TCS Body Info Required

[TurboFource]

Mine was one owner and I ran the lines outside the chassis as they originally were 

[Dilkris]

This is interesting EuropaTC and TurboFource - brake lines inside or outside the chassis. 
I followed what I felt to be correct - from what was left on the original chassis, (see photo - please zoom in) and I also thoroughly photographed a car being rebuilt by Spyder Cars some years back, (also see photo). I have attached the multi point union as per where it was on my chassis originally. (Looking at the photo of the chassis as it was some years back sort of cheers me up.... )
I do recall reading threads on this forum some years back whereby members routed brake lines through the chassis, and also within the interior of the rear Y section, (for the rear brakes) - I am not aware that it was ever standard from the factory. (At face value it would appear to make sense although I'd question how you would support them within the backbone. )       

[TurboFource]

This was pulling the body off … you can see them outside the chassis … you can see the little tabs in the second upside down pic that Lotus welded to the chassis to hold the brake lines.

[BDA]

It seems highly unlikely that a PO would go to or need to go to the trouble of rerouting his brake lines when the car wasn't much over 10 years old but I have never seen brake lines run down the backbone. I'm the original owner and I know mine were run under the backbone (I ran them on the side when I rebuilt my car) as Turbo shows.

EuropaTC, how were they tied down in the backbone? Did they run through grommets to come out in the engine compartment? It seems like a lot more trouble to do it that way!

[EuropaTC]

It seems highly unlikely that a PO would go to or need to go to the trouble of rerouting his brake lines when the car wasn't much over 10 years old but I have never seen brake lines run down the backbone. I'm the original owner and I know mine were run under the backbone (I ran them on the side when I rebuilt my car) as Turbo shows.

EuropaTC, how were they tied down in the backbone? Did they run through grommets to come out in the engine compartment? It seems like a lot more trouble to do it that way!

I don't think they were clipped in the spine, it's a long time now but I think they just ran through grommets. I'm struggling for photos because looking back it was '93 when I had the body off and like most others I was with 35mm cameras back then. I have found a later shot of the front crossmember from the time I experimented with residual pressure valves and that shows the two grommets in the front crossmember where the feed/return for the servo originally went. The front plate is removed for access and only one line now because there's no servo.

Is it original ? I have no idea and until I saw the photo with the multi union and realised mine was different, I've never given it any thought.  All I know is that's how I found it and just followed the same route when the body was off to replace steel lines with Kunifer.  I've replaced the F/R line since I dropped the RP valves and wanting to have the minimum number of joints.

Looking at the evidence from others & yourself I'm starting to think it was an original owner mod. Could be, the guy was a keen mechanic

I bought the '72 car in the mid 80s and from the notebook I got with it there's a comment about the chassis being replaced at 29,450 miles in 1978. No body damage (I've done a bare shell respray) so it was always a mystery. The trailing arms were also replaced a couple of years later at 37,700 with a comment about rusting so I've assumed it failed an MoT chassis rust because unless the complete shell was replaced & not documented, there's no indications of major damage.

Brian