Excel SA

Once you've drilled holes you can also use a jigsaw to cut the rest The edges left sand easily and quickly to finish the holes off. Neil.

I am, with a large Excel project....

This is out of the service notes for the Elite and Eclat - it should help. Neil.

$22 must be for 100! Try this https://www.alliedelec.com/product/te-connectivity/926973-1/70468256/?utm_source=octopart&utm_medium=part_sourcing&utm_campaign=partsourcing_octopart&TEdistID=614733525&TETID=buqdx5YQR9 I did have a look at them - US$0.22 each, but they have a US$5.00 handling fee, plus shipping which put it on a par with the price over here - in South Africa, I paid the equivalent of about US$7.00 (GBP5.00 or so) for 10 plus shipping, but added them to other bits and pieces I needed to order. They may be available in other places in the US as well?? Neil.

I have found some of these connectors for my Excel - the fuse box and connectors look the same as the pictures above. The description of the connector is a "Standard Timer socket contact, 17-13 AWG, and has a part number of 926973-1 - a Google search of the part number should come up with a part from TE Connectivity. I bought mine from RS Components here in South Africa - they took under a week to get to me despite not being in stock in SA. The RS Components stock number is 7187123 - you get a pack of 10 connectors. I have trial fitted one - without clipping it in completely as I can't, for the life of me, get any out despite knowing how they lock in place! They do fit. Neil.

I'm busy rebuilding the door skin on my Excel - if the damage is that bad on the outer skin, there is also likely to be damage to the mounting points as well. It's not a quick or fun repair removing all the old repairs and then trying to rebuild everything properly. First prize would be a replacement, unfortunately Lotus Bits is a bit far from me to be an option! Neil

Nice to see all the progress. Pete, yours had to open to change your air filter.... Neil.

As far as I can tell the rear springs for the Excel should be 12" long. I can measure the front ones from my car on the weekend as they are in a box and not fitted yet after refurbishment. The rubber pads they sit on should also give a clue as to which goes where as I think the diameter is slightly different as well. Neil. Also have a look at https://www.lotusexcel.net/viewtopic.php?f=7&t=9058 - that shows the front spring length options - all longer than 12".

I'm pretty sure the springs front to back are different sizes on the Excel, but off hand have no idea which is which. Suspension bush bolts should also only be tightened when the car is under it's own weight, and sitting level. Neil.

Nice to see all the pics of someone else's repair! Have similar, but more extensive damage to the front of my Excel - some was patched up badly, and some damage was just left as it was with no repairs even attempted. Neil.

Hi Dave, Good luck with the conversion! I'm currently trying to squeeze a Lexus V8 into my Excel - it is a pretty tight fit. This will keep you very busy and your mind thinking all day (and night..) trying to work out where to fit everything! Will be keeping an eye on your progress as well. Neil.

Thanks Pete - will work out which side I have space for the fold, and will probably bolt it to the chassis rather than weld and have to grind away the galvanising. Have some brake lines to avoid as well so may need an extra hole or two for those to pass through. Neil.

I am planning to put in a bracket on the rear suspension for extra support - I believe it was a change made by the factory to later cars. If anyone has a picture or drawings of the bracket I'd appreciate seeing it so I can replicate the factory option rather than making up my own design - which would look something like this: Thoughts and criticisms welcome! Otherwise the chassis is cleaning up really nicely, all the damage to the chassis where it was used as a jacking point has been straightened out, and I am working on the repair to the damage to the front of the chassis. Neil

I haven't been idle these last few weeks! Body and chassis have been separated - no major issues removing the body - finding some of the bolts underneath layers of carpet was interesting, and one of the bolts under the fuel tank wouldn't unscrew and I needed up shearing it off. There is no access to the captive nut for that bolt, will need to make a plan to remove the rest of the bolt - a bit easier now. I made a trolley for the body, but it needs a few modifications to make sure it's up to the task of supporting the weight of the body and being moved around. I have checked the measurements that I can check, as well as checking diagonal measurements and am happy that the main part of the chassis is OK - not bent, nor twisted. The chassis has some damage from being jacked incorrectly in the past - some panel beating will be required to straighten out the flanges that were damaged. With the body off, the camber on the rear wheels looked pretty extreme, a bit of looking and the answer became clear - the top suspension mount on the front side of the chassis has been broken on both sides (the rear mount is still OK) and the bolts both point towards the center line of the chassis, pulling the top of the wheel inwards. The bolts don't look original as they are quite rusty, and someone has taken the damaged bits apart and refitted them incorrectly. The broken piece is there, it has been put on the wrong way around and is hidden by the bush. More welding, panel beating and some reinforcement will be needed. Looks like a complete suspension refurbishment is going to happen now, as well as some cleaning and painting of the rusty and corroded bits. The pile for powder coating is also getting bigger... Neil.