Author Topic: Interior Cleanout  (Read 490 times)

0 Members and 1 Guest are viewing this topic.

Offline Bryan Boyle

  • Super Member
  • *******
  • Joined: Feb 2022
  • Location: Morrisville PA
  • Posts: 800
  • 1974 Europa JPS #142 3291R
    • Lotus Europa Collection
Interior Cleanout
« on: Wednesday,February 16, 2022, 12:06:23 PM »
Figured during lunch hour...would start to do a few things on the interior of JPS 142 while musing about what to do about the engine...drop and refresh or fiddle around more with her...anyway...stripped out the seats.  The passenger side is just fine; driver side seams are torn.  Thinking to just see if an upholstery shop can make up a pair (they're mirror images) of the bolsters and replace.  I know Europa Engineering ostensibly lists seat cover kits for 95 UKP each...maybe they would just make up bolsters?  Anyway...will switch seats for now (and move the sensor and pad to the driver seat when I install on the passenger side...).

Stripped out the nasty insulation from the floor of the driver side, shop vacuumed the carpet vigorously.  Came up with some loose change with 70s and 80s dates.  Like rummaging through the sofa, right?  Will put down dynamat on the floor on that side to deaden the drumming.  Looking at the pedal assembly...looks like someone "adjusted" the clutch pedal side to side angle...will take that out at some point and put it back where it belongs...and took out the aftermarket steering wheel.  I think the original one looks a lot nicer.  Will have to take it off anyway again, and drop the column; the clamp holding the stalk assembly is broken...and RD was able to supply a replacement.  BUT, the right side washer stalk is riveted onto the plate...will attempt to CAREFULLY drill out the rivets and attach with machine screws...if not, will just pick up another stalk and be done with it...and probably freshen up the paint on the column and mount.  Vinyl covering the stalk cover is beyond use; made a pattern of the old vinyl leaving a generous edge for gluing purposes...my SO is going to stitch up the pieces, and will recover the fiberglass with fresh 'leatherette'.

And...fiddling around with the center console; I think I'll just leave it original.  If I want to add gauges, MOSS sells a radio delete plate with 3 small gauge holes in it that I can use and delete the radio (or mount elsewhere...or not...just replace with an amp and leads to feed from my i-device.  Like my selection of tunes better than what's on broadcast anyway...And it will keep the interior as stock as possible. 


Bryan Boyle
Morrisville PA
Commercial Pilot/CFII/FAA Safety Team
Amateur Extra Class Operator & FCC Volunteer Examiner
Currently working on 3291R, ex 444R, 693R, 65/2163, 004R, 65/2678
http://www.lotuseuropa.us for mirror of lotus-europa.com manual site.

Offline SilverBeast

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Joined: Aug 2019
  • Location: Yeadon,West Yorkshire,UK
  • Posts: 710
  • 1974 Twin Cam Special
Re: Interior Cleanout
« Reply #1 on: Wednesday,February 16, 2022, 12:56:07 PM »
You can swap the seats - mine have been by a PO - but I believe the headrests are mirror images and taper more on the "outside" to clear the seatbelt inertia reel.

Mine were probably swapped for the same reason as the outer bolsters get more wear as drivers/passengers struggle in and out. Swapping puts the damage next to the tunnel where it is less visible.

Offline Bryan Boyle

  • Super Member
  • *******
  • Joined: Feb 2022
  • Location: Morrisville PA
  • Posts: 800
  • 1974 Europa JPS #142 3291R
    • Lotus Europa Collection
Re: Interior Cleanout
« Reply #2 on: Wednesday,February 16, 2022, 01:27:50 PM »
You're right...dry fitted it, and it does bump the reel.  Well...one notch forward for me anyway, so, it should work for now. 

Contacted Europa Engineering to enquire re a set of covers.  Shipping may hurt, but, probably better fit than having someone on this side have to try and make patterns and copy.  We'll see if EE gets back...least of the worries right now...
Bryan Boyle
Morrisville PA
Commercial Pilot/CFII/FAA Safety Team
Amateur Extra Class Operator & FCC Volunteer Examiner
Currently working on 3291R, ex 444R, 693R, 65/2163, 004R, 65/2678
http://www.lotuseuropa.us for mirror of lotus-europa.com manual site.

Offline Triton

  • Jr. Member
  • **
  • Joined: Jan 2021
  • Location: United Kingdom
  • Posts: 67
Re: Interior Cleanout
« Reply #3 on: Wednesday,February 16, 2022, 03:38:45 PM »
I bought a set of seat covers for a TCS from Europa Engineering and they were a perfect fit. The sponge cushions were in good order,just needed a couple of small repairs.  Stuart....

Offline BDA

  • Super Member
  • *******
  • Joined: Jul 2012
  • Location: North Carolina
  • Posts: 10,003
Re: Interior Cleanout
« Reply #4 on: Wednesday,February 16, 2022, 04:16:52 PM »
Be careful when you take the stalks off the mounting plate. I don't remember which one - and maybe both - has little spring loaded copper rollers that make contact on contacts on the other side (I think that will make sense when you get into it). There are some detent balls too, if I remember. You'll obviously want to take it apart slowly and watch for things trying to escape. IIRC, that is the only real fiddly part of it. You should know that the thing that makes your stalks work for a Europa and not a Spitfire is the steel mounting plate so make sure you keep it (not that you'd loose something like that!).

Offline Tom999w

  • Jr. Member
  • **
  • Joined: Jan 2022
  • Location: Upstate New York
  • Posts: 96
Re: Interior Cleanout
« Reply #5 on: Thursday,February 17, 2022, 07:27:22 AM »
There was originally floor insulation in these cars? That's news to me.

Offline Bryan Boyle

  • Super Member
  • *******
  • Joined: Feb 2022
  • Location: Morrisville PA
  • Posts: 800
  • 1974 Europa JPS #142 3291R
    • Lotus Europa Collection
Re: Interior Cleanout
« Reply #6 on: Thursday,February 17, 2022, 02:22:57 PM »
Be careful when you take the stalks off the mounting plate. I don't remember which one - and maybe both - has little spring loaded copper rollers that make contact on contacts on the other side (I think that will make sense when you get into it). There are some detent balls too, if I remember. You'll obviously want to take it apart slowly and watch for things trying to escape. IIRC, that is the only real fiddly part of it. You should know that the thing that makes your stalks work for a Europa and not a Spitfire is the steel mounting plate so make sure you keep it (not that you'd loose something like that!).

Fiddly is NOT the word.  The replacements are for a larger diameter column so...somehow you have to build the column up so that you can clamp it down tightly.  First problem.  I solved it with a couple rings of large adhesive heat shrink (I use it when I make high-power RF coax terminations on the end of heliax) which makes up most of the difference.  I then carefully, with an extremely sharp bit, drilled a pilot hole 180 degrees from the clamp screw, and once the proper diameter was achieved with the heat shrink, and the clamp was tightened down fully, screwed a short stainless #6 sheet metal screw in so that the point pierced the heat shrink and bit into the column.  It's tight.

Second problem...the quality of the ostensibly 'Lucas' replacement parts is questionable...I rang out all the leads and except for the horn button, everything was copacetic. Carefully disassembled the new rront plate (which has a different shape than the original... removed the stalk (yeah, there are a bunch of springs, wipers, one ball...I did it upside down in a tupperware container and caught everything), removed the offending stalk from both (the horn worked on the old switch plate...) and thank goodness the old stalk worked in the new switch housing...and the horn button worked, too...reassembled the new switch back end with the old plate (there is a screw hole for the column cover; the new front plate is a different shape, so there would have been no place to attach the cover...)  Other issue is that the new turn cancel cam is deeper than the old...so, while reassembling, used the old nylon cam instead of the new one. 

third issue: the plug at the end of the wire bundle for the switch is different.  So...cut off the old molex (I don't have a pin removal tool for the large .092 pins...only the smaller .062...my bad...) with enough wire to splice onto the new wires.  Soldered like colors to like color, shrink tube over the splice, and tested before wrapping with loom tape.  Everything works as it should.

Put it all together on the column (with the lock screw...), plugged everything in, reattached the ground on the battery...turned the key...can flash the lights, hi/lo beam, turn sigs, horn, wipers, squirters...

Now, to finish with the leatherette cover for the column cover and put it all back with the OEM steering wheel.

I would hate to think about how much it would have cost to have someone do it for me.  Lots of fiddling, fitting, and thinking outside the box...
Bryan Boyle
Morrisville PA
Commercial Pilot/CFII/FAA Safety Team
Amateur Extra Class Operator & FCC Volunteer Examiner
Currently working on 3291R, ex 444R, 693R, 65/2163, 004R, 65/2678
http://www.lotuseuropa.us for mirror of lotus-europa.com manual site.

Offline BDA

  • Super Member
  • *******
  • Joined: Jul 2012
  • Location: North Carolina
  • Posts: 10,003
Re: Interior Cleanout
« Reply #7 on: Thursday,February 17, 2022, 02:27:07 PM »
Glad you got your stalk controls worked out!  :beerchug:

Offline Bryan Boyle

  • Super Member
  • *******
  • Joined: Feb 2022
  • Location: Morrisville PA
  • Posts: 800
  • 1974 Europa JPS #142 3291R
    • Lotus Europa Collection
Re: Interior Cleanout
« Reply #8 on: Thursday,February 17, 2022, 07:46:57 PM »
Glad you got your stalk controls worked out!  :beerchug:

Don't want to go there again anytime soon....lol.  Cracking the brewski as we speak!
There was originally floor insulation in these cars? That's news to me.

In the TCs, I think.  I know there was no sign of them in any of my S2s.  Going to replace with dynamat and maybe (maybe) a thin layer of closed cell foam.  But that's it.  There is no carpeting in evidence under the seats (cutting costs?) but going to add a piece under there anyway. 

Surprisingly, the side wall, back, and tunnel carpet is in decent shape.  Nothing a little shampoo and maybe a light carpet dye job won't spruce up.  I keep telling myself 'it's a driver....'.  Yeah.  Right.  Shipwright's disease is insidious...
Bryan Boyle
Morrisville PA
Commercial Pilot/CFII/FAA Safety Team
Amateur Extra Class Operator & FCC Volunteer Examiner
Currently working on 3291R, ex 444R, 693R, 65/2163, 004R, 65/2678
http://www.lotuseuropa.us for mirror of lotus-europa.com manual site.