1987 Lotus Excel SE

[Oi_Oi_Savaloy]

I have to say - early this morning - it wasn't looking good - car just wouldn't idle, rev or in fact run on 4 cylinders.  But pleased the cleaning of everything has meant that it runs.  massive relief.

[Back_For_More]

Just caught up with the progress...... Top jobbing - congrat's on the running engine. Major point in the project for sure. 

I'd missed the earlier statement but if you want to source a LHD seat from Belgium or around I can provide an address so you can have it there and I can bring it back next time I'm over..... If postage etc.... is the stopper. 

Just let me know. 

[Oi_Oi_Savaloy]

On 29/06/2025 at 14:08, Back_For_More said:

Just caught up with the progress...... Top jobbing - congrat's on the running engine. Major point in the project for sure. 

I'd missed the earlier statement but if you want to source a LHD seat from Belgium or around I can provide an address so you can have it there and I can bring it back next time I'm over..... If postage etc.... is the stopper. 

Just let me know. 

That's brilliant Back_For_More - thanks very much for the kind offer................that might be something I take you up on...........but there's a way to go before (but I'll obviously message before hand etc etc).

[Oi_Oi_Savaloy]

And so tonight I thought I'd tackle something 'easy'.............thinking if i really went for it it'd be a 45 min job.............yeah. no.

I took the rear suspension off to replace it.  This is the end result............after 90 mins of a shambles trying to get the two (one of two) top nuts off.

Still............got there in the end.  And made a start of putting the new parts back on aswell.

I'm going to give that spring a proper tidy-up before it goes back on the car but that's a job for tomorrow/weekend.

There was more hacking, more swearing, more repeating of the 'it's such a simple car, how can it keep on fighting me at every simple turn?'..............but she does. 

 

Still, progress made.  Trying to keep the momentum up.  Stay sexy people.

 

 

 

[Oi_Oi_Savaloy]

Ok..................it's been a while.  Short update as this week is mental and I'm conscious that i've not written for quite some time.  Work has progressed, mainly on trying to fit the MG TF radiator into the lotus Excel shroud (it's a wedge-shaped fibreglass shroud that directs  all incoming air from the air-dam at the front at the radiator.  Quite smart.....

it's actually not a technically difficult thing to do but...........things haven't been going well with my wife's illness and frankly that has taken absolute priority.  I came so close to getting the radiator/fans attached/shroud into the car on my own about 3 weeks ago..........but I need a 2nd pair of hands.  

She's just spent over a week in hospital, back in today and then back in on Thursday too and I just feel that this might be the start of the end.  I hate writing that (goes against the warrior spirit my wife has used to face this awful illness) but we were told from the outset that there was no good ultimate outcome and perhaps we're now facing that.

I will update this thread with pictures and i'm so close to driving this out of the shed (let's ignore the interior and the door issue for the moment) - I'm trying to persuade a friend of mine to give 1 hour of his time (and I'm trying to get into the shed so that it's all laid out that that 1 hour will hit really hard).  But life/family/cooking/house/everything is all on me now...........time is at a precious premium.  So close, yet so far.

[grogee]

So sorry to hear this. We are with you in spirit. 

I can't remember where in the world you are, but I'm happy to help you if I can. 

Autoshite love ❤️

[Rust Collector]

I’ve just caught up on this thread, I’ve got to say really impressive work on the car whilst also demonstrating incredible strength and support for your family too. Very sorry to see that things have become more difficult lately, wishing you and your family all the best mate.

[Gompo]

Sorry to hear about your wife's condition. I had been wondering about your situation and this thread due to a lack of updates. Life and wife of course take priority but it does sound like you're making some progress with the Excel. Good work.  I'm about to try and book mine in for a service, MOT and perhaps a little bit of workshop time. 

[Oi_Oi_Savaloy]

Gompo - there's a slight chance I'll find 30 mins this weekend.  Wife has been kept in so it's just me and the kids (son's on a tractor run in the Renault tomorrow) and once I've sorted out the house (cleaning/changing beds/etc etc etc) I'll try and make time.  I've got a couple of lads I'm hoping to rope in to give me those extra hands.  

I'd love it if I could drive out of the garage this weekend.

 

Amongst all the shit I've got, that would be a real highlight (apart from my kids and how they're coping of course - how proud I am of that).

[Gompo]

Hopefully some inspiration from a couple of weeks ago, although you may have seen similar on FB.

[Oi_Oi_Savaloy]

The celebration models do look good it has to be said.  Thanks for the filip - much appreciated.

[Oi_Oi_Savaloy]

Quick update...............the combined radiator and shroud is in.  A family friend came over earlier this morning to share their concern with me over the wife (and to ask if they could do anything) to which I thanked him and then said.............'I need 10 mins of your time!' ..............so we got into the shed and got it in - lightly bolted in at this stage but the main thing is that it's in and I can now take my time getting it tightened, then get all the coolant hoses in and the air compressor for the (unbelievably loud) air horns (came with the car, not an addition by me, but my god they're good) and then get the lower air dam/lip on too, once I've fitted the LED lights that I'm going to fit (in the air slits that are part of the lower airdam).  I feel the 80's lights need all the help they can get so am going to wire them up to the existing side lights and hopefully I'll be able to see a bit better, but be seen too.

I'm toying with the idea of totally redoing the headlights (I've used Land rover s3 upgraded bulbs and bowls - far, far cheaper than the lotus replacement equivalent)............and going down the PNM engineering solution (which, again, is possibly a Land rover product)..............so far I've done the headlights for about £40 all in from memory but I keep on getting ideas when something good happens on the car.  

I was looking at Mk7 golf seats yesterday too.........I know BMW F30 seats and alfa romeo 147's fit..........but was looking at a more retro (GSM?  is that the make? or Cobra?) look perhaps.. Club racer (but they need to recline so I can't make them look just so.  Anyhoo...........takes my mind off the situation at home.

 

Pictures to follow and a sort of how to too.  

 

After all this effort I really hope that the MG TF radiator actually works.  Really don't want to be spending £400 or whatever it is on a Lotus replacement.  I think mine's too far for a re-core.  And weighs an absolute ton too (especially compared to the aluminium MG effort).

 

[grogee]

6 hours ago, Oi_Oi_Savaloy said:

I feel the 80's lights need all the help they can get so am going to wire them up to the existing side lights

Rigging up a battery relay for the dip/mains is a thing, it means you can fit beefy wiring to supply the lights and not rely on crusty Lucas stuff

[Oi_Oi_Savaloy]

So - I've been using imgur for image hosting.........and I've just realised that because of Labour's ill-thought out data protection policy (ramifications?  what ramifications) imgur has effectly shut down in the UK.  Oh joy.

So bear with me whilst I learn to add pics in directly.

This is what the shroud and shroud-and-fans look like.  It's actually quite light (although awkward) - much heavier with the original radiator in it than the one you see here;

 

 

 

[Oi_Oi_Savaloy]

I then had a helping hand and popped the combined unit up into the front of the car like so (sorry, didn't take a picture of the hole before we got it up there, as it were - please not the shroud is only in finger tight a this stage so eagle-eyed viewers will see a gap ...........that will be squared-away once I've made sure it's all square and I've not missed anything (like attaching the horn air tube etc etc).

 

[Oi_Oi_Savaloy]

There's a lower lip to still go on to the front.  (and that chicken wire needs sorting too of course) but I've bought some small LED lights and I'm at the stage where I'm offering them up and working out what bits I've got in stores to use to attach them to the lower lip;

 

 

[Oi_Oi_Savaloy]

The lower lip needs sorting to be honest - sanding and repainting.........but time....wife ill.........it's not going to happen anytime soon.  I'm hoping that once it's on the car and on the ground it's less obvious. ............but I will sort it ........I just want to drive it now and there's the door to tackle unfortunately.  

[Oi_Oi_Savaloy]

A lot has happened in 24 hours. Yesterday evening (actually just after I posted above) the doctors met my wife and sadly, gave her the news we were all desperately wishing wouldn't be given.  She's basically got two to three weeks.  We had to tell the kids last night (think of something of bad, then triple it, and frankly even that doesn't convey how horrible that was) and today has been a whirl of nurses in and out of the house.

More to come tomorrow plus plans for her funeral etc etc.  I can't quite believe I'm writing it.  

You might ask why I'm doing so - well, sometimes I need the distraction.  Thoughts spiral if  your consumed by it 24/7  - and it's been clear to me for about a month  that things were getting very serious and that time was short.  

I won't be updating things any time soon now - all my energies are with her and the kids.  I hope to still work on the car (I really need a break from everything at times........but it'll only be brief interludes).  She needs constant care and it's down to me to make sure she's as comfortable and pain-free as possible.  All a bit daunting really.  Got the kids too, to worry about.  They are just in shock (and some denial) about the whole thing.  It's not that they didn't know she was ill............just the timeframe (so short) that has totally turned them upside down.

I plan to finish the car - I'm too far in not to do so now but life and death take precedence for the moment.

Carpe diem.  Hug your loved ones.  Time is precious.  

 

[Wibble]

This is the most awful news, I am so sorry and thoughts and prayers are with you, your wife and family.

[High Jetter]

I can't imagine the impact this news is having on you all. Sort out the important stuff, and people - we're here if / when you need to vent / rant / hide etc.

[grogee]

Bloody hell. 

The very best of Autoshite love to you Sav, I hope that writing your tribulations down somehow helps you to process them. Truly shocking post and we are all right behind you. Genuinely: if there's anything any one of us can do, just ask. 

[fatharris]

Genuinely sorry to hear this mate. I'd only caught up with this thread from Page 4 this evening and no imgur meant it was all text - I spent my time skimming through the Lotus stuff to see if there was any good news about your wife's condition, so to read your update from a couple of hours ago was incredibly sad.

I hope you make the most of your time together.

[Dick Cheeseburger]

So sorry to hear this news, chap 🙁

[New POD]

5 minutes ago, Dick Cheeseburger said:

So sorry to hear this news, chap 🙁

Its shit. 

[Westbay]

Bu**er ...

[Oi_Oi_Savaloy]

It has been a surreal week; of great angst and stress and anger (on my behalf) but great calm for my wife.  She's been a bit disorientated at times and confused, sleeping alot of the day and getting weaker, sadly, too.  I have two friends staying with me in the house with us and between the 3 of us we're ensuring a complete 24 hour vigilance in the room with her.  She's never alone............(unless she demands it). 

The actual process of dying is frightening and the end sounds like it could be brutal mentally (my opinion) - the meds, the personnel coming and telling us what's going to happen (but not getting involved in the actual care - it's all down to us) is, if I was on my own, very daunting.  But with  of us here plus wider family, neighbours and friends - things are easier.   I've got the 'just in case' bag (appalling to think about what's in that) and any day now I'm expecting her to stop being able to swallow.  God.  It's brutal and horrific and takes it's toll on those looking after her (never mind her of course).

One of my friends is a big animal vet.......and that means some of the drugs and how they are administered (dosages) etc and how they interact with each other-  all that's been taken out of my hands.  I just administer what's given to me at the appropriate time.

I do the night shift and then in the day I try to keep the kids on an even keel (they are properly upside down with it all).  

I'm trying to emulate regular home life, such as is possible with everything going on and projecting calmness and a steadyness (whilst inside a part of me dies each day).  Everything is about the kids now.

But..........I need a break from it all - just half an hour here or there - just time for me to do something that takes up my mental capacity for a while.  

I've tried reading (a great joy of mine) but my mind has just strayed - it can't concentrate on the words before thoughts encroach.  

I need to get out of the house but not too far.

Whatever my wife wants she gets (so we've had friends whom live abroad drop everything and fly in and see her, if only for 20 mins, because she's asked for them) and the same goes for me - if she asks for me I'll be by her side immediately..........so I can't stray too far.  

We've been making food (tiny tiny portions) of whatever she's wanted...........nothing is too much trouble.  And we only give her pain meds when she asks - it's getting more frequent sadly but again, only when she asks.

So I had 15-20 mins today - I went to the shed and started to rig up the various hoses to the radiator..........I'm getting there.  I've bought a new gubbins that dictates when the fans turn on incidentally.  £24.  

And it's all gone back in fairly easily.  I've order 5 litres of G48 antifreeze concentrate too ...........and I plan to drive this bastard out of the shed this weekend.

(unless..........events transpire at home that take total precedence of course).

 

Onwards.  Seize the day.

 

 

[Wibble]

You sir, are a credit to the human race. Your love for your wife is clear and you’re doing an amazing job for her and your family. A terrible time for you all. We’re all here for you and writing things down, as you have, can help you too. Keeping you all in my prayers.

[Mally]

I've had much of this myself, you feel you have to be there, but it's impossible to be there every minute. You end up making yourself ill.

It's a very difficult time, and still a massive shock when it ends. Keep on keeping on. 

My 2 sons and I did shifts as you say. Two of us happened to be there at the end. 

You can't do any more than you have done.  But you still feel helpless.

Took me 5 years to get over it all.

[Oi_Oi_Savaloy]

Mally; thank you for taking the time to write.  I can now imagine exactly what you went through and the feelings you've experienced.  I'm very sorry for your loss.  Judging by the way I feel; it'll be something I never get over.............it'll lessen no doubt, with time............but I'll always carry it with me.  

In some ways it's an honour, in others, a burden.

I'm worried about the end tbh; deeply worried.  Not just for myself but it's more about the kids.  They are 14,16, and 18 and I'm in a dilemma........do I let them see their mum at the end or keep them away? But perhaps we should take this off line and talk?  

[Snipes]

My father died of prostate cancer in 2023. He suffered terribly over Christmas 2022 but was in a hospice for the final couple of months and was reasonably comfortable. I traveled back home to see him go but he lasted an extra week and died after I had to return. Such is life.