> First I'm a new subscriber and truly enjoy hearing the experiences of other
> British car owners. I bought a 73 Lotus Europa Special six months ago
and ha$
> been living with a wrench in my hand ever since. What a joy! The current
> project is to refresh the rear suspension. I found that both the lower
links
> are bent and need replacing. I know of a shop that has a shelf with
several $
> them. But I can't tell if they are from a S1/S2 or twincam. Does
anyone know
> how to tell them apart?
>
> -Ken
>
>
First, Ken, lotus-cars-request@netcom.com is an address you should email
to and get on the lotus-cars list. It has less traffic than the
british-cars list on which you posted your question, but obviously more
help for Lotus owners. Loti are weird critters, even for LBCs, but they
can be fun to work with once you adjust your frame of mind. They are
amazing to drive.
The S1/S2 links go aft of the uprights (the alloy hub carriers), whilst
the Twink links go forward of the uprights.
I have the measurements here at home for the S1/S2 lower links, from the
shop manual which was printed BTC (before twin cam).
The frame of reference is with "straight" being either parallel or
perpendicular to the axis of the bolts which go through the links.
So as you are measuring, the connecting tube is at an angle.
The offset from one bushing-holder to the other is 3.00 inches.
The distance from the axis of one bushing-holder to the other is 18.85
inches. Remember that this is measured perpendicular to their axes, NOT
parallel to the connecting tube.
The length of each bushing-holder is 1.406 inches. ( I am here to tell
you that the length of the inner steel bushing is 1.50 inches, so you see
that there is a little clearance inside the bracket on the bottom of the
gearbox where it connects. The Twink lower arm connects to the
bell-housing section of the gearbox, I believe.)
The outside diameter of the connecting tube is 1.00 inch.
If the parts match these numbers, they are for the earlier cars. I think
the Twink parts are different, but others may set me straight.
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