Newbie question

[Andy wright]

Well, I waited for the week and no sign of the back box.(sob😂😂) and no reply from Jim so something is wrong as he normally answers very promptly. . Anyway, I need the car on Monday so , rather reluctantly the old back box went back on this afternoon ( and it is a heavy thing too) . Diffuser still to fit but apart from that , job done. When the 2ubular back box arrives I guess it will be ‘ back in the air, diffuser off and this time I hope that I can leave the CAT in place .

[Elisemadray]

35 minutes ago, Andy wright said:

Well, I waited for the week and no sign of the back box.(sob😂😂) and no reply from Jim so something is wrong as he normally answers very promptly. . Anyway, I need the car on Monday so , rather reluctantly the old back box went back on this afternoon ( and it is a heavy thing too) . Diffuser still to fit but apart from that , job done. When the 2ubular back box arrives I guess it will be ‘ back in the air, diffuser off and this time I hope that I can leave the CAT in place .

I believe Jim hasn't been well  

[Andy wright]

50 minutes ago, Elisemadray said:

I believe Jim hasn't been well  

That’s what I thought .Hence the radio silence . Hope it is not too serious . 

[Andy wright]

All fitted and up and running. The engine mount inserts have made a difference ( well, two). At tickover, a bit more vibration transmission . On the move, the gear change is even more precise ( and it wasn’t bad before ) and the car feels  more ‘ taut’ on acceleration. As for the manifold and CAT, with the o.e. Exhaust on, no change in exhaust note but my immediate impression was that the engine pulled more strongly at low and medium rpm. However, thats subjective. When the 2ubular back box arrives. I will put the back end apart again and fit it . 
 

[Andy wright]

Jim was poorly. Anyway, back box arrived on Thursday . So Friday was ‘ car back in the air’ afternoon and remove cat and back box. Trial fit shiny new back box. And, err, slight problem ( well, two) The first was that the silencer fouled the heat shielding in front of the number plate . The second was that the mounting bars were a bit too short, particularly the one on the RHS . Bugger. 
Anyway, heatshielding modified, rear camera relocated, number plate panel modified and re mounted in a very reduced form. Welder out and mounting bar extended by 25mm and now ready to put in tomorrow. Not quite the way I had expected it to go …..

[Lithopsian]

Those are some pretty aggressive-looking tailpipes 😀  Is it the 7" box?

[Andy wright]

Yep. 7” box and now finally fitted and up and running. Lovely exhaust note and not too noisy. Getting all the bits of lotus to fit around the exhaust has been a bit of a fight. However, it’s done, as per the last couple of photographs. Oh, Funk motorsport  do a great product. Expensive but very effective and neat . Had it been an ‘ordinary’ car ( that is, not made of fibreglass , glue and double sided tape ) I would not have gone nuts on the exhaust wrapping and silencer jacket. However, the latter is very close to the number plate and not far from the boot floor, and in the engine bay, without some kind of heat shield , the manifold would have ensured the engine  bay got pretty hot. Even with the old system, I was surprised just how warm and cosy the boot got after a 30 plus minute trip. How effective this new system is I will find out when I use the car tomorrow . 

[Dave-hp]

That tail pipe looks great. 

Hows the sound through the range? 

Idle, light throttle, high and low gear, and heavier on the accelorator?

Nice range?

[Andy wright]

Evening. Tickover is muted. Almost oe. Light throttle is still very restrained and likewise steady cruise is drone free. Give it some right foot and the soundtrack wakes  up . Sounds really purposeful without being outrageous. These 7” boxes are track friendly so no more than 96db at 4000rpm 

 

[DeanB]

Did you do a weight comparison of old vs new Andy?

[Andy wright]

1 hour ago, DeanB said:

Did you do a weight comparison of old vs new Andy?

Yep. 7” box and now finally fitted and up and running. Lovely exhaust note and not too noisy. Getting all the bits of lotus to fit around the exhaust has been a bit of a fight. However, it’s done, as per the last couple of photographs. Oh, Funk motorsport  do a great product. Expensive but very effective and neat . Had it been an ‘ordinary’ car ( that is, not made of fibreglass , glue and double sided tape ) I would not have gone nuts on the exhaust wrapping and silencer jacket. However, the latter is very close to the number plate and not far from the boot floor, and in the engine bay, without some kind of heat shield , the manifold would have ensured the engine  bay got pretty hot. Even with the old system, I was surprised just how warm and cosy the boot got after a 30 plus minute trip. How effective this new system is I will find out when I use the car tomorrow . 
 

Certainly did. The combined new system is 8.9kk lighter than the old. Manifolds were about the same, the sports cat is 2kg lighter and the rest is in the back box. The o.e back box is a hefty piece of kit . As an aside, my boit is now much cooler than it was with the o.e system, so the exhaust wrapping and the blankets have done something useful.

 

[DeanB]

8.9 kilos is a good chunk, bonus!

[Andy wright]

Certainly is, especially as this weight is right at the back of the car . 

[hassanizhar]

✅ On the Corbeau LE seats

• Corbeau’s “LE Standard” / “LE Pro” seats are designed exactly for Elise/Exige S1 and S2 cars — so fitting them to your 2007 S2 should be straightforward, using the existing subframe. eliseparts.com+2Corbeau-Seats+2

• Compared with stock Elise seats, many owners find the Corbeau LE a real upgrade in comfort and support — especially if the standard seats are “a bit thin” or “not supportive enough” for regular use or older interiors. One Reddit user put it plainly:

“Fantastic upgrade, stock seats are woeful in my opinion. Back starts killing me 30 mins into driving.” Reddit

• They’re also reported to be a good middle-ground: enough comfort for road use while giving more support than stock cloth or leather seats — without going full race-bucket. sportseats4u.co.uk+2elises.co.uk+2

So if you plan to keep the car as a regular road car (not track-only), the Corbeau LE is widely considered a solid and practical upgrade.

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💷 On the value of your existing cream seats + door cards

• Interiors for the Elise (seats, door cards, trim) are fairly limited and replacement parts or retrim services tend to be expensive. Classics World+2Howards Motor Group+2

• A full “trim pack” — seats plus door panels — was reportedly priced around £1,000 when new (with standard options). Howards Motor Group+1

• That suggests your original cream seats + matching panels likely carry modest value — especially second-hand. Unless they’re in superb condition and there’s a buyer specifically wanting the original “cream interior look,” they may not fetch a high price.

In short: you shouldn’t assume they’re worth a big sum — maybe a few hundred pounds at best (if you’re lucky).

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✅ My view: go for the Corbeau LE — but treat the cost as part of owning an Elise

Given how Spartan and minimal the original Elise interior is, upgrading to Corbeau LE seats seems like a real improvement in daily driving comfort — especially if you don’t love the cream interior. You’ll trade the potential resale value of the original seats for a more usable car now.

If you want — I can help estimate a realistic second-hand market value for your original seats + door cards (UK market 2025). Want me to build that quick estimate for you now?

[Andy wright]

I have Corbeau LE seats ( I sold my cream interior very soon after buying the car ) . Although the Corbeau are an improvement , I would like to go to Tillet B5 or B10 as soon as my Barclaycard can stand the strain