when did the S2 short tail roof get introduced?

[NDT]

I assume the early S2 roof is exactly then same as an S1?
Haven't ever experienced the S2 short tail roof, but it's supposed to be a lot more user friendly than the S1 long type - is this right?

[TonyHetherington]

Yup, it's much more user friendly - essentially it's a rectangular bit of cloth that rolls in and out and clips down.

I THINK it was around 2003 that it changed (but await people far more knowledgable than I to confirm).

[patmahe]

I have a 2003 Elise with the short roof, its literally a 30 second job to remove/fit. I think 2003 was the first year they did it.

[tanman]

Came in on 52 plate cars, I had one

[andy_s]

Yup - mines a 52 and it came with a short tail (in fact, no tail) roof. Much easier.

[alicrozier]

I think was mid 2002, certainly the 111S introduced in June 2002 had the short tail roof. I've seen long tails on 02 reg cars...

[TonyHetherington]

Ah right sorry chaps yeah, older than I thought!

There was a change in late 03/early 04 which included remote central locking and electric windows - which I thought was a key improvement, so if you're looking and can find a late '53 or onwards car, you'll get that too

[kambites]

The difference between the S2 long-tail and S2 short-tail isn't huge really. They're both far better than the S1 roof.

They also continued to improve the seals after the short-tail was introduced, so the early short roofs aren't as watertight as the later ones.

[andy_s]

kambites said:

The difference between the S2 long-tail and S2 short-tail isn't huge really. They're both far better than the S1 roof.

They also continued to improve the seals after the short-tail was introduced, so the early short roofs aren't as watertight as the later ones.

For resale purposes I'd like to clarify that mines as tight as a drum

[Chris49]

2002 short tail here!!!

Its a world apart from my S1 roof, in a very good way!

[NJS25]

As mentioned above the original S2 roof was a vast improvement on the S1 (there is no comparison).

Early S2's have a tail either side which simply clicks into a slot on top of the butress behind the cabin, and has a tension lever hidden behind the rear screen to ensure the roof is kept taught. These roofs completely cover the join between the cabin and rear screen, and therefore there is no chance of leaks here.

For June 2002 the design was revised to remove the tails. This meant the fitting was simplified, removing the need to walk around the car. This meant that it was possible to remove the roof without getting out if the car! As mentioned above, one side effect was that this resulted in a new seal between the roof and rear screen, and hence another source of potential leaks. I don't know to what degree this was a problem or how much development went into the seals to resolve this in subsequent months, but I am not aware of any significant issues with S2 short tails leaking. Either design was a huge step forward on the origianl S1.

Regards, Neil

[Loudman]

Mine is an 03 plate S2 111s , has short tail, elec windows and remote (ish) locking

[mrdemon]

the long tail roof just looks better and takes less than 20 seconds longer to fit.
It's nothing like a S1 roof which is st.

the short tail just looks wrong, but then helps with fitting a hard top which then looks better.

here is my old long tail car which imho looks great.

[kevin ritson]

Each to their own but there have been quite a few occasions where being able to put the roof on or take it off whilst being in the car has been a godsend. Looks? I prefer it, looks less like a tent and the hard top looks loads better with the short roof.

[NDT]

Thanks all.
Didn't realise the S2 long tail roof was that much better than the S1.

Nick