spruce up the booster, considering how visible it is in the engine bay. After some cleaning and sanding, I hit the booster with some satin black "roll cage paint" that I had lying around. It came out pretty nice. (I would eventually re-sand and repaint to try to remove the dimples on top) By this time, I finally had the re-sleeved master back in my possession, so I got to final install and bleed. In the past, I've used Motive Power Bleeders to pressure bleed brake systems, but the early Elite has a reservoir that uses a 46mm cap. Motive does not make that size cap, so I instead went with the tried and true Gunson Eezibleed. The Gunson relies on tire pressure to pressurize the system, but it wants a maximum of 20 PSI. Rather than going through the trouble of deflating, monitoring, then reinflating a tire, I just made a coupler that would allow me to hook my air pump directly to the power bleeder. This may or may not have been a good idea. On one hand, I had endless 10-20PSI available. On the other hand, the Eezibleed vessel wasn't air-tight enough to hold more than 5psi from my pump (or my pump wasn't fast enough to maintain 10psi). Regardless, even with 5psi, I was able to push fluid through the system better than a gravity bleed, so I went ahead and did a full flush and bleed of the system. With that, I have a lovely, fully rebuilt master: Braking feels different. I think this is because it wasn't working well before, but it's working well now. The strangeness is that you get some brakes in the top half of the pedal, then when you hit about 50% pedal travel, you get into "full" brakes. I'm guessing this has something to do with the proportioning valve, how/when fluid travels to the rears, and the nature of the graduated master. I may try another, manual bleed, just to be sure there's no air in the system. During my inspections, I saw that the fiberglass next to the exhaust was cracked and brittle - presumably from heat. I got a sheet of aluminized fiberglass heat shield & made a quick heat shield for the body next to the manifold/header (which goes deeper down into the engine bay than you can see in this picture): After a few shakedown runs, I decided the car was finally in a good spot to take it on a real driving tour. I live in Los Angeles, which, like all of Southern California, is in a desert region. California is proud of its poppies (it's our state flower) - which are desert flowers that bloom for a couple weeks in spring - right around now. The Lancaster area - about 70 miles north of me - is one of the prime locations to see vast fields of poppies growing the in wild. Because of our unusually rainy first few months of 2023, the flower count is pretty spectacular: Getting there was equally enjoyable, as I drove up highway 2 through Angeles Crest (where I've taken most of the other scenic pictures in this thread) which gets you 3/4 of the way there. As luck would have it, I only encountered 2 other cars going my direction for the entire drive - both of whom pulled to the side when they had a chance. Driving home took us down a less enjoyable canyon - likely only less enjoyable because of traffic - that eventually dropped us off near Six Flags Magic Mountain, at which point we took regular freeways back home. By the time we got back home, we'd done 140 miles - double the longest trip I'd taken any time before this. The car drove flawlessly, but I still have an issue where it won't start, or even crank, when hot. In fact, when it wouldn't start when we tried to leave the above location, my lovely lady started getting really nervous. I said "Don't worry," popped the hood, jiggled a few wires around like I knew what I was doing, then hopped back in and started it right up. For this, I received a "hero" award, but I really just fumbled my way into a solution. I'll have to look into this more in the future, though it's difficult to replicate, therefore difficult to solve. I think I'll start by checking my grounds, and maybe adding another ground strap or two. At this point, I think I'm done with all the major mechanical work. I'm deeming this car, "ready to drive anywhere," though it's far from "fully restored". I still want to replace the full interior wiring harness, replace the stereo with one that works, and - the job I dread the most - rebuild the D'aire system so I can have both heat and, importantly for this area, working AC. I may decide to remodel our kitchen first - it seems like less work.

Thanks for the input guys. It has 45 Del'lortos. I only put E5 in it. It has been run regularly through the winter. I have Accuspark electronic ignition. I have use the same on my Eclat for years with no problem, but it is worth checking to eradicate it from list. I will check the spark plugs as well but seeing as the car runs great above 50 or during hard acceleration cant see it being that. But again no problem with checking to make sure. It is a weird one that's for sure. Thanks again for your pointers.

You mean you didn't go to the mail with you sad compo face?

Sorry to hear this but don't let it spoil your enjoyment of the brilliant Evora. Driving it is far more important than looking at it. Or for others to look at it. Justin

Though @williamtherebel has a federal car, I'm not sure if it's still on Strombergs or if the vacuum pipe is connected. It certainly isn't on a domestic S1 running Del'lortos. Easiest thing to check is the condition of the sparkplugs, and their gaps. Eradicate that from the equation. If you run unleaded e10 fuel and it has sat unused for months the carbs could be jellied up, or a lot of moisture has built up as it's hydroscopic, but I think that's a long shot after such a long run. I run Super Unleaded e5 fuel for that reason. Another possibility could be the jet stacks being fouled with congealed fuel. They're easy enough to clean using brake/carb cleaner and an airline etc. The floats may be sticking? Though I think that would cause other problems. Not sure. Are the points or electronic ignition module in good order? I had a Luminition Magnatronic unit fail on me. Often when hot. The sensors tend to break down unlike the Optotronic version. I'm now running Petronix on the fully rebuilt original 25D distributor. Some pointers at least. Sounds simple either way.

x 2! Silicone rubber will tolerate massive heat.

Wow, I haven't posted anything since last year!! Well this year I need help again. Took the Esprit for a run over to Leeds last week. It ran fine and it was a lovely day. However jumped into it yesterday for a run and it is very hesitant on low revs. Its happy at speeds over 50 with no problems. 70 or 80 likewise. If I accelerate hard (away from the traffic lights for example) there's no problem. But if Im just trundling along at 30 -40 its like kangaroo petrol !! (if you know what I mean!) [not as bad but you get the idea!] Ive checked the jets - they were all fine, but I gave them a blow with the airline anyway. Checked the float chambers for contaminates - they were fine. Cleaned the filters so they are nice and clean. But still have the same problem. What else can I try? Any ideas?

Not particularly - try your dizzy parts first and see how it goes

Steve, Sounds right and I would take note of NG5's comments on lubing the grommets. I didn't and the friction from the tubes would push the grommets in/out of the chassis as I was trying to fit them. Not a big deal but a bit of a pain. You can do it either way (grommets on pipes first or installed in chassis first) but NG5's way sounds a bit easier. Lou R

I assume this is gone 😢

Not done it on an Esprit but on my Europa which is similar you needed to put the grommets in the chassis first then stuff in the pipes, a bit of lube helps. With the pipes in place I found it impossible to fit the grommets.

I wouldn't worry about the wheels unless you personally don't like them or you particularly want an original looking car. Lots of the X180 series of cars with the route oz wheels have changed to other wheels because getting the correct size 15" tyres is becoming increasingly difficult. Because of that the original wheels come up quite often on ebay at reasonable prices if you do particularly want originality. Shame it broke down on the way home, but sadly no vehicles like sitting around not being used. Expect a few issues until you have put a reasonable number of miles on it. You sound enthusiastic so I'm sure you will get over the teething issues and then thoroughly enjoy it. Good luck!

Funny you say about a manual, I've just been sifting through the box that came with the car and I've found no less than 6 (YES SIX) huge workshop manual binders!

Definitely! Your car should be on OZ Ruote wheels, 15" front and rear... http://www.lotusespritworld.com/EHistory/WingsWheels.html https://www.lotusespritturbo.com/Lotus_Esprit_Stevens_X180.htm

So final shiny things have arrived today Updated allyrad from @Seriouslylotus and there's a new condenser as well all ready to go on. The old ones have been falling to bits as I've removed them there are no fins left on the a/c condenser I'm amazed it's still gas tight and the same goes for the original plastic capped rad... Pics will follow tomorrow!

Brilliant write-up and pictures as always. I think I know what you mean with the brakes working up until about 50% of brake travel and then really kicking in. Strange to describe but I might have similar. Glad you've finally got them all working well though

Wordle 677 4/6 🟨🟨⬛⬛⬛ ⬛⬛🟨🟨⬛ ⬛🟨🟨⬛🟨 🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩 I guessed this 5-letter word in 3/6 tries. 🟨⬛⬛⬛⬛ 🟨🟩⬛⬛⬛ 🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩 Can you guess this word? https://wordlegame.org/uk?challenge=Zm9ydW0 Daily Quordle 458 5️⃣6️⃣ 3️⃣7️⃣ m-w.com/games/quordle ⬜⬜⬜🟨⬜ ⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜ ⬜⬜🟨⬜⬜ ⬜🟨⬜⬜⬜ ⬜⬜🟨⬜⬜ ⬜🟨🟩⬜⬜ 🟩🟩🟩🟨⬜ ⬜🟨⬜⬜🟨 🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩 ⬜🟨⬜🟩⬜ ⬛⬛⬛⬛⬛ 🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩 ⬜🟨🟨⬜⬜ 🟨⬜⬜🟨⬜ 🟩🟩⬜⬜🟩 ⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜ 🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩 ⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜ ⬛⬛⬛⬛⬛ ⬜⬜🟩⬜⬜ ⬛⬛⬛⬛⬛ ⬜⬜🟩🟨⬜ ⬛⬛⬛⬛⬛ 🟨⬜⬜🟨⬜ ⬛⬛⬛⬛⬛ 🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩

So no service costs. .https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-12018617/Mercedes-Benz-dealer-charges-electric-vehicle-owner-oil-change.html

The biggest issue I have had on this car is the leaking camshaft covers. I have done this job so many times. I tried the rubber seal and gaskets. I pedantically did everything correctly many times and still it leaked after several heat cycles lasting only months before failure. I then discovered the problem wasn’t my work it was the gasket material! I was being supplied with paper gaskets. This is not what Lotus used. They used a material that Vulcanises when heated. This maintains the seal through temperature cycles. Lotusbits sourced the correct material and remade the gaskets. Before the Queens Pageant I fitted them . I had a tiny drip from the lower cover at the front after a several heat cycles. I sourced a german sealant that can be applied externally. It worked and no more oil leaks from the covers. I have been driving it since the pageant and its still perfect! How many man hours would have been saved if they just supplied the correct gasket in the first place?

I do think this has potential as a group buy. A lot of hoses out there that are close to end of life, and what's currently available as a replacement is poor IMO.

Pipework all welded and ready to go on the car. I did ask about grinding the welds down afterwards but the fabricator advised against it because the tubing I used is quite thin and it might weaken the joins if we did. Given there might be interest in a group buy, having the welds on show helps me template this one to make more if required.

The last S1 Elise, first owner Julian Thomson, at Gordon Murray Design.

Not that I'm biased, but she definitely says the S1 is best 😁. And she should know. That being said, both are gorgeous and those roads and that weather definitely made me jealous.

Here is Elisa with the prototype Elise currently living with me (Elise not Elisa):

The final external job of winter 20/21 (god that feels like more than 12 months ago!) was to replace the cracked plastic A pillar trims and Roof Vent Panel, I toyed with just ordering plastic replacements or black gel coated fiber glass versions but after "peer pressure" over on NORLOG decided to got he whole hog and order the CF versions from Elise-Shop. With the old panel removed . and new one in place, fairly easy with only 4 fastenings and i think 2 spigots but I might be wrong and no foam tape , the only annoying / difficult bits were (1) not dropping the fastenings / sockets into the depth of the engine bay and 2 shimming it to get a decent profile with the roof / hatch glass. Which I'm still not 100% happy with but haven't got round to removing and redoing the center section. The A-Pillars were much more time consuming and annoying, firstly due to the level of corrosion on the original fasteners that took liberal coatings of WD-40 to release without sheering and secondly the time it took to remove the old foam adhesive tape from the car before the surface could be cleaned and prepped for the new units. New CF trim with 3M tape applied ready to fit : and fitted I'm happy with that little lot so far.

Well my S1is MOT exempt and from next year tax exempt! I'm looking forward to getting out again, but a little bit of maintained will be needed. The dreaded camshaft cover leak has reared its head, shorly after my wife drove it around the Brooklands race track! I have found this car to be very reliable with the few mods I have done. Still looks pretty stunning for a 40 year old car!

Thanks a bunch, white van man. Come up to a traffic-calming island on your side of the road, with a clear-as-day "Give priority to oncoming traffic" sign on it and just swing over onto the other side of the road why don't you? Never you worry that I had to pull hard left to avoid a head-on and in doing so scraped my nearside rear wheel along the kerb - you just carry on your way as you obviously were in a desperate hurry to get somewhere. I really appreciate you giving me a new 'life experience' although I don't recall this particular one as ever having been on my bucket-list. 50 years of driving and I've never so much as touched a kerb with the wheel of any car, until today. Then I get home to find an email from the bodyshop that will be repairing the damaged front bumper and clam after the car park encounter with an SUV last November, telling me that it's going to be at least another 4 weeks before all the parts arrive - they've only been on order for 7 months so what's another 1? Looks like I can forget my attendance at the first few car shows of the season in that case, .

@ramjet Oh great! Something to look forward to as I'm showing the early stages of arthritis in several of my joints, .