traveler501

hi, guys Just a quick followup. First of all, thanks for all the supportive comments. I was feeling pretty disappointed leaving the 7 community almost as fast as I finally got here! I'm feeling pretty good now with all your comments, and even moreso having begun speaking with both the original builder (who's pretty jazzed about getting a "contribution" to his current build…seems to be a MG Midget sleeper, he's going for over 100 hp in a 1275 motor) and even better I've spoken to the new 7 owner and there's no doubt he will give this car a worthy home but also (I predict) be an asset here on USA7's. His name is Bill Connery, he's a longtime motorcycle dirtracker and Formula Vee racer…and currently owns a gorgeous Grand Sport replica (pics below)! I mentioned USA7's and he's already joined and is hoping to be at the Millville, NJ gathering if we can complete the transfer in time. I don't know what his nick will be here, but please look for him and give him some of the camaraderie you've shared with me. Btw, can you imagine going back and forth between a 500+ hp Grand Sport and a "point and shoot" 1050lb Lotus 7?? Should make for some interesting story-telling *grin* all the best, John

Thanks for the comments, guys….also thanks for those who were supportive in the auction. I recognized lotusman's nick, but I could tell there were others. I was surprised by the final bidding (and meanwhile earlier this morning BAT was warning me I'd better lower the Reserve from $15k cause it might not sell!). The car really was very nicely done, and the builder deserves a lot of credit. I got the car fairly cheap (compared to the selling price) although I had put another $3k into it. I think the right thing to do is share the profits with the original builder. I'll be contacting him once this deal is complete. Probably a good time to thank everyone for all of their help on this car. I had lots of questions and you guys were patient and super helpful. One last thing…going with the 2" Magnaflow really improved, (vastly improved!) the low and midrange grunt of the Crossflow. It was clearly choking with that 1 1/2" original pipe. Just offering that as info….thanks to Skip Cannon for the suggestion. The Magnaflow really sounded great as well. JesseD…if you have questions about how BAT went, the inside story…how about giving me a PM? (or write me directly at 135krpm@q.com) all the best, guys John

Final notice, the auction will be ending tomorrow (Tuesday), 12 noon Pacific time. Currently (Monday afternoon) the price is at $13,250.

hi, guys Just an update for those who have interest in following the auction (Jesse D), I think the Lotus will be posted starting tomorrow (Tues) at noon. Thanks again for everyone's comments. cheers, John

hi, guys I'm surprised by all the responses…but let me address everyone's questions. About buy-it-now and price…I'm open to suggestion/offers. The actual auction won't go live for a couple days and although I've already paid for the service I believe I could sell early. If anyone wants to make an offer by PM, let's talk. @Jesse…thanks for the tips and good wishes. About BAT and your Z3…let's talk after it's over and I'll give you whatever info I can about what they do, how it all works etc. I'll definitely try to keep up with all the comments. @Lotusman "what makes it a replica?"... The guy who built the car is all old-timer who restores British cars and also builds his own hot rods. He found original Lotus plans for an S2/S3 Lotus and welded up the frame and formed the sheet metal to extremely close original tolerances (I verified this). And then completed the car with all old Lotus and Caterham parts. He sourced a 1970 Cortina GT for the drivetrain…so an authentic Kent Crossflow 1600 motor and transmission. As for the square driveshaft tunnel he added that thinking it was an improvement, he attached the flat top plates with a series of Dzus fasteners to provide excellent access to shifter and driveshaft from above. I actually like that idea because of the access but also because it gives you something to support your weight on when climbing in and out of the car. (virtually) everything on the car is what you'd expect to see on a Lotus 7 2 1/2. He rebuilt everything…the motor has 10:1 compression, a vintage Isky RPM Competition grind cam and heavy duty valve train including double valve springs (I'm guessing it's good for 7kprm). He also sourced a Weber 32DCD carb. I have extra parts…the correct 2 1/2 air scoop, stainless sheets precut fender protectors and a correct dual manifold and throttle linkage if someone wants to upgrade to S3 spec. The car has a Formula Ford 4 to 1 manifold and includes a brand new custom Magnaflow muffler system per Scannon's suggestion. That greatly increased low and mid range performance, and it really comes on the cam about 3500 rpm. Based on Weale's book I estimate 110 hp currently and 135 hp with dual DCOE's (and that's based on the lower 5400 rpm redline…I suspect this valve train and cam will support higher rpm and hp …but that's speculation on my part.) The guy also added some nice upgrades…Braille battery with 475 CCA, small but powerful Nippondesno alternator and hi-Torgue Reduction starter (all new). I should add that the car has less than 600 miles since the build and rebuild of the drivetrain. I have a ton of pics if anyone wants to PM me their email address. I'll attach a couple below. Feel free to ask if any more questions. John

hi, guys Remember when I thought I was aggravating my asthma from the side exhaust fumes? Turns out it wasn't that at all…it was simply driving around with no top. Even though I have a great new exhaust system (no fumes, much improved mid range power!), I'm still wheezing all night long after a drive. Apparently it's just allergies and the Lotus has to go. I'm listing it on Bring a Trailer next week with a very reasonable Reserve (less than any car I've seen here yet). If anyone is interested and wants detailed information, more than you might ask on BAT, please just let me know. I have gone deep into the car at this point and know it really well. It really turned out to be quite nice, much better than I would have expected. I believe all the basic details will be presented in the auction intro…but feel free to ask anything else. Btw, I'm a little bummed to be selling the 7…but I do want to thank everyone for their support as I got my feet wet. I asked a lot of newbie questions and you guys were really patient with me. Also, despite only driving it a few times I really got a huge amount of enjoyment from it and fond memories I'll never forget. It was the fulfillment of a lifetime dream… and now I know for sure there's nothing else quite like a Lotus 7! with best regards, John

I appreciate your comment, retrorider, thanks! OffRoad…I'm very close to being "blat-worthy". I'm going to take the car out again this weekend for a shakedown. I want to verify the cooling system, oil pressure etc. Now that the fumes are handled I need to make up for lost time. I really haven't driven the car since it arrived. I've already noticed that it's geared low, so 60mph is a practical limit for now (3800 rpm). Which switchbacks are you thinking of? Oak Creek Canyon or maybe coming down out of Prescott? Long story short….very soon, hopefully!! (about the exhaust expansion, thanks for that reminder… I have the muffler mounted in a sliding/captured nut configuration like on a motorcycle. We'll have to see how well it works, huh? *grin*) Dingo…you have a great eye for detail and continue to demonstrate it! Thanks….yes, I'll look into tires for sure.

So, it's a month later…weather is nicer and my Tig welder guy finally found a free day to come over. Long story short I installed a Magnaflow muffler per Skip Cannon's recommendation and bumped the exhaust tubing size up to 2". I'm thrilled with the results. Great sound, not as loud as before, motor runs better with 2" (versus 1.5 before) but the big news is that the whole fume issue totally "evaporated!" Thanks to everyone involved…had my first real blat today and loved it…. cheers, John

The weather has been too cold and wet for a drive, so I've moved full speed ahead on my exhaust system. Long story short, I hope to have the Magnaflow that Skip Cannon recommended in place early next week. In removing the old exhaust I found several leak points btw…another contributor to the fumes I was breathing. I assume a new (and welded this time!) exhaust should wrap things up nicely. I just have one idle thought before putting this to bed for good. I'm wondering about the uncovered area in the back where the gas tank and diff are. I've noticed that some people have shelves, and some have tonneaus over this area. Does anyone have any experience whether this is another source of fume circulation? I can imagine it pulling fumes up…also imagine it allowing air flow from the rear of the car to move forward, down and through. I hate to re-invent the wheel…has anyone already explored this one way or the other (taped ribbons to the gas tank while driving etc?). Do racers feel the need to cover it? If it effects top speed it must be creating drag one way or the other. If nothing else I'll do the tape trick myself when I get my car back, and report on it. Thanks in advance for any thoughts!

I have no experience with the Zetec engine (although I had a similar issue with my RX-8). If this were my car I would assume that this is clearly an electrical issue and since a) the symptoms fit the pattern of a coil degrading thermally and b) apparently Zetec's have a history with coil failures, I would personally go with Automoda's solution and get new coils. That being said, I wouldn't necessarily jump into new plug wires, nor necessarily get an MSD setup if cost is an issue. However, I'd be sure that whichever coil I settled on wasn't being manufactured by whomever is private-labeling these Zetec coils for Ford! (if it's physically different looking, it probably is different). Best of luck…hopefully it's that simple!

hi, Kitkat As you know it's hard to even see the tach around the steering wheel (!)…my best sense of it was that I was hitting 3500 or so at 60 mph. I think I have a stock Cortina 4 sp with 4.10 diff gearing. I'm going to try and get her out again tomorrow (between the expected raindrops)…I'll try to get a better reading. (I'm being a bit conservative on revving it right now since the motor only has about 750 miles since being rebuilt). Tom: that sounds good, I'd really enjoy meeting up with you guys…seeing your cars and comparing notes. Later in the Spring gives me more time to get to know my machine. You know how that is…looking for any surprises….leaks etc. Edit: the weather turned surprisingly ugly…constant rain then snow for the next week. I'll report back as soon as I can though. Itching to get back in the car !

hi, Tom Thanks for the offer (which I saw a bit late, I'm afraid!). Hope you had a great blat. As for me, I'm still getting acquainted with my car. I took it for the first protracted run yesterday and am noticing that my reasonable top speed (considering gearing) is about 60 mph. I think it's been set up for autoX maybe…so not sure how that will fit in with you guys (or commuting to Phoenix either). Do you ever get up this way?

I've been poring through my old Lotus 7 books lately and one of my bookmarks turned out to be an old clipping of George announcing his new Caterham dealership. The date of the newspaper is June 17, 1993. Just an fyi for anyone who might find this interesting.

So I finally got a few minutes to myself (working around holiday family stuff) and hooked up the PCV and valve cover vents and that solved everything! Turns out I wasn't actually smelling the exhaust at all, it was just fumes from venting the engine to atmosphere under the hood (as many of you suggested). Took it out for a test drive and no fumes…took the wife with me, and as much as I like the 7 judging by her wide grin I suspect she likes it even more (we've been together 15 years and she continues to surprise me!). Thanks to everyone for all the helpful advice. Happy New Year!!

Thanks, slo…that makes sense. In hindsight, my crankcase is venting directly into the engine compartment right now (without a catch can)…and it idles fine despite spitting fumes. I got my head twisted around for a minute there :jester: