S1 headlamp covers
Author
Discussion

Nordy

Original Poster:

3 posts

256 months

Thursday 2nd June 2005
quotequote all
Just bought my Elise S1 and decided to buy a set of headlamp covers. They cost me £65 which I thought was a bargain. You have to stick double sided sticky black foam on the sides to bond them to the headlamp cowels. Have come to match the covers up but it does not seem that the lense and cowel will match up and bond substantially all the way round.

Has anybody else fitted S1 covers? Were they pattern or Genuine Lotus? Were they a good fit? and is double sided bonding foam the way genuine lotus lenses are fitted?

sean_

9 posts

257 months

Thursday 2nd June 2005
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i think there are two sorts of clam shells for the mk1 elise.. the 1-11s has the lights sank a little bit lower than a standard elise "hence a flusher fit"...then again i could be wrong...

S Works

10,166 posts

280 months

Thursday 2nd June 2005
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Nordy I'd consider having them fitted by someone who can put them on using screws so you can take them off and clean under them whenever you want to, wipe off condensation etc.

Would be worth investigating.

Re: the different front clams, I'm sure they're all the same. May just be a non-OE part so requiring a little trimming to get a neat fit?

thub

1,359 posts

314 months

Friday 3rd June 2005
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I've refitted the covers twice to my S1 111S. The fit isn't particularly good and it takes a bit of patience to get them fitted well and water tight (if using the tape).

The 111S clam does have a different recess around the lights as the covers were fitted as standard. I believe the lens for the standard car are a little thinner as a result.

Mark B

1,671 posts

295 months

Friday 3rd June 2005
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B&Q sell a gluey bath seal which I used, it is called OBO Bath Seal by Homelux.

It is excellent and will enable you to take the covers off in the future if absolutely necessary.

Very easy to fit and this stuff resembles the stuff Lotus use, I believe.

It's only £3.49 too!

nordy

Original Poster:

3 posts

256 months

Friday 3rd June 2005
quotequote all
Thanks for all your help guys. The gluey stuff looks like a good contender so thanks alot for that Mark. Just got my elise so I don't want to start bodging things on without chatting to the more experianced of you out there. Thanks again

Mark B

1,671 posts

295 months

Friday 3rd June 2005
quotequote all
I only got mine 7 months ago myself, so I know what you mean. I have now gone for headlight covers, throttle body up grade, throttle mechanism upgrade, clutch pedal bush upgrade, 57i K&N intake and a Decat pipe.

It's great little car, enjoy!

Ju.

163 posts

259 months

Friday 3rd June 2005
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I have the headlamp covers and even though they make the front end look nicer i have this problem that they are filling up inside with dead flies

Ju.

163 posts

259 months

Friday 3rd June 2005
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I have the headlamp covers and even though they make the front end look nicer i have this problem that they are filling up inside with dead flies

Bob_Defly

5,910 posts

261 months

Friday 3rd June 2005
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How?

Ju.

163 posts

259 months

Friday 3rd June 2005
quotequote all
Well i would say they are going in the vent above the radiator then finding there way through past the light then getting themselves stuck.

Either that or my light covesr ar like some sort of force field that lets them in but won't let them out therefore catching them as i go along, I also had a pet spider in there too

greysquirrel

786 posts

257 months

Friday 3rd June 2005
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Will headlamp covers from a 111s fit a standard S1 elise then? there are some on ebay at the moment going cheap but reading the comments on here it seems they wont fit, or are they all the same but the quality of the fit is just different? Thanks

NJS25

446 posts

279 months

Saturday 4th June 2005
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Ju,

I don't think they would be getting in through the intake, so I woulld say the forcefield idea was a goer. Did the spider eat the flies and keep everything clean & tidy? My advise would be to reintroduce a spider.

Of course when all the flies were gone you would need to put a medium sized bird in there to eat the spider, and I'm not sure if there would be enough room between the lamp and the cover for a cat. Keep us posted, would be very interested to see how you get on (some photos would be good).

Regards, Neil

dss123

351 posts

266 months

Sunday 5th June 2005
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Nordy,

As Thub says, the 111s has a slightly different front clam. There is a shallow recess around the headlamp "scoop" to accept the clear cover.

You'll have difficulty getting a really good seal on the standard clam because the edge is exposed to the elements, wind etc.

I think Bruce at rag top roadsters www.med-reg.co.uk/about.htm does some black double sided gunky stuff that is about the best for the job. Kind of a cross between tape and silicone and glue!

Could give it a try.

Dunc

awtong

39 posts

267 months

Sunday 5th June 2005
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I don't have the headlight covers yet but have been looking in to getting some.

Eliseparts do two different types for the S1 one type for the standard car and one type for the 111S so I would assume they are slightly different due to the different recesses.

HTH

freestone85

23 posts

269 months

Sunday 5th June 2005
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i have the eliseparts ones on my 97 s1 and they fit really well you drill a couple of holes and use the fasteners provided and you can remove them for cleaning .

340ragtop

919 posts

275 months

Monday 6th June 2005
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Thanks for the recommendation, yes I still do the headlight goo which is re-useable and black.

There are 2 thickness of covers in aftermarket - Lotus only ever did one sort - for the 111 and sport 160 front clams with recessed light surrounds.

Normal S1 has a flush surround, so covers will always be a little proud. The thinner ones do fit, but are still a little proud.

On the 111s Lotus also fitted a rubber grommet where the headlight meets the clam to stop crap getting in there from the rear, inside the wing liner.

I always wondered why this isn't available as a part, but I guess you could always make one.

cheers