Hi, Have you bled the brakes since you did this video? I’m having shocking problems with mine, been back to the people that repaired it, but the “fixed” return isn’t working either. Pulling my hair out. Where did you get your kit from? Thanks

Octagonal wheel nuts look so much nicer than 'knock off/on' nuts, also they are more secure on a road car.

Washers!!!!?, I'd be inclined to get bushes that actually fitted

IAN !!!! hello my old friend :)

Nice job mate

Very useful and timely video..llI am also in the process of installing the same Kelvedon CV joints and lhaving trouble with tight holes in the diff and hub "ears" ; interesting to see you using a reamer: pls tell me what size you used. Thx.

2.25” springs make fitting the struts so much easier!

I installed CVDS from Elantrikbits this week. They were a doddle to fit and have transformed the way the car responds to the throttle. I also no longer have to worry about the doughnuts failing as I've fitted 3 sets in the last 3 years.

captive bolt for the suspension, two minutes with a welder, well done, looked like fun!!!!

Interesting, but about that elephant in the room…. You forgot to mention there’s a cork gasket that goes between the head and the valve cover that’s about 3mm thick. That should account for any interference with the camshaft studs.

Never liked poly bushes on the elan. The fronts I even made different s/s tubes as they really don’t fit well. After buying a complete set many year s ago the only ones I used were the rear inners, the rest were terrible. Cheers Mark

Seems a little agricultural on the way but seemed to end in the right place.

I turned 1mm off the inside faces of the chassis side bush top hats. As a result each bush sits 1 mm deeper in the trunnions, which gives a bit more rotation freedom. Turning the hub side bushes the other way around is a nice thought, didn’t think about that yet. I don’t like the idea of having to machine the hubs in order to mount the bushes as suggested by the bush supplier.

The problem with generic pullers of the operating principle you made is that the hubs being cast of steel rather than iron, they can easily distort when pulled (or banged) unevenly on the outside (one would need to be quite cautious to apply pressure very gradually all around). Then the wheel contact patch not being flat the wheel nut may/will tend to undo under use. Many hubs have been damaged over the years and that was becoming an issue, till hubs copies were manufactured again alleviating the increasing scarcity of good hubs. The hub puller shown at the beginning (which is the one recommended in the Lotus manual) is the safest, most efficient way to remove rear hub (you may achieve that with a sacrifical nut, needs heat, bang on the pressure point, and repeat, with some luck), as the pulling effort is coaxial and very close to the mating surfaces. They're not that rare or expensive anymore, and could be lent by a fellow enthusiast I'm sure.

Never an easy task and this is a sensitive way to put in the bushes without damaging the wishbone. Having just checked my Elan WSM (not +2), The Elan WSM says "Note that the bolts are fitted with their heads towards each other (i.e. from the inner faces)." Perhaps double check this point for the +2?

Just get a press and do the job properly for christ's sake!

I was watching, and thanks for the shout out 💪🏼👍🏻

Interesting! I always assumed polybushes were just a stiffer (and more garish colour) of ordinary bushes but it appears they operate more like a bearing? Are they stiffer, I wouldn't think so from the video? The thought of having to regrease would put me off & I thing I'll replace mine with standard bushes, assuming they are as good as the originals. One tip I would give is give everything a good power-wash first, having dust drop in your eyes whilst under the car is one of my biggest gripes & wearing goggles as an alternative is a pain, they either fog up or you knock them & as you know there is not much space to work on an Elan.

I believe your new upper "Lotocone" mounts are the same replacement part that I received. They are not the same as the originals that were on my S2. The lower concave surface that left marks on the spring seat dome is smaller diameter and thus sits higher, raising the bolt flanges 13mm above where the originals' were. It appears your original mount was on the lower center of the video screen. If it has the larger concave bell that sits lower on the dome, your rear ride height will now be 13mm higher than before. If you are using re-rated springs, your resulting ride height will be part of our adventures in Lotus world. The raised seating position of the new mount also creates a larger space between upper spring seat and Lotocone flanges, obviating the need for the thin-headed bolts. You can now use a crow's foot wrench (perhaps thinned a bit) on regular headed bolts which would have fouled the spring seat before. Folks using small 2 1/4" diameter springs can use ordinary socket wrenches. The previous procedure was to install the Lotocone on the frame w/the bolts, slightly compress the springs with ratcheting tie-down straps, arrange all components onto the strut, engage the strut to the control arm with the thru-bolts, then raise the arm + strut with a floor/trolley jack. Fun! There are some assembly moves that aren't relevant if you use the new mounts as-is, pre-assemble as modern struts are, and accept the altered ride height. I found the threads on my strut rods protruded insufficiently and had to machine the upper end of the mount's inner steel sleeve. It was just possible to gain full thread engagement that way without cutting into the mount's rubber. Your strut rod appears to have a sufficiently longer threaded section. My very reputable US supplier told me they haven't noticed or heard of any fitting problems and used them on their S1. I've had a new spare mount and the original on the spring seats, side-by-side. They are different. I did find one archived mention of this on the Elan forum we all enjoy and he machined, too. I also used a less-than-simple way to restore previous ride height. I'll find out if it was worth the effort sometime soon, I hope. Keep up the good work. It's both informative and inspiring! "rohanhodges" and "olivernaylor" are well-known enthusiasts and highly respected contributors. Thank you, to all.

Interested to see what ride height you get with those springs. New ones seem to ride very high

I also prefer to reuse the orginal round strut securing nut rather than the hexagonal securing nut

The alloy spacer is supposed to be crimped onto the shock tube to stop it rattling around. As far as I am aware the spacer plastic washer is supposed to go on top to protect the aeon rubber spring. This alloy spacer was a Lotus afterthought on later +2 so not a well documented assembly anywhere.

Hi, Make sure that the inner front bolt on the wishbones goes in thread first from the rear, the opposite of what you have in the video. Certainly in the little elan this bolt cannot be removed by pulling it forward. Cheers Mark

Ingenious. Well done that man!

Ian, I tried to reply to you with a couple of photos showing the washers in place that I was taking about but was unable to attach them. 🙁

bend ya back mate!! :)

plod on mate, making the rest of us envious/ dreading, you're doing a great job

Are those diff bars are the correct side? Mine point level, not down if that makes sense.

Hi Ian, I fair enjoyed your video and thank you for taking the time to make it. I do have one comment on the assembly of the diff tie bars, there should be another two dished washers per side that go between the polly bushes and the diff housing. When I purchased the bush kit for my Elan the the steel dished washers came in the kit. 👍🏻

Thanks for another great video!

When I did this on my Europa Special I just matched the head ports & cast iron manifold to the gaskets, so you also need to check the gaskets are also not impeding the exhaust flow.

That is utterly fantastic. Does it work well?

Superb video, clear, concise and honest! Very well done. Rex is looking forward to seeing the finished project! 3:58

Great video. I just removed one of my hubs using the little insert and three eared spinner. Tightened it up then waited 10 mins and it was loose - so I had it easy this time.

allways poor oil in the tube where the shock absorber goos in (for cooling, air does not conduct heat, caused by the shock absorber

Very clear..thank you..

Another Great video!

looking good mate

Great wee video! 👍🏻

Oh dear, I was shouting at you to reverse one of the Irvine clamps, so you could get your full hand round each pair of grips without trying to squeeze with just you fingers - frustration!!!!!!

0:59. Kind of a dumb question, but what's wrong with the thermostat clamp? 1:23. Have you considered replacing the plastic fuel line with metal? I used brake pipe with a piece of rubber fuel line just before the pump as it moves relative to the fuel line. 4:54. I've never replaced mine, but if you're going to replace the rubber brake lines, have you considered upgrading to braided brake lines? I understand that because they minimize any expansion under pressure, the brakes become rock hard which is a good thing. As usual, another quality video by Ian!

If you were only replacing the seal you could have marked the pinion nut & the flange & then worked out from the mark on the old nut how far from the thread start on the new nut you needed to make a mark. Or alternatively used thread locker on the old nut & put it back so the marks lined up. That of course assumes the preload was correct before hand! I’m enjoying this series, I have a 1968 +2 & will at some point have to replace the seals (currently not leaking). I also have the CV conversion from Mick Miller, which was the best money I have spent on the Elan. I’m also really enjoying your tooling to remove bearings etc & to break the taper. It seems a shame that the maker of the preload tool didn’t open up the centre, so that you didn’t have to take it off to tighten the pinion nut. One question on the rear handbrakes, the two little tabs that bolt on are they supposed to be sprung to keep the pads off of the discs, mine had no spring in them?

rather than buying the preloaderr, couldn't you have used a bolt through the hole and the digital scale? cheaper and just as effective?

There is another breather out that will work with either an L block, as shown, or.an M block.

Solved my cam cover leaking by simply gluing 4 sheets of sandpaper to a flat surface. Then moving the cover over the sandpaper in a figure eight motion until the cover was completely flat. Solved the leakingm completely.

Excellent! My pins are seized but I will give them a tap then pull. Sadly my pistons are also seized.

Great job! I was worried I might not be able to take my diff apart to replace bearings and seals, but now that I’ve watched you do it, I think I can handle it. Thank you!

Thanhs for nice videos! A tips: Always heat up the housing and bearings pop out easy. This way you will not loose any material where bearings are seated.

change them, new bearings are always better than 30 year old ones!!!!