Another 46 to 47 project!

[jbcollier]

Fit a new master cylinder.  Single circuit masters are inexpensive and bore wear will make a kit only a temporary fix.

[cazman]

Are single circuit safe enough? I always thought tandem were the baseline for decades.

[SilverBeast]

The thing is we are approaching 5 decades since the last Europa was made!

UK TCS only ever had single circuit from factory, I think only US had dual circuit. We don't even get a low fluid warning light. I think my 1979 mini only had single circuit.

[jbcollier]

Yes, single circuit masters are just fine and have a lower failure rate than dual cylinders in my experience.  Most "failures" involve fluid leaks which are easy to catch if you watch your fluid level.  Regardless, I fit new masters and rear cylinders every 40K.  I flush and replace the fluid every two years.  Parts wear.  If you treat it as a maintenance item and change it regularly, then failures are very rare.

[DreamsOfA47]

JB I mistyped! I did in fact order Mk1 GT6 rear brake shoes from Moss, not TR6 so it should all work out. A Wilwood master cylinder definitely seems like a great upgrade! Swift, how does the master cylinder fit under the steering rack? JB, what master cylinders do you use when you replace yours? I know genuine Girling MCs can be had but they seem to be shaped differently from the original and I'm concerned about the potential shape/clearance issue.

[jbcollier]

I have fit Tilton, Wilwood and Girling.  All went on with no problems.

[DreamsOfA47]

Alright then new wheel cylinders and a new master cylinder will be ordered soon!

Gentlemen I have news! I was able to get the engine to turn over with the newly installed ignition switch and key! Tomorrow I'll endeavor to finish hooking up the gauges and other things in the engine compartment. But before I start that I've already run into 2 potential issues. 1 is that the wiring diagram has 2 white wires coming off one post, and a white wire with a black stripe coming off the other. The problem is that the diagram doesn't say which is to be on the positive and which is negative. Can someone with an S2 check and confirm for me? I have the whit eon the positive and the striped on the negative.

2. I seem to have a large female spade terminal on a large garage brown wire that, according to the diagram, should go onto the starter but I have no idea where it is meant to go as my starter solenoid doesn't have a male spade terminal aside from the ignition spade. Does anyone know what this female spade is for?

[jbcollier]

1)  I assume we are talking about the ignition coil wiring?  Double white to coil +.  WB to coil negative (goes to distributor).

2) The brown feed goes to the battery connection on the starter.  Either fit a 5/16"/8mm eyelet connector to the wire or find a 0.375" (9.5mm) quick connect male screw that looks like this:



These are hard to find in the 9.5mm size.  I scavenge them off old Lucas alternators.

[SwiftDB4]

A Wilwood master cylinder definitely seems like a great upgrade! Swift, how does the master cylinder fit under the steering rack?

Disconnecting the steering rack from its mounts helps access to replace mc. I actually have 3 mc on my S1 with 2 brake and one clutch. Just mark the rack position relative to mounts.

[DreamsOfA47]

Gentlemen, it runs!!!!

Today I hooked up all the remaining wires in the ingestion system and was able to get the car running on starting fluid. I then swapped in a new mechanical fuel pump and I was able to run the car on gas from the tank! That being said very little in the way of sensors or lights have been hooked up but that's the next major step. There are some problems with the S2 harness compared to an S1 I'm discovering. Most vexing currently is the fact that the fuel level sender is on the left-hand side of the car but my car has the tank on the right-hand side. Its a minor inconvenience I know but I'll still whine about it. I'm also currently running the car off an Odyssey battery that's being held to the right rear frame rail with massive hose clamps. I guess it ain't stupid if it works! I'll either make or purchase a battery tray or bracket as soon as I'm able to. The brake MC and the wheel cylinders are currently in the mail so I may be driving the car for short test runs around the neighborhood in relatively short order.

Other than the brakes I have one small, and one large problem to tackle. The small one is related to the alternator. Someone at some point seems to have swapped an alternator into the car. It seems to be a Mitsubishi with a strange green plug at the back (the first pic) and it has a red wire and a black wire coming off of it. The car seems to have been wired with the brown wire with green stripe being butt-connected to the IG terminal on the alternator to run to the voltage regulator, but the alternator has a sticker that reads IC reg built in. I'm beginning to get confused by that, as well as the fact that my S1 didn't have a relay in the charging system that an S2 appears to have according to the diagrams. It seems my alternator has only the plug and the stud for the ring terminal so I have no idea where to attach the ground either. I probably won't have much time until next weekend to figure it anything else out, but that's where I currently am on the charging system.

The large problem is I seem to have a pretty substantial coolant leak from the water pump. I'll attach pics but it seems that the leak is occurring from the bolts or the mating surface on the bottom edge closest to the swirl pot. The position of the heater valve doesn't seem to have any bearing on the leak, and it seems to start after the engine has been run for a little while, but not immediately on firing up. I'm inclined to believe it's the water pump gasket. What do y'all think? Is there any other common failure that may cause a leak from there?

[TurboFource]

Congrats on getting it running!

[jbcollier]

Water pump:

Between the water pump seal and the bearings there is a drain hole so coolant will not contaminate the bearings and cause them to fail suddenly.  This is a very common failure.  Replace the pump.  There are two versions of the water pump depending on the pulley's bolt circle.  RD and other Lotus suppliers will have the correct one.

[jbcollier]

Can you give a photo of the alternator connections?  And, any numbers on the alternator?

[DreamsOfA47]

Oh no the water pump itself?  Bummer! Alright I'll look into sourcing one ASAP. I'll figure out my pulley's bolt circle between chem class and work later today and hopefully I can find one with the right pattern. Most comes to worst I can get a pulley that matches the new pump. What is it I'm checking for? Bolt pattern spacing? Pattern shape?

I can post a pic of the back of the alternator after class. Here's a shot of the side that shows where the green plug attaches and the post for the positive terminal. I tried to do some internet research yesterday based on the numbers on this sticker but I came up with nothing.

[jbcollier]

Bolt circle is basically the distance from one threaded hole to the other.

The wiring is pretty simple as it is written on your tag.  IG = ignition feed.  L = warning light.