LINCOLNSHIRESLUPOGTI

Should not cause any lasting issues. The rear half of the exhaust fell off my Merc a week after I bought the car. It was no louder than when the exhaust was on so I drove it for a year until the next MOT and as the car passed on pretty much everything else I decided to buy a new exhaust and get another years MOT. Had the car two more years and it drives better than it did when I got it. Pah, the Elise is around 128db under full throttle (near the exhaust tails though, not inside the cabin).

You can get some Merc 190 for under £300 though it will almost certainly be a 1.8 petrol. Had my 190 2.0 petrol for nearly 3 years now and just baout to tick over 200,000 miles, ace cars. Old Nissan Primera are quite cheap (though you would not get a 2.0 eGT which are really great drivers cars) as are the early Cavalier Sri 8v. Both pretty reliable too even when abused.* *No one slate me here, I know neither of those are great cars but they are great for a couple of hundred quid to go fast, carry 4 adults and take abusive fun driving.

Only just noticed this, I knew you had the Alfa but not the Autodelta conversion. I remember the review of this conversion when it first appeared and I so wanted one! I also remember when having a 2.0 engine is your hot hatch was thought off as quite big, a 3.7 is just silly...and exactly what I would do too. The noise sounds addictive, I bet the mpg is not too good though. Awesome and even more special for being different to the normal choice of hot hatch, great colour too.

Car has just approached 20,000 miles at almost exactly 2 years old. Managed another track day last month so that is twice to the 'Ring and three times to Snetterton in the past year and a bit, need to try Donnington or Rockingham next i think. Swapped the brake pads to Yellowstuff about 2000 miles ago, much better than the standard pads and they make less mess which is a big bonus when you have a cleaning obsession like I do. Whilst spanner checking the car and generally looking over it I noticed that the front springs had settled a few mm so I decided that instead of raising the platforms the only right thing to do was lower the rear to match. I then noticed the rears springs had also settled (less than the front) so I lowered the rear just slightly. New ride height is -38mm at the front and -31mm at the rear which is just right for looks and more importantly some lovely handling. I have noticed that for about £5000 it is possible to supercharge to about 260bhp (over 300bhp/ton) which is very tempting as the engine is well proven to work well with a supercharger (hence the Lotus SC Elise and Exiges) but the aftermarket stuff gives more performance for your pounds. Won't be yet though but I like to plan my engine work well in advance to make sure I get just what I want.

Excellent work Andi, I bet you are (rightly) proud of your efforts. The work shown looks very nice, I bet Emma loves the place after having it work in progress for so long. Doing similar myself on our house and it takes so long to do what often seem small jobs, worth it in the end though. You still seem to get plenty of time to work on the cars though so you must work (a) fast, ( a lot of hours each day, © (a) and (. I do not get half as much time on the car as I used to when building the Lupo..though I lived with parents and was not married back then.

Andi, There is a track day at Snetterton on the 25th July (it is a rare Saturday one) for under £200. Considering it myself, good track as it is quite simple with plenty of run off compared to some of the other tracks. Only about 7 corners too so not too heavy on the car.

Impressed with those times. I remember about 8 years ago when the 'fast' Cossie's used to run low 14's. Times have changes in nearly a decade and fast hot hatches are now in the 14's and 13's. I thought that 16's were fast when I got my Lupo Gti 7 years ago...lol Seems Andi did a LOT of runs too without any car issues, says a lot for the conversion in that it must be well done. You see too may engine converted cars do about 3 runs and then break. Well done Polo

I completelly detest the new Scirroco. Hated the looks from the first press shots, through to seeing them in the flesh and still think theyare ugly now. I would rather have a Golf Gti! 2 minutes ago though when I saw that black one on SLR replica wheels I thought I might actually want one.

Just read this thread from the start. All the improvements so far have made the car look much better, black and yellow really go well together. I have done the 3/4 front numer plate and black fuel surround on the lotus, both good cheap modifications. Regarding ride height, get yourself to Hofmanns of Henley and let Chris Randall sort you out. I had Nitrons fitted earlier this year with the spring lengths, rates, and damper valving all specified exactly for my car and then had them set the car up for all the geometry settings and also corner weighted. I did go quite low compared to many, although not as low as your car. My front ride height is 110mm (was 118mm but the springs have settled) and my rear is 118mm (was 125mm but the springs have settled). Ride height is measured floor to chassis, the front at a point inboard of the front wishbone mounts and the rear around the jacking point on the sill. If the VX is the same as the Lotus then you do want some rake front to rear, mine has 8mm, the recommended is 5mm to 10mm. Removing the head rests was a good move as they look ****e, could you get a Lotus roll bar cover to save you having to glass fibre over where the head rests were? Might make the job easier for you? Some Lotus sport seats would be a good modification one day, the VXR had them in, more support for your shoulders and they look nicer too. Hope you get it sorted soon, it looks real good and with all the nice weather it needs driving.

Only just noticed this thread. Sounds like I need to come round to have a look soon. I like 'comedy cars' that look stealth but go like feck.

However good Renault made the Sport Spider it was unfortunatelly launched around the same time as the Lotus Elise series 1. Poor Renault never stood a chance! Regarding the Renault 8, I followed this around the Nurburgring a few weeks ago (I passed it coming out the Carrousel). Not sure what it is but it looks similar to the Renault 8 pictured above. To be fair, it was quick (for what it was).

Unreal, one of the best videos I have ever seen. Total ability and confidence.

A little update with some recent shots as I went to the Nurburgring two weeks ago. See, I do actually drive the car as well as clean it Clean before I set off. My second lap this year. My third lap this year...giving it plenty through the carrousel. Just past 16,000 miles now and not even two years old yet. (Pretty lazy really, I did 40,000 miles in my Lupo in the first two years).

As some of you know I have a like for old cars from the years when I was younger. I do have a new car (you cant get an alternative that is old really) but for my daily runaround I will only have older cars as they have more character, individuality and reliability than new cars.....at a fraction of the cost.....and with stable depreciation. Obviously there are much better cars I like, this list is the kind of crappy ones that I shouldn't like but do for some reason. Older stuff Citroen AX GT (I had a mint one years ago when they were quite new). BMW E30 and E21. Ford Orion injection ghia (mark 2 based on the mark 4 Escort). Ford Sierra Sapphire Ghia 4x4. Ford Granada 2.8 injection ghia (is it mark 3, last of the square shaped ones). Mercedes 190e (I have had mine 2.5 years now). Peugeot 405 Mi16. Renault 19 16v chamade (phase 1). Vauxhall Nova Gsi (standard). Vauxhall Astra Gte 16v. VW Jetta (mark 1 or mark 2, not the silly new one). I have considered buying nearly all of these cars for my run around (AX GT and Nova Gsi excluded). New(er) stuff Alfa 145 Cloverleaf. Chrysler 300C V8 Hemi. Diahatsu Coure Avanzato. Fiat Cinquecento sporting (in grey). Ford Sport Ka (in grey). Vauxhall Omega 3.0 Elite. VW Sharan VR6. Never considered buying any of these.

LMAO, you went to the trouble of laying the car up for winter, but left it covered in salt as you didn't have time to clean it first. Even if you really didn't have time to give the car a proper clean, a quick hour to remove the salt would have been a good idea.

Thinking slightly differently... Do they do totally clear wraps so that you can keep existing colour but protect the paint from chips etc? Also is the wrap stone chip resistant or it will get all torn on the front of the car and look rubbish very soon after fitting? I know you are all going to say Ventureshield, Armourfend etc but they look rubbish as you can see the edges of the film along the panels and they dont look right compared to polished paint as they reflect differently. I have something similar on the sills of my Lotus and after 15,000 miles and extreme care it has yellowed and chipped from stones...complete cr@p.

Just imagine if a few years ago someone joined on here and said "I am going to build a twin VR6 nitrous injected Lupo with 19" wheels, Porsche brakes and fully welded in roll cage". None of us would have believed such a claim yet here is such a car, created AND RUNNING. You are a very talented guy, enjoy the car you have so expertly built.

I went last summer and am going again this year. It had a great time last year, got a lap in the Ring taxi and also with some veterans who taught me a few things. There were loads of crashes when I was there, the track was shut more than it was open. I did 2 very cautious laps, it really is tricky to get a rhythm going as there are so many others who are really flying, and you better be ready to get out their way as they don't make allowance for you, so you spend more time looking in the mirror and moving over than you do looking ahead and picking your lines. I am taking the Elise in 4 weeks and going in a very nice convoy with an Exige, another Elise, a 911 turbo, an M3, an Escort Cosworth and maybe an M5. We should be easy to spot as we are convoying together. 1.Enjoy it. 2. Do lots of walking around the carparks, there will be some great cars to view. 3.Try to get a lap in the Ring taxi. Unlikely you will be able to book in advance as the tickets go so fast but put your name down when you get there, chances are you will get a cancellation slot...I did. 4.If you go on track please be careful, you will not be insured (impossible to get UK cover for the track) so take it easy and remember to keep checking mirror, the bikes really appear from nowhere when they are at 150mph+. 5.Breakdown cover and insurance? 6.Get on the autobahn and find some unrestricted areas. Last year we found some deserted stretches and it was bright, dry and clear so we did what we had to do

Disc offset If you are keeping the VR6 carriers and going for VR6 callipers too, make sure the VR6 disc is the same offset as you Polo/G60 disc otherwise the disc will not sit central within the calliper. You wont be able to remedy this by going for VR6 discs either as they are 5 stud. Pedal travel You might want to check the displaced fluid volume with VR6 callipers. If it is significantly greater than your standard callipers you will find you have to press the brake pedal a long way down to get the car to stop...worst case you might even run out of pedal travel before you get full braking. You can remedy this by fitting a bigger master cylinder but then pedal effort will increase and you then need a bigger servo. Also you can upset the brake balance front to rear if the front callipers need lots more 'fluid displacement' to get them 'on' but the rears being unchanged still come on as they did originally. This is why I stuck with my standard callipers and didn't go for a swap. Pad combinations Might not be a problem but make sure all parts are compatible with regards to thicknesses too. When I put my G60 carriers and discs on, the G60 discs were 22mm thick as opposed to the Lupo Gti ones which were 25mm thick. To keep the piston as far 'in' the calliper as I could I went for VR6 pads as they were thicker. Still have to change them earlier too otherwise when they are on backplate the calliper piston will be pretty far out to compensate for a thiner disc. Suppose it shows that Golf 2 16v, Lupo Gti, Polo Gti and VR6 (280mm early) all share the same pad backplate.

Keep spotting you at work (I work in the TSB). Realised you worked at RR when I saw the Gti in the carpark last year. Spotted the Clio with 'your' plate on a few times now (including when you handbraked accross the carpark when we had the snow - you were close to hitting that Discovery)! Sometimes I am in the light blue Mercedes 190 and sometimes in the Lotus.

Made my day seeing 'you' this morning. Was about 6:45am and 'you' were justabout to join the A6. Looked very clean and low, I so want that car back, I would have to hold myself down so I didn't sell the Lotus to get the Lupo back.

Excellent motor, another convert goes Lupo Gti > Lotus / VX220. I think they look great in yellow although it is not a colour for me. Amazing how much better simply removing 2 badges makes the car look from the rear, very well chosen modification. Regarding wheels it depends if you want looks or handling precision. For looks keep the 17" front wheels, for handling change back to 16" front wheels. Anymore plans for it or are you going to enjoy it for a while as it is before changing stuff?

£50 a week, what a joker! Remember the lock-up I used to keep my Lupo in, brick walls, steel secure door and good access, it was £3.20 a week. Too small to do major work in but big enough to keep the car in and work on the engine or one side at a time.

I like everything about this car. I don't like the half done seats but you have already said you are retrimming the rears soon so then everything will be spot on. I appreciate how clean it is too, I also am a little OCD with car cleaning. You know that by removing the headlight washers the car may fail an MOT as by law if a car has Xenon headlights from the OEM then it must have washers too. It does look nice smooth though. I shall be following this thread with interest, care to let slip any future plans?

Little bit of an update after the car having done very little work over winter (apart from a track day at Snetterton which was sliding, tyre-melting fun). Anyway a few more changes. 1. Free this one apart from a whole afternoon of my time, most of which was getting the parts off the car and back on again. It is a modification to the air box to replicate the recently released 'cup' airbox for the supercharged Exige. Hopefully it should prevent any inlet depression now the open area to the airbox is increased. I also have the ITG panel fiter in the airbox and also the vacuum operated flap permanently open for even more inlet area (and a great induction roar). Original opening. My modified airbox 2. Not free this one. £1830 worth of custom specified Nitrons (adjustable everything) with Eibach springs. Rear springs are 8" long and 550lb rating. Front springs are 7" long with 400lb rating. Custon valved dampers by Hofmann's (pretty well known in Lotus community). Ride height is down about 32mm at the front and 25mm at the rear giving a nice stance and the all important rake front to rear. Car corner weighted with caster, camber and toe all set to their optimum for the car's height, weight and specification. The stance for the road, about the same ground clearance as the Lupo had, this handles better though! Getting out of my drive (worse with me in the car) 3. £15 for some paint and a day of my time (including cleaning all the wheel arches and 'stuff' under there. I painted the standard grey callipers with black paint and then highlighted the 'LOTUS' with some storm titanium paint to match the bodywork. This photo was taken a week or so after I did the painting without the car being cleaned so the calliper looks dirty, only time I thought to take a quick photo.