Elise S1 max revs & gearchange

[Tim3003]

Hi,

Do any S1 owners know what the safe max revs are? I know max power is at 5500rpm, but presumably you can rev higher in the lower gears. The rev counter goes up to 7000 and has no red line at all.

Also, any tips for gear changing? Mine is high mileage and the change down from 5th to 4th is trial and error as there is no springing of the lever towards the 3rd/4th plane. You often get a brick wall or even 2nd by mistake. I see Bell & Collvill sell a stick-on gate pattern. Has anyone added one; is it any use?

Thanks,

Tim

[Mark B]

I used to rev mine as close to the red line (6850rpm) as possible when really pressing on, admitedly the engine slows near this point in any gear above 3rd, but for 1st/2nd/3rd sprints I found it a lot quicker to go to the line. Some will say change earlier, but I never found this to be quicker.

Re your gear change issues, try dismantling the gear selector on the gearbox and either grease it up again, or ideally replace for some improved bushings as sold by Eliseparts and Elise Shop. This will improve that dramtically.

What do you consider high mileage, mine was 86k before I took the engine out and replaced it with a Duratec.

[Esprit]

Rev limiter cuts in at 7000. The quickest shift point for the S1 Elise with the stock wide ratio box is between about 6000 and 6250RPM. It's only worth revving any higher if you're trying to hold onto a gear for the next corner or something.

[Mark B]

Gearbox has nothing to do with it..

[Esprit]

Mark B said:

Gearbox has little to do with it..

corrected.

The wider ratios mean that there is a little advantage in perhaps revving past the max power a bit more so not to drop off the torque curve too much on the other side... but yeah, on a stock Elise, which has a wide torque band there's probably nothing in it.

[Tim3003]

Cheers. High mileage in my case is 112k. I've only done a few hundred of those though.

Taking gear linkage apart is way beyond me! Maybe the dealer would do it. The manual does say there is no springing on the lever, so I'm not assuming that is due to wear. It does mean fast changes are impossible tough.

Good that there's a rev-limiter. It explains the lack of a red line, and hopefully means no expensive explosions due to over-revving, which was my worry.

[chevronb37]

Gear linkae on mine is a little vague. Selection is fine enough but the self-centring is poor and you have to be quite careful to palm through the gate. Have ended up with fourth when I needed second a couple of times on track. Anything to help with this?

[TIPPER]

Eliseparts do a kit to improve the gear change. Don't think I've ever seen a negative comment on the kit from those that have fitted it. I didn't have one on my car as I didn't see the need for it: give it time and you'll be quickly finding the right gate every time.

[chevronb37]

TIPPER said:

Eliseparts do a kit to improve the gear change. Don't think I've ever seen a negative comment on the kit from those that have fitted it. I didn't have one on my car as I didn't see the need for it: give it time and you'll be quickly finding the right gate every time.

Thanks - I'll look into it. It's on the to-do list! I find it's not a problem on the road and actually rather satisfying but coming from a 111R, it's not very precise! You don't hurry your changes across the gate that's for sure...

[Mark B]

The Eliseparts kit is dead easy to fit, it's a couple of nuts etc etc. Any local dealer/specialist/garage could do it.

[JBanx]

if the gearknob isn't self centering then buy the eliseparts kit.

Easy job, even if you have never done anything like it before and will make such a difference you will wish you did it before you ever drove it in the first place

[herebebeasties]

I got the upgraded bushes from eliseparts fitted to my K-series S2, and I liked the result. The gate was a bit more obstructive sometimes pushing it into first (but only from neutral, not changing down for tight hairpins), but otherwise a big improvement to the previous vagueness. Regarding 5th to 4th, I didn't really find myself using 5th much except on fast roads where you have plenty of time to think about it - most of the action's in 2nd to 4th, surely?

[TIPPER]

herebebeasties said:

I got the upgraded bushes from eliseparts fitted to my K-series S2, and I liked the result. The gate was a bit more obstructive sometimes pushing it into first (but only from neutral, not changing down for tight hairpins), but otherwise a big improvement to the previous vagueness. Regarding 5th to 4th, I didn't really find myself using 5th much except on fast roads where you have plenty of time to think about it - most of the action's in 2nd to 4th, surely?

CR Box and on the road its all in third;)

[AL...Ease]

I find the gearchange very satisfying, but mine had the EP kit installed by the previous owner. Last year it started getting a bit sludgy, so I adjusted the linkage and sprayed a bit of grease on it and it was nice again.

As for changing up, I tend to do it between 6,800 and 7,000 if I'm pressing on and mine's just cracked 99,000 miles. It has a very breathing modifications and a lightweight flywheel though, so doesn't struggle to hit the redline in 2nd or 3rd.

Edited by AL...Ease on Tuesday 24th May 12:50