The Lotus Grand Tourers

sorry to ask a pathetic question but................... trying to get the nuts undone on our S2.2 Elite to take bonnet off. one side fine. the other - nut siezed so is ripping pop rivets and the bonnet hinge in the fibre glass. any suggestions how not to hurt her any more please? want to replace cam belt and water pump to start restoration. many thanks. regards all. DC.

This might help ..... on my Excel the "bolt" that screws into the mounting plate is a threaded rod with a hex head. The nut is there as a lock-nut so it is probably the case that it's the threaded rod that is seized in the mounting plate. Have you tried some penetrating oil? If I remember there's a product called "Ease-it" or WD40 even.
John.

thanks for that. we have an Excel too and have taken her bonnet off many times.............. but the Elite is a nut with the same hinge system and four pop rivets, NOT the with the internal hex screw as the Excel, so..............its the not breaking the fibreglass im trying to avoid. many thanks. DC.

You may be forced to drill the bolt using really awkward flexible/ angle drives.

Hopefully somebody has a better suggestion than that.

The bonnet is still attached, but the bolt is seized in the bobbin attached to the inner wing right? Cut the bolt with a hacksaw blade between the wing and bonnet and lift bonnet away, drill the rivets out of the dead bobbin and discard, rivet in a new bobbin. You will almost certainly make some marks here and there unfortunately

thanks again. thats what i was thinking as the last result. its so annoying when a screw or bolt/nut siezes n slows a bigger job right down AND causes other damage. the bonnet material is SO flimsy there as u know...........regards all.DC.

The bobbins are really cheap, just as well to get some new ones rivetted in

where the bobbin/hinge goes in the wing tho - is there a metal plate 'glassed in on the inside to accept another new rivet tho? cos u cant get on the inside of the wing ............DC.

does anyone know please - the bobbin/hinge on the inside of wing, does it have a fixed plate inside the wing itself as u cant access from the wheel arch etc? if i have to cut the bolt off and rivet new bobbins in will this be easy to rivet there? many thanks. DC.

There should be a plate there, unfortunately, when I had similar problem with the headlamp pods I was able to cut the bobbin & bolt inside the pod, cut off the back of the rivets so that the bobbin on the pod was free & found there was just enough movement available to get the pod out leaving the remnant of the bobbin/bolt attached to the body.
Then I could get at the rest with a bit more access.
The bonnet should be easier to do this to if you can get the other side free.

thanks again for that. im trying to confirm the little plate is actually 'glassed' in on the inside of the wing - cos if i cut the hinge/bobbin off and the plate drops - it'll make a simple job a headache. regards. DC.

My guess is that it is not "glassed" in, they aren't for the headlamp pods.

................so it will prob just drop inside the wing n get lost. a bit more difficult there to put a new one in and rivet it. wonder how the factory put them on then !!! ??? thanks again and best regards. DC.

You can get to it through the headlamp pod on a late excel. Not sure if it is the same on an elite though.
Ted