The Lotus Grand Tourers

Exactly Angus.

Perhaps chavs have the right to take ownership of the word and use it...just like "sluts", "gays", and the "n word" have been reclaimed by the offended groups.

Anyway I do hope, within reason, we can escape the "tyranny of the fragile ego" that request (effectively demand?) a positive only approach to discussion of ideas. Maybe best left in the modern oppressed workplaces where we too often find ourselves.

Not that I'm against anyone's right to make such requests per se, I'm not. But listening to, and consideration of, counter opinion is healthy IMO.

SLATFATF - So Long And Thanks For All The Fish
CHAV - Council Housed and Violent

No problem with positive and negative views. Whether the Excel will look good with or without the sharp 'ridge' is subjective. I agree it needs a coachline to split top and bottom and the Excel already has a noticeable line underneath the ridge. My question was more technical "Is it structurally important."

Interestingly the 308 image shows a coachline, but it is not a ridge but a groove and it doesn't follow the wheel arches. http://memimage.cardomain.com/ride_imag ... _large.jpg

The Audi quattro has a coachline but no 'ridge' http://www.classicandperformancecar.com ... hp?id=4237 as does the Lancia Delta Integrale http://rumors.automobilemag.com/files/2 ... 23x389.jpg

Thanks for all the comments and views. I can now go away, consider and make my decisions.

Fair comment, glad you are not offended.

Mind you, weirdly (or not!) I was indeed bought up in a (Coventry!) council house from 1954 -1976 and was occasionally caught up in violence and had to defend myself so the acronym runs true in my case and I'm not offended by it and I feel sorry for anyone who is.

Probably because I got married and escaped into a "middle class" life with an upper-working class wife and have 3 Oxford educated (Classics and English) kids but who still have glints of chav running through them, and when cornered...

If you go ahead with the waist line removal please post up pictures. I for one am up for a change of opinion and if it looks good it looks good.

cheers

Thanks.

Once the car is finished - leather renovated (tomorrow), mirrors replaced, waistline decision & respray, new alloys - I will post up some images. Then you can applaud/nod appreciatively or walk away disgusted.

What is most important to me is that the car is the one that my wife and family are happy to use regularly, which is what these cars need ("Say no to SORN") rather than choosing one of the other cars in the fleet (2011 Merc GL, 2008 Renault Espace).

Lotus Excel fitted with the Toyota V8 - ignore that he went mad and added a huge bonnet bulge with supercharger it has the sides smoothed in and looks quite good.
http://www.waiheke.co.nz/boat/lotus6.htm

Final with no trim:

http://www.waiheke.co.nz/boat/bonnet2.htm

Ted

ttedj wrote: http://www.waiheke.co.nz/boat/bonnet2.htm

Ted

Interesting, but it looks disjointed from the doors to the rear quarters as far as I'm concerned.

Ah well - modify all you want, it just makes the originals rarer and more valuable (by about 0.005p per modified car at current rates).


Just, please, keep the bits you take off somewhere they can be found for those of us who'll need them in the future!

Ooh, that's an interesting link Ted!!

On the plus side:
- I actually think it looks good with the waist strips removed
- Love the colour
- For once the big rims / skinny tyres looks OK in this setup
- I can even live with the enhanced wheel arch bulges

Less convinced:
- Bonnet bulge to clear the supercharger is horrid
- He's fallen prey to the "Vauxhall block" myth!!
- It reminds me how much better my car might look if I actually polished it more frequently

Fancy going to all that trouble and doing NOTHING about the Rover SDI rear lights

Looks like a very professional installation but one wonders how much the handling is worse than the std car now the front SG is raised and there is reduced forward visibility (well would be for me 'cos I'm a short ar$e ). Safe bet it'll be good on a drag strip though.

Not brilliant pics to get a good impression of the side trim removal, but then my eyes are more distracted toward the very ugly supercharged bonnet bulge. Side view might be a subtle improvement but for the rest of the car, subtle it is not, and it's clearly it's not meant to be either!

I think I'd prefer the see, drive and own more Lotus and less Toyotus. Each to their own.

Hi.
Can i just add that if you do remove the waist line trim(even to fit new) please be aware that,

1) The trim on the doors are stuck onto a thin fragile piece of grp glued and screwed onto door(as outer door skin is one piece so no join)and could easily snap when removing trim.

2)when i removed trim on my car,lots of glue/resin remained not easily removed without sanding(not so much of a problem for me as had extensive body/grp/filler work to do anyway)

3)some bits of the seam may come off with the strip(mine did)

4)new trim is very hard when cold,too little P U adhesive trim wont stick,too much will squeze out. use lots of tape to hold down.

Best of luck.

Cheers, Terry.

iangotts wrote: What is most important to me is that the car is the one that my wife and family are happy to use regularly, which is what these cars need ("Say no to SORN") rather than choosing one of the other cars in the fleet (2011 Merc GL, 2008 Renault Espace).

"Say no to SORN" I lke it ! I agree with the sentiment. I can just imagine that being a campaign tagline

KevW wrote:

iangotts wrote: What is most important to me is that the car is the one that my wife and family are happy to use regularly, which is what these cars need ("Say no to SORN") rather than choosing one of the other cars in the fleet (2011 Merc GL, 2008 Renault Espace).

"Say no to SORN" I lke it ! I agree with the sentiment. I can just imagine that being a campaign tagline

Ahem!
vvvvvv

Ok, OK Angus. I know you do the occasional mile during the winter too! I've just come back home in the Excel after a blast in the sunshine. It's almost t-shirt weather out there. Is this the warmest winter yet ?

KevW wrote:Ok, OK Angus. I know you do the occasional mile during the winter too! I've just come back home in the Excel after a blast in the sunshine. It's almost t-shirt weather out there. Is this the warmest winter yet ?

Probably set a new record this year. I put winter tyres on, remember ?

Some say, it's gonna get colder soon.

But then again, we have our Winter Contis on the Mazda so ...

Lotus-e-Clan wrote:Some say, it's gonna get colder soon.

But then again, we have our Winter Contis on the Mazda so ...

Well Peter this is very rare , i have to say i love and agree with all your post on this subject, and each to their own.........

and my contact at the MET Office reckons snow in about 7days time or so up here in the north................but hey what do they know about weather

So Angus you may get to use your winter tyres before they wear out..................