TJewsbury Posted February 4, 2012 Posted February 4, 2012 First post. Hello All. I have a Lotus Europa S - 2006. I currently have a problem with the interior heating. The fans do not come on when I turn the knob. The A/C and recirculation lights do not come on. I tried to open the front lid to get to the fuse incase this was the problem. The footwell lever is pulling but the front lid won't lift. I did have an issue with the car over heating yesterday when the temperature was -7C. The front radiator did not get warm. The engine temperature got to a maximum of 118C. The problem disapeared when a stopped and the ambient temperature warmed up, but I had the antifreeze replaced. The car is now working fine but if you could confirm this is a separate problem to the interior heating fans not coming on it would be useful to know to eliminate any head gasket problem. If anyone can diagnose this or suggest a good garage in the east midlands it would be great. Thanks for replies.
Martin R Posted February 4, 2012 Posted February 4, 2012 Welcome to MLOC. Mike is well respected around your area. http://www.mgw-racing.com/ Give him a ring and say MLOC sent you. MGW-Racing @ Barlane Motors Palm Street Basford Nottingham NG7 7HS Is that close enough to you ?
chris_h Posted February 4, 2012 Posted February 4, 2012 The fans not working just sounds like the resistor pack has failed. Fairly common and simple but a pain to replace.
TJewsbury Posted February 4, 2012 Author Posted February 4, 2012 Thank you both for the reply. Yes, Basford is not too bad for me. Thanks. Stratstone Lotus in Leicester charge £600 labour to replace the resistor pack so fingers crossed that Mike at http://www.mgw-racing.com/ or someone similar can help me out for a lot less. Otherwise, I might need a guide to help me remove the front clam shell to get to the resistor pack!
pjohn151 Posted February 6, 2012 Posted February 6, 2012 I did have an issue with the car over heating yesterday when the temperature was -7C. The front radiator did not get warm. The engine temperature got to a maximum of 118C. The problem disapeared when a stopped and the ambient temperature warmed up, but I had the antifreeze replaced. The car is now working fine but if you could confirm this is a separate problem to the interior heating fans not coming on it would be useful to know to eliminate any head gasket problem. This is definately a seperate issue. Sounds like the antifreeze was old and the coolant had frozen in the pipes to the front rad. Watch your coolant level over the next few days. I suppose the front lid could just of been frozen. Definately check the fuses first as this is an easy job compared to replacing the resistor pack. It may just be the fuse as you say the recirc light and aircon lights don't work? Enjoy the Europa!
kayj_prod Posted February 7, 2012 Posted February 7, 2012 Front lid not opening: How long ago did you last open it? The only time mine got stuck was when I had taken it off and then not lined it up very well before closing. (This is on S1 Elise, but I presume the mechanism must be similar on Europa.) I can tell you how I got mine open in the end, but I would hate to do it again in this weather (it involved rather more surgery than the following method)! As john says, maybe it could have frozen, so perhaps make sure the area is warm. Get someone else to pull on the cable while you wiggle the bonnet slightly side to side or up and down. It might be enough to free the catch.
TJewsbury Posted February 8, 2012 Author Posted February 8, 2012 Thanks for the further replies. And confirming it's a separate issue :-) The places I've contacted all seem to beleive it's a resistor pack, which is extremely expensive and timely to change. Nevertheless, today I washed the car, drove off and the fans came back on and have worked fine for 25miles! Fingers crossed they work in the morning, although I guess the problem will come back soon. I saw the front lid opened in Oct 2011. When I left it with a garage for coolant change last week I don't know if they opened the front lid. I've tried some lube, a wiggle and a pull on the cables by someone else but still can't get it open. It's been suggested that I might get to the cables through the wheel arches, but i've not had a chance to look at this yet.
kayj_prod Posted February 8, 2012 Posted February 8, 2012 I just found this http://www.komo-tec.com/media/products/0753179001298902835.pdf?XTCsid=23eb0ece564936700868a2a1bba89eb8 Looking through the diagrams, it is clear the release mechanism might be easier to access from the wheel arch than it is on an Elise! Sorry I can't be more help.
TJewsbury Posted February 18, 2012 Author Posted February 18, 2012 Thanks. The Europa S Part Book link is a good reference to have. Update on the original post regarding heating fans not working: Fans have now been working fine for about 1k. Slightly worried by a engine tapping sound now though.. Might have to make a new topic.
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