Another resto...

[mikeeech 300]

Whilst the weather was lovely today it's been fustrating on the door mechanisms. Has anyone come across a fouling problem with a Lotusbits replacement door beam which prevents the door handle lever working? I reckon I have to take material out of the door beam. The photo is not the best but you can just make out metal behind the door opening in a triangular shape where I think the mechanism is fouling on the inside as it tries to move upwards.

the mechanism works, the door handle works but connecting the two together on the door stops it working!

[mikeeech 300]

I got my angle grinder to that annoying triangular section today, tidied it up with my dremmel and a file and door mechanism works like a dream. Whilst working on the driver's side mechanism the triangular section is on the same side so on the driver's door it is on the outside edge and on the passenger's door it's on the inside edge hence the problem with it fouling the mechanism.

Gott the driver's side mechanism fitted and working too but getting the rods to the right length to operate the mechanism was time consuming and needed alot of trial and error. No wonder these cars were so expensive in the day. These doors have taken me 5 days to get right. 

Something still didn't look quite right though and it took me ages to spot the difference.

The doors handles are different! 

[mikeeech 300]

So which handle is original?

[TAR 340]

My Elite has the polished aluminium surrounds as per your passenger side door. Not sure if mine are original or not but suspect they are.

 

[mikeeech 300]

Now most of the mechanical stuff is pretty much complete I have spent today planning my wiring. I have actually been mulling this over for sometime but it's time to get the plan on paper so to speak. 

The goals, perhaps obviously, are to;

1. have a wiring loom which has not been scotch locked with additional connections (although this was specified in the manual)
2. no insulation tape bodges 
3. Eliminate the wires that have cracked Insulation (as in the boot where petrol has leaked onto the loom)
4. Remove as many wires from the engine bay as possible
5. Replace the fuse box with a modern item and have all the fuses in the same place
6. Incorporate the

• headlamp lift motors,
• improve the cabin lighting and boot lighting
• Fit a rear hatch solonoid
• Provide a permanent connection for my battery conditioner
• Move or add a secondary fuel lock valve to the boot
• Add an electric aerial feed
• Remove as many wires from the engine bay as possble
• Relay the window motors, heater fans and headlights (for 150watt units eventually)

For efficacy I cannot stick with the original wiring colours so everything will be identified at each end of the cable (red) and blacks used for earth's (not idented) and then heat shrinked. 

Multiconnectors will be used for the instrument panel, the central switch panel, the boot wiring harness and the engine wiring harness. The last two will be bulkhead connectors although these are pretty expensive but will improve the look of the engine bay since the bulk of the wiring to the front of the car will be routed through the gap between the inner and outer wing where it will emerge in the offside light pod.

The wing mirrors are on a separate harness as an after thought at the moment too so this will be incorporated into the main loom so only one group of cables goes into the door ( I currently have two, one for the windows and one for the wing mirrors)

Finally the relays and fuses will be located behind the offside hinge plate where the headlight vacuum chamber once lived. This is also the cabin side of the void in the wing where the harness will route to the front of the car.

I will use a copper busbar in the boot for the earth's to keep the connections to the battery at a minimum and route the earth's at the front, back to the steering column where I have another fat earth cable connected running back to the battery through the cill.

Time to order some cable and tie wraps then...

 

[tom kilner 120]

Good idea - I'm listening.

I am planning on reducing the wiring to the bare minimum,  modern fuse/relay box (moto gadget m-unit?)  and have a battery under the bonnet - surely modern technology gives us a compact battery that could be fitted where (say) the air con pump was? Can't find one though. At least not for under £300.

 

[oilmagnet477 625 2 Vehicles]

Mike - regarding your comments about wiring efficacy, whilst doing up my Landy S3 I found  www.autoelectricsupplies.co.uk (look under 'braided cable (stock)' for dual colours) 

Including this chart (not sure this will work but I have a pdf if you want me to send it?)

Colour_code_for_vehicle_wiring_-_new_order_2.pdf

Just in case the labels come off.......

 

[mikeeech 300]

Thanks, i found them and did start to prepare a list of colours I needed. Then I needed to estimate the wiring length I would need. Then I thought f*#k it i'll just buy a 100meter reel or two and some idents. Most of it will be covered in heat shrink anyway. All I have to do I produce a key to the identification numbering and make sure both ends of the wire have the same label.

[SimonOmeara 83]

Hi Mike 

I've done some of your items on your your list. Moved the wires from the outside of the fuse box inside. Heater blower and rear heated screen relay where the vacumm pod was. I put the headlamp lift motor, radiator fan and overide relays in the driverside light pod. 

I altered a new fuse box to fit and generally repaired the loom.

I found labelling the new wires  or extensions as per the key on lotus schematic helped me.

One thing I did find the wires can be tarnished inside the insulation and difficult to solder without a good flux.

I'll post some pictures but if I can help let me know.

Cheers 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[mikeeech 300]

Two and a half hours this morning got my side lights, indicators, horns, otter switch and light pod lift wiring routed through the body. I thought I would post some pictures of the routing points.

This is the inside of the offside light pod. I had to remove the light pod to allow me easy access to thread a guide cable through. The new wiring disappear top left into the wing cavity.

And then appear here. For orientation the back of the OEM fuse box is visible in the left of the image. The gap through to the inner wing was sealed with sound proofing and then hardboard which, no doubt, prevents a draft going up your leg when your driving. The tape was hoping the hardboard in place btw.

All the wires will have to come out again once I tie wrap the cable exit points from the loom in order to heat shrink however I need to get the high current cables in for the head lights and fans before I measure the size of the bundle and order some heat shrink.

 

Edited April 28, 2018 by mikeeech

[Clive59 90]

I find this can be used to cover a multitude of sins, and allows for neat cable exits along the way.

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/6mm-Black-PE-Polyethylene-Spiral-Wrap-Cable-Tidy-External-Internal-Networking/232144464975?ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT&var=531347275529&_trksid=p2057872.m2749.l2649

 

[mikeeech 300]

The headlight pods are now wired up via a 5 pin relay via an over ride switch on the dash panel I made up a few years ago. The radiator fans are next via the new otter switch. Not very interesting but for those that are wondering, the ignition switch terminals come live to the sequence in the photo below

[soldave 243]

Are you using the MX-5 conversion for headlights? I keep thinking about that; my current setup works fine but the motorised version is just so much smoother and quicker.

[mikeeech 300]

Yep. Lotusbits sells a kit for £200ish but I did mine for £30. Easy to do but time consuming to get the setup right

Edited May 13, 2018 by mikeeech

[SimonOmeara 83]

Hi Mike

Just been looking back at your restoration, removing the trim from the rear hatch window. What chemical worked in the end?

Also the video of your engine running, sounds nice. 

Cheers

Simon 

[mikeeech 300]

I tried lots of stuff from kerosene, cellulose thinners, acetone (this disappeared quite quickly of course) but this stuff was the only thing that made any impact.

https://www.bonnymans.co.uk/products/product.php?categoryID=1412&productID=6228

I got a shallow tank made up at a local engineering company which was deep enough to cover the top and bottom rails. The sides were fairly easy to remove with a hot air gun after removing the corners in the same manner. I had to soak the top and bottom trims for a number of days so the mastic was soft enough to allow the removal of the trim.

[SimonOmeara 83]

Hi Mike

Thanks for the information will order some, next on my list to do.

Was thinking of using some guttering for the tray but now thinking

if it will melt it... 

thanks again

Cheers

Simon

 

 

[mikeeech 300]

Yes I thought that. I had some lindab metal guttering but needed to seal the ends and the rubber used on that would have melted. Also the volume of solvent required increases alot so a custom trough kept the ammount of solvent in use low, which reduced any fire risk, reduced the surface area to minimise evaporative losses as well.

[mikeeech 300]

An afternoon with a hot air gun and some heat shrink tubing of various sizes has enabled me to remove my new front end wiring loom, remove the cable ties and heat shrink it all so it looks a little more professional now. This included the wiring to the under bonnet lamp which has a water proof connector just beneath the bonnet hinge to allow the bonnet to be removed easily. In fact the fans have water proof connectors as do the headlamp motors. I added some aluminium wire inside the run to the otter switch so this could be bent through a nice right angle at the otter switch as it rises from the area of the steering column.

Getting it all back in again was much easier than threading each wire individually or course.

So from this...

To this...

The more observant will notice that I have not got the connectors on to the headlamp motors yet since I ran out of heat shrink of the appropriate size to make a tidy job so a little bit more work to do before I can secure it in position with p clips. Now I need to work on the other end which is a real rat's nest in the foot well now. But before that i need a fuse box assembly!

Edited June 22, 2018 by mikeeech

[silverfrost 1,386]

Great work Mike,  looking very tidy and will save you countless headaches in the future with gremlin free electrics ! 

 

[mikeeech 300]

Yes the old loom is really in a shocking state with the insulation on most of the wires cracking if I bend them. All the earth's to back to the steering column which then has a 100amp cable going back to the battery. I will post a picture of the front end loom i a week or so.

[SimonOmeara 83]

Hi Mike 

The wiring is looking good, are you heat shrinking the whole loom or taping some of it?

Just wondering on the head lamp lift motors I notice you have mounted with red manual  winder

down I just wondered why?

For electrical wiring supplies try Farnell, rapid electronics and of coarse RS but don't buy any molex I have a

box full of them in various ways and inserts from work so you are welcome to any if you need some I will never

use them all.

Cheers

Simon

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[mikeeech 300]

The red winder is down so I can cut a hole in the body underneath which will enable a socket to go on the winder to raise the headlamp pod should the motor fail in the down position. Failing in the up position could be fixed by taking the headlamp out but I couldn't think of any other solution if the pods are down. Before I drill the hole I need to find a blind gromit to fill it which will dictate the size of the hole.

I noticed on an excel at the practical classics show at the nec in April that this had a large gromit maybe two or three inches in diameter but so far I have not found anything. Maybe a chandler will be the place to look!

I will heat shrink it all I reckon. Although expensive the larger diameter stuff gives a nice thick wall to protect the loom from chaffing as it goes through body apperature and the 3:1 enables most of the connectors to be fitted and the circuit tested before being heat shrinked. Having worked for ultra electronics for a brief spell this was how the military cables are done and it gives a very robust, water tight loom!

Edited June 24, 2018 by mikeeech

[SimonOmeara 83]

Coincidence I have do work for ultra but mostly aircraft test gear for moog, smiths aeropace.

Small world so we think along  same lines., SJs have the grommets for excel which will work.

Cheers

Simon 

 

 

[SimonOmeara 83]

On 23/04/2018 at 16:45, mikeeech said:

Now most of the mechanical stuff is pretty much complete I have spent today planning my wiring. I have actually been mulling this over for sometime but it's time to get the plan on paper so to speak. 

The goals, perhaps obviously, are to;

1. have a wiring loom which has not been scotch locked with additional connections (although this was specified in the manual)
2. no insulation tape bodges 
3. Eliminate the wires that have cracked Insulation (as in the boot where petrol has leaked onto the loom)
4. Remove as many wires from the engine bay as possible
5. Replace the fuse box with a modern item and have all the fuses in the same place
6. Incorporate the

• headlamp lift motors,
• improve the cabin lighting and boot lighting
• Fit a rear hatch solonoid
• Provide a permanent connection for my battery conditioner
• Move or add a secondary fuel lock valve to the boot
• Add an electric aerial feed
• Remove as many wires from the engine bay as possble
• Relay the window motors, heater fans and headlights (for 150watt units eventually)

For efficacy I cannot stick with the original wiring colours so everything will be identified at each end of the cable (red) and blacks used for earth's (not idented) and then heat shrinked. 

Multiconnectors will be used for the instrument panel, the central switch panel, the boot wiring harness and the engine wiring harness. The last two will be bulkhead connectors although these are pretty expensive but will improve the look of the engine bay since the bulk of the wiring to the front of the car will be routed through the gap between the inner and outer wing where it will emerge in the offside light pod.

The wing mirrors are on a separate harness as an after thought at the moment too so this will be incorporated into the main loom so only one group of cables goes into the door ( I currently have two, one for the windows and one for the wing mirrors)

Finally the relays and fuses will be located behind the offside hinge plate where the headlight vacuum chamber once lived. This is also the cabin side of the void in the wing where the harness will route to the front of the car.

I will use a copper busbar in the boot for the earth's to keep the connections to the battery at a minimum and route the earth's at the front, back to the steering column where I have another fat earth cable connected running back to the battery through the cill.

Time to order some cable and tie wraps then...

 

Hi Mike

The hatch solenoid is somthing I have tried but failed to find a solenoid with a long enough pull. Or if  you shorten the pull one that is strong enough. Just wondered if you had found anything?

Cheers 

Simon