34 replies to this topic

[Captain Vimes]

You're not talking rubbish.

I added a self link in this thread, that makes interesting reading.

http://www.vx220.org...-rear-toe-link/

[ghand]

I think it was the uprated toe link bar that bent the chassis on the crashed car I looked at. So you hit the curb or something whith the rear wheel the super strong link set up will not snap, it twists the mounting point and another scrap car. Or am I talking bollocks as usual ? it just looked like that to a non expert.

just the rear subframe , not the chassis

But is it damage that would not normally occur, are the standard ones moe sacrificial so to speak? Seems funny it's designed with what 8 mm or something studding and folk replace it with 12 inch RSJ s. A damaged sub frame could well be the difference between scrap or not .

Edited by ghand, 10 October 2013 - 09:23 AM.

[siztenboots]

get the hack saw out and make a sacrificial cut notch on yours

[ghand]

You're not talking rubbish.

I added a self link in this thread, that makes interesting reading.

http://www.vx220.org...-rear-toe-link/

Thanks, I will just stick to tractor tyres and standard links then. (Interesting read on the lotus page.)

Oh and check they are tight every so often, although most are rusted tight

.

Edited by ghand, 10 October 2013 - 10:00 AM.

[Captain Vimes]

Should have read 'seloc link' not 'self link' . Stupid phone.... I ended up fitting the uprated links as I would rather not crash in the first place...

[ghand]

Should have read 'seloc link' not 'self link' . Stupid phone.... I ended up fitting the uprated links as I would rather not crash in the first place...

Do you track on sticky tyres?

[Bumblebee]

Should have read 'seloc link' not 'self link' . Stupid phone.... I ended up fitting the uprated links as I would rather not crash in the first place...

Me too

[mbes2]

One of my std ones snapped... not fun

 

OLD Vs NEW

 

[ghand]

One of my std ones snapped... not fun
 
OLD Vs NEW
 

300 bhp on track, sticky slicks, up rated everything else, mildly faster than road driving fine then up rate. But for us leisure road only, tractor tyres only, pottering along only, then standard is fine and may save you chassis from just a little off. As per the design spec by them Lotus guys, you know the ones that knew jack about car design.

[Captain Vimes]

I ended up fitting the uprated links as I would rather not crash in the first place...

Do you track on sticky tyres?

Yes. Which makes my decision easy. If I was road only then I'm not sure what my decision would have been however I couldn't get any OEM parts when I was looking so would have probably bought the uprated links anyway.

[ghand]

One of my std ones snapped... not fun

 

OLD Vs NEW

 

 

 

Mark am i being stupid or is the bit that's snapped the same size on both? and it looks like you would have more rotation on the old one.

 

 

.

 

.
 

Edited by ghand, 10 October 2013 - 07:50 PM.

[Guesty88]

 

From what I can gather though, the parallel joints are fitted to all models from 2003 onwards with the tapered joints being used prior. Is that a hard and fast rule?

 

Other way around..

 

Pre-2003 cars have parallel joints.

 

Later cars (and virtually all tubby's) have tapered joints.

 

However... If any repairs have been done in the past or Lotus found some bits in a parts bin it may have different ones installed. Some reports of cars with both types on the same car as well!

 

If yours is a 2001 and has not had any repairs in this area then is very linkely that it's the parallel connection type in the upright.

 

Bye, Arno.

 

 

Fair enough, I had just compared the pictures on Elise Shop to the parts available on Seriously Lotus, obviously got myself confused somewhere!

 

Interesting the debate that this has sparked anyway. It's a shame Lotus couldn't have engineered a way for the OEM toe links to fail when hitting a kerb that didn't also leave them susceptible to failure under normal conditions, though I guess they thought they got round that by making it a serviceable item. On a personal level, I'm not worried about damaging the subframe/chassis in the event of an accident I have no intention of having, but I am worried about part of the car giving up the ghost without warning.

 

I went for the standard Elise Shop kit in the end. Most people seem happy with it and it's the cheapest after market option, which works for me!

[FLD]

 

It's a shame Lotus couldn't have engineered a way for the OEM toe links to fail when hitting a kerb that didn't also leave them susceptible to failure under normal conditions, though I guess they thought they got round that by making it a serviceable item.

 

 

Check out the lotus uniball variant thats a motorsport option.  Replaces the inner joint with a spherical bearing and uses the slightly stronger tapered outer joint.  Obviously not adjustable for bumpsteer but does have a brace bar.

[sguesty1987]

Just get OEM from Chris Neil's and treat as serviceable?

[siztenboots]

 

I went for the standard Elise Shop kit in the end. Most people seem happy with it and it's the cheapest after market option, which works for me!

 

 

: , at least I can just replace the bits that wear out and get them easily from Yvo at a decent price