Author Topic: My S2 project is now a driver!  (Read 5974 times)

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Offline Lotus7

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My S2 project is now a driver!
« on: Saturday,June 10, 2017, 10:11:59 PM »
After what seems like many years (well, it actually was many years) I finally have my S2 back on the road. I call it my S2-Z5 as it's a Zetec powered car with an NG3-065 5-speed trans. Here are a couple of pics of the car. I've done just about all of the work myself, and a good friend helped with with the paint job. If you have any questions, I'd be happy to answer them.

Offline Certified Lotus

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Re: My S2 project is now a driver!
« Reply #1 on: Sunday,June 11, 2017, 02:27:13 AM »
Wow, that looks great! Very nice job. How about some photos of the engine bay? What size tire's are those? And who makes the deck lid hold downs, those are nice.

You should be very proud of your rebuild. Nothing better than knowing every inch of the car while your driving down the road.

Offline Clifton

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Re: My S2 project is now a driver!
« Reply #2 on: Sunday,June 11, 2017, 05:10:39 AM »
 I see a Vintage Air controller, Did you do a/c or just heat? I love how you did the fenders.  The rear kind of reminds me of a Miura. How did you do them?

Offline BDA

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Re: My S2 project is now a driver!
« Reply #3 on: Sunday,June 11, 2017, 05:29:01 AM »
Very nicely done!
 :lotus:


I'd love to see more pictures, too!

Offline Lotus7

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Re: My S2 project is now a driver!
« Reply #4 on: Sunday,June 11, 2017, 07:17:03 AM »
I see a Vintage Air controller, Did you do a/c or just heat? I love how you did the fenders.  The rear kind of reminds me of a Miura. How did you do them?

Yes, that's a Vintage AC controller. The main unit lives behind the dash with the fan/blower in the front compartment area. Currently it's heat only, but my winter project will be to complete the plumbing for the AC condenser. The compressor is already mounted on the LH side of the engine.

We built the fenders using a lot of balsa wood to create the shape. Then covered it with fiberglass. Removed the balsa and glassed everything to the body of the car.

Offline Grumblebuns

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Re: My S2 project is now a driver!
« Reply #5 on: Sunday,June 11, 2017, 07:20:42 AM »
That is one beautiful car, well done. I also see that you are eliminating the bumpers. In my eyes the Europas look so much cleaner without the extra chrome. Did you use S1 doors and hardware or convert S2 doors to S1 specs?

Offline Lotus7

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Re: My S2 project is now a driver!
« Reply #6 on: Sunday,June 11, 2017, 07:23:44 AM »
Wow, that looks great! Very nice job. How about some photos of the engine bay? What size tire's are those? And who makes the deck lid hold downs, those are nice.

You should be very proud of your rebuild. Nothing better than knowing every inch of the car while your driving down the road.

No photos of the engine bay yet, still need to do a little clean up in there :)

Tires are 195x45x15 in the front and 195x50x15 in the rear.

The deck lid tie downs are my version of the Odie units that were used on the S1's. I formed the plates out of 314 (IIRC) stainless steel. They attach to the front and rear boots with some small stainless bolts. I also made the little lanyards to keep the pushpins from disappearing at car shows :) Here is another pic of them.
« Last Edit: Sunday,June 11, 2017, 01:40:43 PM by Lotus7 »

Offline Lotus7

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Re: My S2 project is now a driver!
« Reply #7 on: Sunday,June 11, 2017, 07:31:25 AM »
That is one beautiful car, well done. I also see that you are eliminating the bumpers. In my eyes the Europas look so much cleaner without the extra chrome. Did you use S1 doors and hardware or convert S2 doors to S1 specs?

I completely agree that the car looks better without chrome. In addition to leaving the bumpers off, I left the rest of the body clean of any of the normal badges. I also used a black lock strip (originally for the MGB) on the front windscreen.

I gave up on finding some S1 doors, so I modified my S2 doors to match the S1 in the side window area. I also covered the recess in the door that was for the window motor. This year I'll be using the original door panels (still waiting for them) but in the future the inner panel will likely be covered in a single layer of carbon fiber with an padded arm rest in the door recess.

Offline Grumblebuns

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Re: My S2 project is now a driver!
« Reply #8 on: Sunday,June 11, 2017, 08:07:01 AM »
Where did you source the pushbutton door mechanism? I'm looking for replacements for my S1.

Offline Lotus7

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Re: My S2 project is now a driver!
« Reply #9 on: Sunday,June 11, 2017, 09:27:52 AM »
Where did you source the pushbutton door mechanism? I'm looking for replacements for my S1.

My car was a very early S2 that came with the push button door latches. They looks so much better on a sports car than door handles! I remember you old MGA and reaching inside the door to pull the little rope to open the doors! The button is so much more sophisticated!

Offline dakazman

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Re: My S2 project is now a driver!
« Reply #10 on: Sunday,June 11, 2017, 02:01:11 PM »
 Congratulations!
That is one beautiful machine.
Love the plexiglass headlight closeouts, paint scheme, fender-wells, doors,....
Aughh ,love it. Did you step back and say this is my car ???
I'll give you some tissues ...lol
Dakazman

Offline lotusfanatic

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Re: My S2 project is now a driver!
« Reply #11 on: Sunday,June 11, 2017, 10:27:22 PM »
WOW!

what a beautiful sight on a Monday morning!

Mark

Offline Certified Lotus

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Re: My S2 project is now a driver!
« Reply #12 on: Monday,June 12, 2017, 03:09:01 AM »
Sent a PM on the hood pins.

Offline Bainford

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Re: My S2 project is now a driver!
« Reply #13 on: Monday,June 12, 2017, 08:24:16 AM »
Outstanding work! Your Europa is gorgeous. You have an excellent eye for detail, and I just love the bonnet and deck lid hold down fixtures. Very nice work on those. Hats off to you for a great result. It must be nice to now be able to slide behind the wheel and cover some miles. Cheers.
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Offline Lotus7

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Re: My S2 project is now a driver!
« Reply #14 on: Wednesday,June 14, 2017, 09:50:26 AM »
There seems to be some interest in the front hood and rear deck lid pins that I made. I searched the garage and found two of the three pieced that I used to make the plates. Basically I used a piece of scrap 1.5"x1/8" tube, two plates and a 1.25" steel ball to form my die plate. Material was 22ga 304 stainless steel. I clamped a 3x4"  piece of steel between the two plates them gently pressed the ball into the tube. I did a couple practice pieces until I found the depth that I wanted. After pressing them plates, I used a template to scribe the outline of the plates and make the holes. From there is was just time to cute out the plates, use the belt sander to bring them to the final shape and then drill the three holes.

The part that does not show in the original pictures is the part that mounts to the body. I threaded some 1/2" aluminum bar stock then drilled a 1/4" hole through the center. Added a counter sink on one end and squared off the other end. It needs sharp shoulders on the inside so the push pins will not work themselves out. I also made some aluminum 'nuts' to lock everything in place.

Lots of time for each one, but it's what you expect with custom built, hand made parts!