Lotus Elan and Lotus Elan Plus 2 Forums

I am about to attempt to change the oil pan on my 1970 Elan S4. Can
this be done with the engine in place or should I go borrow an engine
hoist before I start.?

--
Lawrence King Ottawa Ontario Canada
http://www.promobility.net/lawrence
Is boneless chicken considered to be an invertebrate?

The chassis has a piece of channel welded across under the pan. Some
owners have cut this and reattached it using hardware so that it becomes
removable. I presume this has been done to your car. In my opinion, you
do not want to leave it off as it contributes to a very critical area of
chassis rigidity, i.e., the forks wanting to spread apart over time (and
even real time when the car is driven hard).

Another issue will be the clutch/flywheel dust shield mentioned in the
starter discussion. This will prevent the pan from being removed. S4 cars
have a multi-piece dust shield which alleviates this problem and I think it
can be retrofitted.

As for lifting the engine, it can be done without a hoist by jacking and
supporting in imaginative ways (assuming those other obstacles have been
dealt with) but it would be much easier with a hoist IMHO.

Rod

I was afraid if that. I have a S4 so the transmission dust shield is 2
pieces, but the cross brace is still in place. I'll go borrow the
hoist, I have taken the engine out before so I do know how to do it, I
was trying to be lazy.