S2 Exige Engine Cover Adjustment

S2 Exige Engine Cover Adjustment

Author
Discussion

Gad-Westy

Original Poster:

15,092 posts

220 months

Sunday 16th August 2020
quotequote all
I think this might be a common issue but I cannot find much about remedying it.

The nearside of my engine cover sits noticeably proud of the rear clam when closed. The offside sits nicely flush.

It seems to me that it might be slightly misshapen but also seems to be sitting high on it's hinge as well. If you look a the photo I've included that looks backwards from the front of the car, you can see it sits high right into the middle of the car.

I see that the hinges are shimmed. Mine seems to be evenly shimmed left to right but I'm thinking I should start taking shims out and see if I can get it looking better but am I likely to encounter issues with lock alignment etc. I don't want to lock myself out of the boot/engine. Is there anything else I should try?












Fonzey

2,175 posts

134 months

Wednesday 19th August 2020
quotequote all
Do you have a single strut or the twin hydro ones? If the latter, they're known for bending the bootlid up at the edges and it's almost impossible to get good panel gaps.

It's not a permanent malformation though and converting to the single strut is doable if you can source the parts. I did exactly this on my 2006 and it fixed the panel gaps as good as any other Lotus that I've seen. (Which isn't saying much!)

Gad-Westy

Original Poster:

15,092 posts

220 months

Thursday 20th August 2020
quotequote all
Fonzey said:
Do you have a single strut or the twin hydro ones? If the latter, they're known for bending the bootlid up at the edges and it's almost impossible to get good panel gaps.

It's not a permanent malformation though and converting to the single strut is doable if you can source the parts. I did exactly this on my 2006 and it fixed the panel gaps as good as any other Lotus that I've seen. (Which isn't saying much!)
Cheers. It's a single strut on mine. frown

Fonzey

2,175 posts

134 months

Tuesday 25th August 2020
quotequote all
I've heard of some people messing with the shims, so it's worth a try - the boot lock is sort of accessible from the passenger rear arch liner, if you pop the washer bottle out of the way first - so if you do end up locking yourself out, you can still get a hand/tool in to wangle it free if needed.

They're annoying to get right!

Gad-Westy

Original Poster:

15,092 posts

220 months

Wednesday 26th August 2020
quotequote all
Fonzey said:
I've heard of some people messing with the shims, so it's worth a try - the boot lock is sort of accessible from the passenger rear arch liner, if you pop the washer bottle out of the way first - so if you do end up locking yourself out, you can still get a hand/tool in to wangle it free if needed.

They're annoying to get right!
Cheers. Appreciate that tip. A job for the bank holiday I think.