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More Nick Adams Dialogue from HRM

3K views 29 replies 12 participants last post by  meat 
#1 · (Edited)
If you haven't read my first thread yet, it was "HRM Dialogue." This is just a continuation as my memory dredges up more info.

More recollections of the conversation with Nick Adams:

18. Lotus does not advise allowing children to ride in the Elise, However, that stated, a child sitting in the passengers seat will be OK if seated in a booster seat and uses the conventional restraint system. The air bag and seating position of the passenger are designed to avoid contact with a small person in the passenger side. Any type of added seat with a backing which pushes the child forward will place the occupant at risk of coming into contact with a deploying air bag. Also a child leaning forward will be at risk. Nick recommended children ride in the LSV (Lotus Support Vehicle).

Just an aside, has anyone seen or heard of a person who had their feet resting on the passenger air bag when it deployed? I usually see this behavior in young women on the interstates in socks propping their feet on the dash. The injury pattern must be really bizzare. "Sure Doc, when we got to accident scene it was really weird. Her right foot was on her left shoulder and she said she couldn't move out of that position."

19. Someone asked Nick where his money is best spent in modifying the car for better performance. Nick said "Driving Lessons!"

20. We asked if the license plate attachment point in the front will be an issue with obstructing airflow to the front coolers. He stated that almost all of the North American testing was done using a North American plate attached so that the bottom of the plate came to the bottom of the front lip. This means that the plate top is resting substantially in the airrflow to the front coolers. Nick said no problem.

21. There is a soft black rubber water drainage apparatus at the top of the A-pillar which when to top is off, appears rather like the ear of one of those show modified dobermans but with the ear layed laterally with the opening toward the top. Nick refered to this in typical British fashion as "Prince Charles' Ear."

22. He talked extensively of the work that they had done in trying to perfect gullwing doors on the project. They had built a number of prototypes. They were too much weight, too leaky, too expensive, and too complicated were his conclusions.

23. Finally, an interesting story about the first Toyota powered Elise prototype. I may be getting my dates mixed up, but at the 2002 Geneva auto show, when an non-Lotus crew was removing the new S2 (?) show car they jacked it up with a bottle jack on the undertray and punctured the aluminun frame. The car was a writeoff and should have been scrapped. The engineers kept it in secret in the back of the shop at Hethel away from the bean counters, and when Arnie sent the Celica over to test the feasibility of the Toyota, they cut out the back of the show car, fitted the new engine, and this became the first test mule for the Federal Elise.

It is said of most disasters and accidents that a series of small errors, not just one large error, each contribute to the final result. In the case of the Elise, I believe in speaking with Nick that a series of small accomplishments by a lot of people made the federal Elise come to be. It is a great story. I hope someone is writing it.
 
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#2 ·
Cale said:


23. Finally, an interesting story about the first Toyota powered Elise prototype. I may be getting my dates mixed up, but at the 2002 Geneva auto show, when an non-Lotus crew was removing the new S2 (?) show car they jacked it up with a bottle jack on the undertray and punctured the aluminun frame. The car was a writeoff and should have been scrapped. The engineers kept it in secret in the back of the shop at Hethel away from the bean counters, and when Arnie sent the Celica over to test the feasibility of the Toyota, they cut out the back of the show car, fitted the new engine, and this became the first test mule for the Federal Elise.

It is said of most disasters and accidents that a series of small errors, not just one large error, each contribute to the final result. In the case of the Elise, I believe in speaking with Nick that a series of small accomplishments by a lot of people made the federal Elise come to be. It is a great story. I hope someone is writing it.


It is scary to me that one small mistake like using a wrong jack can be the end of an elise, and a 50k investment. I Will bet money that at some piont in the first year of ownership someone will have to tow the car and the truck operator will somehow distroy the alm. frame and will end up being a total loss...

I hope its not me!

adamp
 
#5 ·
Here's a question.

Do rollbacks have the proper tie downs? Never in my life have I had a rollback that was equipped with wheel straps. They always just hook a giant fishhook around the a-arms and cinch it down.

Who would you call to transport this car in the case of an emergency?
 
#7 ·
OneFastMiata said:
Here's a question.

Do rollbacks have the proper tie downs? Never in my life have I had a rollback that was equipped with wheel straps. They always just hook a giant fishhook around the a-arms and cinch it down.

Who would you call to transport this car in the case of an emergency?
I am with you on this one. I have never had a flat bed tow truck use wheel straps. Every car I have ever had towed has been negativley handled. My e30 m3 had 2 bent rear sub frames, my M coupe also got 2 bent rear trailing arms, both cases the tow company told me to shove it... I just hope I dont need a tow truck ever!

adamp
 
#8 ·
hermanslotus said:
Thanks for that, it looks like I'm going to have to get some wheel straps for the Elise if I ever tow it with my trailers.

Mitch
So I gather you would put the car on the trailer, put it in gear, put the parking break on, and then strap down each wheel? Usually on a Dyno they use wheel straps, and I still hear about how they can cause harm to the suspension components..

admap
 
#10 ·
zvezdah1 said:
I think to err on the side of caution I'm going to keep a set of wheel straps at home, just in case I ever need a tow.

Chris
I think I'll keep mine in the car (ergo with the car.) I'm sure I can clip a set using zipties under the lip of the trunk to be out of the way.
 
#11 ·
OneFastMiata said:

Do rollbacks have the proper tie downs? Never in my life have I had a rollback that was equipped with wheel straps. They always just hook a giant fishhook around the a-arms and cinch it down.
Some do, some don't. When you call AAA, ask for one with straps (it helps if you explain that the car is very low, etc). Then keep refusing trucks until one with straps shows up. Might take a couple of hours, but they will send one. :)
 
#13 ·
Here's another question. Will the Elise even go on a rollback??

Approach angle.

My miata sits relatively low, but not nearly as low as some. I have to specify rollback for my tows because I have lower lip spoilers etc. EVERY time they send a rollback they try and throw down ramps but the car is still too low and the lower lip bends and wants to tear. Invariably it mashes up and starts pushing up into the bumper and Im cringing and they let it back down again. Then they put down 2x4's and use the winch to haul it up and onto the boards hoping that the boards will give them the room they need to get it up onto the bed...even still my lower lip spoiler bends and pushes up on the bumper.

Will the Elise even go on a rollback? Its not like the Elise is going to have soft plastic lip spoilers ( which is bad enough to watch get torn up) to bend down there. Its going to crunch and ruin the paint and crack/mess up the fiberglass.
 
#15 ·
My standard Miata quit running when the alternator died a few years ago. The AAA guy that came out to help had a flatbed. The angle of attack was somewhat adjustable, as I recall, and he was able to winch my car up without scraping the front end. However, the Elise could be more of a problem.

Perhaps we need dedicated service technicians who make house calls (or field visits).

Is it too much to hope that we can enjoy many years of happy motoring without requiring roadside assistance, especially of the towing variety?
 
#16 ·
Adam P said:
So I gather you would put the car on the trailer, put it in gear, put the parking break on, and then strap down each wheel? Usually on a Dyno they use wheel straps, and I still hear about how they can cause harm to the suspension components..

admap
Adam,

I would use this for my Elise. My E30 M3 race car has towing hooks on all four corners, but on the Elise none exist. I would us these wheel straps below.

Best Wishes,
Mitch
 

Attachments

#17 ·
jml1952 said:
My standard Miata quit running when the alternator died a few years ago. The AAA guy that came out to help had a flatbed. The angle of attack was somewhat adjustable, as I recall, and he was able to winch my car up without scraping the front end. However, the Elise could be more of a problem.
Oh yes, speaking of approach angles, I carry around a set of ramps that I made out of 2x4's cut into wedge shapes. I can put these in front of the wheels so that the air dam starts heading up before the wheels make it to the ramp.
 
#26 ·
Cale said:
If you haven't read my first thread yet, it was "HRM Dialogue." This is just a continuation as my memory dredges up more info.

More recollections of the conversation with Nick Adams:

18. Lotus does not advise allowing children to ride in the Elise, However, that stated, a child sitting in the passengers seat will be OK if seated in a booster seat and uses the conventional restraint system. The air bag and seating position of the passenger are designed to avoid contact with a small person in the passenger side. Any type of added seat with a backing which pushes the child forward will place the at risk of coming into contact with a deploying air bag. Also a child leaning forward will be at risk. Nick recommended children ride in the LSV (Lotus Support Vehicle).

Just an aside, has anyone seen or heard of a person who had their feet resting on the passenger air bag when it deployed? I usually see this behavior in young women on the interstates in socks propping their feet on the dash. The injury pattern must be really bizzare. "Sure Doc, when we got to accident scene it was really weird. Her right foot was on her left shoulder and she said she couldn't move out of that position."

19. Someone asked Nick where his money is best spent in modifying the car for better performance. Nick said "Driving Lessons!"

20. We asked if the license plate attachment point in the front will be an issue with obstructing airflow to the front coolers. He stated that almost all of the North American testing was done using a North American plate attached so that the bottom of the plate came to the bottom of the front lip. This means that the plate top is resting substantially in the airrflow to the front coolers. Nick said no problem.

21. There is a soft black rubber water drainage apparatus at the top of the A-pillar which when to top is off, appears rather like the ear of one of those show modified dobermans but with the ear layed laterally with the opening toward the top. Nick refered to this in typical British fashion as "Prince Charles' Ear."

22. He talked extensively of the work that they had done in trying to perfect gullwing doors on the project. They had built a number of prototypes. They were too much weight, too leaky, too expensive, and too complicated were his conclusions.

23. Finally, an interesting story about the first Toyota powered Elise prototype. I may be getting my dates mixed up, but at the 2002 Geneva auto show, when an non-Lotus crew was removing the new S2 (?) show car they jacked it up with a bottle jack on the undertray and punctured the aluminun frame. The car was a writeoff and should have been scrapped. The engineers kept it in secret in the back of the shop at Hethel away from the bean counters, and when Arnie sent the Celica over to test the feasibility of the Toyota, they cut out the back of the show car, fitted the new engine, and this became the first test mule for the Federal Elise.

It is said of most disasters and accidents that a series of small errors, not just one large error, each contribute to the final result. In the case of the Elise, I believe in speaking with Nick that a series of small accomplishments by a lot of people made the federal Elise come to be. It is a great story. I hope someone is writing it.
Caught the tail end of a story told by Nick Adams that
others may have more details of. In short, Nick's 'two-man' race car crashed into the nearby woodland area and after clearing his head he noticed the color red all over the inner windshield, as well as all over both their helmuts and driving suits. He felt O.K. and thought his co-driver might be the one bleeding but found this not to be the case. It seems that they crashed through a ripe blackberry bush and the juice from those berries was the 'blood-like' liquid engulfing them.
 
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