The washers are shown in the early manual and seem to be referred to in the later manual although not shown.
Also clearance between the bolt heads and the wheel rim is minimal, hence the special bolts. viewtopic.php?t=51032&p=371390
If you stick with those bolts you might have to grind a “flat” to clear the rim.
I agree my assembly is incorrect due to the amount of threads exposed. The 3-3/4" bolt was hard to find in grade 8.
My choices were 3-1/2" and 4".
The washer issue remains a mystery. I noted as well the parts manual specifies only two washers per rear bearing housing, although not illustrated. It was indeed a difficult assembly step to squeeze in the two additional washers between the wishbone and bearing assembly.
I also believe the assembly diagram referenced by type26/36 as “early manual” is referencing the assembly for the baby Elan, not the PLUS 2. Hence the assemblies may be configured differently. I am sticking with the plus 2 manual.
Lastly the bolts heads DO rub on the inside wheel rim. My grade 8 bolt upgrade may have to go. Honestly I may just go back to the original bolts while still trying to sort the washers needed.
SJSportscars have the correct bolts…1xLong and 1xShort per side showing in stock at £2.96+vat each.
sjsportscars.com/
Alan
Ok, I should retitle this thread Installation “Almost” complete. Anyway its back to the original OEM bolts. There are a total of 6 washers present on the bearing housing at this time. I may press on with this configuration, as it will probably last a very long time. (Not as many threads evident due to stack build up with washers thickness.)
So, for clarity, there should be 4 washers per ali housing. No washers under the head of the bolts, then a washer between the 2 bushes and the housing and a washer under each nylock.
As I wrote earlier, you would never have a steel bush that moves, rub on something aluminium. See picture of what happens if you do, but I have seen so many like this over the years, assembled by people who have not got a clue.
Re bolts, many different manufacturers over the years. Unfortunately, the ones being sold today are not custom made for the job, they are bolts that have had their heads turned down, and then plated, whereas back in the day, people like GKN produced the correct length bolt and it had their name on it. The heads on the bolts today have had the heads turned down to far, and are to thin.
You can just file down the heads Mark, and just paint over them with something. Make sure you use plenty of anti seize on the bolts and do not tighten the suspension up until the car is on the ground and you have rolled it backward and forward a few times, and bounced it up and down.
There is no difference in the set up between an Elan and a +2 They both use exactly the same Issue 16 or 18 housing and damper, just the A frame being a different length.
Leslie
Consider AN grade bolts. Available in 1/8 length increments with correct unthreaded shank length. Not as brittle as grade 8 but tougher. Carrol Smiths book “Prepare to Win” gives an excellent discussion of fasteners. Dave Bean has them through there Bon Aero division in the US or Wicks Aircraft supply or Aircraft Spruce and Specialty (no affiliation to any of these companies). I have a background in homebuilt aircraft which may be why I love Lotus cars, as close as you can get. They are no more expensive than other quality hardware and lots of nut options. Gary
Just to add to my previous posts, as I see it, the reasons there are no washers under the heads of the bolts in that application are threefold. 1, there is no reason to have one there, you have 2 steel surfaces acting on each other, nothing to see there then. 2, if you do place a washer under the head of the bolt, there is a good chance that it will fowl the wheel rim, and 3, with no washer under the bolt head, you can fit a socket right up to wishbone, as it passes over the steel shoulder of the bush. Otherwise, good luck getting a spanner on the miniscule heads of the turned down bolts that I picture. They are the 2 inside bolts of the 4 in pictures 2 & 3. Clear? 
Leslie
Thanks very much Leslie for the detailed explanation! I have reconfigured the assembly once again. I used the original bolts on the bearing housing making sure there were washers on either side of the housing. No washers present under the bolt head. Clearance is good and there is no more rubbing on rim at full droop. The Spyder wishbones were very tight on tolerances. Installing thin washers was painful. I did stick with the grade 8 bolts on the inner portion of the wishbones to the chassis. Tomorrow I will do the differential torque rods and get ready to lower the car on the suspension for final tightening. And I’ll post a final photo, in case I screwed up something.
I am anxious to see how it behaves with the new CV setup. I appreciate all your tips and suggestions!! Cheers!
Well its been a fun week of rear axle refurb, trial and error, and ups and downs. (a small suspension pun…)
Here are the final pix. Tasks completed: Elantrikbits CV joint upgrade kit installed, New Spyder wishbones installed, and differential torque rod bushings and hardware replaced. Have to run a new emergency brake cable then calling this one done… Thanks all for the comments and guidance!
Hi Guys.
Just for the record, my S2 elan has GKN Lobro CV joints and boots that have covered more than 80,000KMs. How many existing elan owners will still be driving their elan after covering + 80,000kms.
The CV joints we use are genuine GKN Lobro, you can buy look alike Chinese CVs, but they are junk!
We have always stood by our product, there have been a couple of occasions where for some reason a boot has been damaged, and we’ve shipped replacements… But it is highly unlikely that you will ever wear the CV joints out.
We’ve never had an adapter plate break… nor have any of the special custom made bolts broken, and last, but not least, no one has yet managed to the strip the splines off the intermediate shafts… We have one Australian customer with S4 elan that has 195HP BDG installed, he tells me he has dropped the clutch at 6,000RPM standing start… the axles are still doing just fine.
As for the high angle CV drive angle with no lock up… well, that’s our little secret for now.
We do appreciate, and have been humbled by the incredible support from so many elan customers from every corner of the globe. This CVDS building journey all started sometime back in the mid to late 80s or early 90s, I can’t remember the exact date. The man who cajoled me into building a CVDS is none other than Rohan (RGH), I’m sure Rohan would remember the day he called in on his way to the Ski fields a very long time ago, to deliver the drawings, of which the product evolved from.
To be honest, we’ve lost track of the number of CVDS built, but the numbers are way up there. I am also amazed at the number of elan and elan +2 restoration projects on the go here in Australia and abroad, it just goes to show the passion for classic Lotus cars lives on.
Thank you one and all.
Col.
Hi Col,
You sent CVDS to my hotel in Sydney the Amora in Dec 2023. I’ve just fitted them, well pleased. Looking forward to driving with them soon.
Cheers
Alan
Hi Alan
Great to hear that. You will enjoy the improved driver engagement.
Col.
Absolutely nothing wrong with that, all bolts nuts under the car should have alignment indicator marks applied, then all takes is a quick visual check to see if any bolts or nuts have undone… it does happen.
When my car games back from repairs to the recent rear end shunt ( re my posting) I am planning to install the Dusan Milleer ( Kelvedon supplied) CV joints which I bought some time ago…
The Lotus Elan +2 Workshop Manual says the donut bolts should be tightened to 35-40lb ft. Is this also appropriate for the CV nyloc nuts, or should they be 40-45 , which the Bible specifies for general 7/16 unf application…Tony
Hi Tony,
Kelvedon should tell you as supplier then no come back problems. Also if you should use Loctite and also Loctite Activator. The Adaptors are in Alloy so best with Activator (cap screws).
Your choice.
Alan
Ouch…! I wasn’t planning to touch the Allen bolts -which I assume have been loctited and torqued at manufacture, just the six 7/16 unf nyloc nuts.
Tony