Car Restoration Projects

Lotus Excel

Big Ken’s ‘preservation’ restoration of his 1983 Excel retained much of its 40+ years’ patina, but the car was meticulously brought up to spec’ mechanically.

In his former life, Ken C was a heavy truck manufacturer’s chief engineer, so he knew a thing or two about oily bits.

When HV checked out Ken’s pride and joy we knew it wasn’t intended for concours events. It was very, very tidy, but showed some wear and tear. Ken wasn’t aiming at spit and polish awards, but enjoyed club activity days, where the Lotus’ breeding came into its own.

Before we get into a description of Ken’s 1983 car, let’s look at the Excel’s bloodline.

Excel history

The Excel (Type 89) was designed and built by British automobile manufacturer Lotus Cars between 1982 and 1992. It was based on the design of the earlier Lotus Éclat, which built on the earlier Lotus Type 75 Elite. Early Excels were branded Éclat Excel, to avoid the expense of a new type-approval process.

The Excel was probably the pick of this bunch of three related models, because it benefitted from a co-operative deal between Toyota and Lotus.

The Japanese giant had contracted Lotus to perform some of the engineering work on its Supra sports car and, in return, Lotus got to use some Toyota MA61 Supra components in the Excel: W58 five-speed manual transmission, driveshafts, rear differential, 14×7 inch aluminium wheels and door handles.

However, the engine was the all-Lotus, aluminium, 160bhp, DOHC 2.2-litre 912 slant-four engine that was also used in the Lotus Esprit S3. (Incidentally, Lotus used Jensen as a virtual guinea pig for the 907/912 engine’s development, selling the initial engines to Jensen without warranty, to power Jensen-Healy sports cars.)

The Excel body was made from vacuum-injected resin upper and lower halves that were joined at the waistline, with the joint masked by black trim around the car. The body was mounted onto a Lotus-trademarked, galvanised steel, backbone chassis.

The coil-spring front suspension system consisted of a transverse lower arm, coupled to an anti-roll bar and upper wishbone. At the coil-sprung rear, wishbones were mounted below transverse links.

This suspension setup, in conjunction with 50:50 weight distribution, gave the Excel superb handling.

From 1984, the Éclat Excel was referred to as the Excel. Body-coloured bumpers, louvered bonnet, a boot spoiler and new eight-spoke alloy wheels became an option. The Lotus bonnet badge featured an all-black background and a black decal with gold wreath was fixed to the RHS C-pillar, to balance the LHS filler cap.

For 1985, the front wheel arch profile was altered; the boot opening was enlarged; front fog lamps were fitted; 15-inch wheels were an option and a VDO instrument cluster was installed.

For 1986, the SE option added a 10.9:1 high-compression engine, with twin Dellorto 45mm carbies, red cam boxes and an increased output of 180bhp. The aircon, dashboard and switches were upgraded, and an adjustable steering column added.

In 1987, a ZF four-speed auto was optional, with cruise control.

For 1988, the Excel received engine upgrades and some body reinforcements.

In 1989, the Excel scored a restyled bonnet, front and rear spoilers, wing mirrors, new wheels and interior trim. It stayed pretty much in that shape until it was phased out in 1992.

Ken’s Excel project

Big Ken bought his reasonably clean 1983 Lotus in 2007 and started its refurbishment by fitting a triple-core aluminium radiator, Crane electronic ignition, new clutch, head gasket and exhaust and intake manifold gaskets. He also flushed the clutch and brake lines.

The original SD1 Rover door mirrors were falling apart and Ken found a pair of 1990s Audi A3 mirrors that which were lighter and didn’t interfere with the vehicle’s aesthetics. A plus was an improvement in mirror view.

The original Toyota-sourced outer door handles were falling apart, but Ken found a UK motorsport supplier, who sent him 3D-printed replacements.

Ken wanted a better infotainment unit than the outdated original, so he pulled the centre console and lower dashboard to bits, to make space for a double-DIN head.

The selected unit not only had much better sound quality and functionality, but also incorporated a reversing camera display. The Excel’s mirror view rearwards is not its long suit…

To accommodate the stereo head unit Ken had to bridge and relocate the two rheostats that dimmed the dash lights. The cigarette lighter socket was removed and replaced by a Narva USB/voltmeter combined unit.

The centre dashboard air vents also needed to be modified and relocated. A new Davies Craig fan replaced the original fans that had given up the ghost.

The tired roof lining and parcel shelf were re-trimmed in OE material and the seats professionally covered in Alcantra leather.

When Ken bought his Excel it had non-factory, 16-inch wheels, but Ken found the handling wasn’t optimal and there was a big speedo error. Ken’s engineering research showed him that Lotus had gone to great deal of trouble with its suspension geometry design and the after-market 16-inchers had upset that considerably. Significantly, the 16-inch wheel offset was way off the original dimensions, upsetting the designed scrub radius, so Ken decided to fit original equipment wheels instead.

The original factory wheels were 14 x 7-inch rims with a JK lip profile and shod with with 205/60VR tyres all the way round. Incidentally, a ‘JK’ lip profile on a wheel rim indicates that it’s designed for high-performance stresses.

There was also a 15-inch wheel option ex-factory, but Ken opted to source original 14-inchers. Although these wheels look Supra-like, they were Lotus-designed original equipment on the Excel.

However, Ken did allow himself some divergence on the issue of tyre sizes, opting for a slightly narrower than standard 195-section up front and traction-enhancing 235s at the rear.

Ken’s Excel is an excellent example of a tasteful resto-mod that absolutely retains the physical appearance of the original, with modernised interior touches that make it suitable for use on today’s more heavily trafficked roads.

At car club events its light weight, eager response and nimble handling can shame many later machines.