Elise T Bar
Laurie Vaughn takes a look at another roof option for Elise owners
Since the launch of the S2 Elise and those tempting Lotus pictures showing a 'development' version of the hardtop with a gull-wing roof, the demand for such a fabled accessory has been strong. In fact, some cars were probably sold on the strength of it. However, it didn't take long for Lotus themselves to give up the fight, and chalk up the development time and cost down to experience, saying that it couldn't be done.
Well, in a modern tale of David and Goliath, a small company in Somerset has developed a fully functioning gull-wing roof for the S2 Elise.
Middlemoor Mouldings already do a brisk trade in 'standard' hardtops for the S1 and S2 Elise. Their customer base extends around the world, and currently they are completing an order for 40 roofs. It all started when the owner, Steve, took delivery of his S2 Elise and was told that a hardtop would be an extra £1800. Upon exclaiming that he could make one himself for less, he was told to 'go on then', and the rest, as they say, is history.
So, because they said it couldn't be done, Steve decided to have a crack at the fabled gull-wing roof, and in the best British tradition, has proved the doubters wrong. To be fair, however, this is no cut-down version of the ordinary roof. The roof has been stiffened with carbon fibre and kevlar, to mitigate not only the problems associated with chopping such a large piece out of the roof, but also as well as the probable extra loads from people clambering in and out of the car, using the roof as a hand-hold. A number of cunning features also make this roof impervious to the effects of rain (well, when shut obviously), as well as reducing the cabin buffeting at speed.
When fitted, the roof can only be opened with the door open or the window lowered, and then it is a simple matter of turning a handle on the inside (which slides the locking pins away), lift the roof slightly and then the gas strut takes over to open the roof fully.
To close is simply the opposite procedure and once shut, the roof is water-tight. However, should the weather permit (or the moment take you) once the roof is open it is (literally) simply a matter of seconds to remove the panel (and gas strut), before stowing in the boot, passenger seat, etc. Frankly, it does what it says on the tin.
The existing roof is the pre-production S2 version from which the moulds will be made, and frankly it could almost be a production item. It makes less noise than the standard roof, and the finished quality is excellent, as expected. There are a few items to be finalised, but these are mostly to do with the fittings and fixtures, such as the locking handles and the exposed aluminium hinges, which may be colour-coded. The S1 roof will have to be slightly different in size, since the boot aperture is smaller and the panels 'as is' will not fit, but this will not change any of the functionality; both will be offered with optional sun-visors on the front retaining clamp, which look a bit of an afterthought but apparently do the job.
However, orders are currently being taken, and although the asking price of £1500 + VAT (painted) may be at the high end, its still cheaper than the not-so-equivalent Lotus item, plus it means you can enjoy your Elise all year round.
Based on this alone, the autostyle roof has far nicer line... but why in the h*ll does is cost twice as much??? is it actually made better/lighter? anyone in the U.K know? Its hard to ascertain these things from down under..
http://www.hazelnet.org/gullwing/
I know this is a bit of a recurring subject but wanted to share my experience. When I bought my Elise I also bought a gullwing roof from Middlemoor Mouldings. I was overseas and so didn't see the car or the roof beforehand, but knew I wanted a car I could get in and out of! The roof was a good design but it was not of a particularly high quality and it leaked something awful. When I approached them about what could be done, I was referred to Production Glassfibre, a Northern Ireland based company who had bought the rights to the design. They said they were redesigning the roof and that they would replace mine with a new production quality one when they started manufacture.
This happened earlier in the year and I now have a very good quality gullwing roof. Having spoken with the owner I understand that they have got a high volume of orders from America and are doing well, although this isn't there core business. I have had some leaking problems with this roof too (surprise, surprise with a Lotus) but I have largely eliminated them with a bit of effort and some rubber tubing. I am really pleased with the roof and think the design is ace. Not only does the roof allow for much easier access, but the roof panels go in the boot so there is no fiddling with softop pish! It also offers excellent sound proofing.
Gullwing roofs are Ace!"
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