Jonathan Kay

We've had some very helpful correspondence with (and discounts from) 213 Performance, the UK agent, and I'd start by asking them about repair. Tell them you're a Club Member. Jonathan PS: For Stack dashes I have a couple of manuals and the specific Caterham wiring diagrams.

"That's a tad ambiguous, as it depends on whether "anything" refers to a single warning device. Using two horns simultaneously that have different tones is ok, not to say very common." Are we approaching the notorious: ? Jonathan

Agreed. Typical current in the highest mode of a smart conditioning charger is 5 A. Jonathan

Is it this from the Handbook? Jonathan Battery charging Batteries generate explosive gases, contain corrosive acid and produce levels of electric current sufficient to cause serious injury. Whilst charging, always heed the following precautions: • Before charging, disconnect and remove the battery from the vehicle – charging the battery with the cables connected may damage the vehicle’s electrical system. • Make sure the battery charger leads are securely clamped to the battery terminals BEFORE switching on the battery charger. Do not move the leads once the charger is switched on. • Whilst charging, shield your eyes or avoid leaning over the battery and keep the area around the top of the battery well ventilated. • Do not allow naked lights near the battery (batteries generate flammable hydrogen during and after charging). • When charging is finished, switch off the battery charger BEFORE disconnecting the leads from the battery terminals. • After charging, leave the battery for an hour BEFORE reconnection to the vehicle – this will allow time for explosives gases to disperse, thereby minimising the risk of fire or explosion.

With that approach most of us put it above the passenger's legs. But there are some in the bulkhead behind the seats. Jonathan

"If its not recommended I can just put a lead and socket direct to the battery." For battery charging: 1 Do you have a battery master switch? 2 Don't forget the fuse. 3 You can get units that combine a cigar lighter socket with a couple of USB charging sockets. If you want to charge devices as quickly as possible make sure that each USB socket can supply 2.1 A . (And you can get versions that include a digital voltmeter.) Jonathan

For England... 7.7. Audible warning (horn) An audible warning must be loud enough to be heard by other road users. For vehicles first used on or after 1 August 1973, the sound emitted must be continuous or uniform. It cannot be harsh or grating. The following cannot be used as an audible warning: • gongs • bells • sirens • anything that has more than one tone However, on vehicles first used before 1906 the audible warning can be a gong, bell or siren. https://www.gov.uk/guidance/mot-inspection-manual-for-private-passenger-and-light-commercial-vehicles/7-other-equipment Jonathan

There are three methods: two that upload images and one that links to images hosted somewhere else. In #2 above Ian has described the shortcut upload. This is what most Members use most of the time. But the resolution of the displayed image is limited and automatically reduced. This isn't a major problem for many photos but can be for documents. The multistep upload doesn't have that limitation. They're all described in the Forum User Guide thread, along with some tricks and workarounds. Jonathan

"#6 - yes, thats the connector.Green is IGN feed, now wired to +12V Red is LAMP. The red Lamp lights when ignition is on (suggesting to me its wired correctly), but won't go out when engine is running, and alternator is working (showing 14.3V).Blue isn't used (generic cheap Chinese connector)Plus there is the fat +12V cable (brown on standard setup, taken from the starter)" Thanks. It's an LMA 0226: and I think that connector is a Denso round 3 pin. Where did that mapping of wire colour to function come from? And is there any identification of terminals on the alternator itself? Jonathan

http://img.everychina.com/nimg/61/15/b0a49766bfce9ef2e696fa482be0-300x300-0/round_3_way_vehicle_wiring_harness_alternator_connector_for_toyota_black_color.jpg That's a link to the image, not an upload. But only to the image, not the web page. http://img.everychina.com/nimg/61/15/b0a49766bfce9ef2e696fa482be0-300x300-0/round_3_way_vehicle_wiring_harness_alternator_connector_for_toyota_black_color.jpg rather than http://fuelinjector-connectors.sell.everychina.com/p-110020360-round-3-way-vehicle-wiring-harness-alternator-connector-for-toyota-black-color.html Jonathan

There's a known problem with PDFs on this site displaying PDFs where some browsers display the icon for duff images. But IIRC that can be overcome by playing with the permissions at the client end. Happy to test if you link yours. Does mine (#6) show the connector of interest? Jonathan

Thanks http://img.everychina.com/nimg/aa/58/6340c77c0274d3ac33cdddbe8139-300x300-0/round_3_way_vehicle_wiring_harness_alternator_connector_for_toyota_black_color.jpg Jonathan

And the circuit modification that eliminates buzzing. Jonathan

Good move. And thanks for sharing. Jonathan PS: If this becomes a problem it's easy to rewire so that it comes on as desired.

Does the alternator look like this: and match this: "The WOSP/Denso/Brise wiring has one small cable for the dashboard warning lamp, another small cable for a switched live to "switch on" the field and a fat cable (mine has two) for the positive post that goes to the starter/battery/FIA switch." https://www.lotus7.club/forum/techtalk/wosp-alternator-wiring which includes Andrew Revill's comments on WOSP alternators and EU3 ECUs. What model was your alternator... LMB467? Jonathan

Yes, as above that's how it's wired at the factory. I once had a problem at an MoT inspection when neither I nor the inspector knew that and couldn't turn the fog light on. I haven't heard of a MoT failure caused by the normal operation once that's known, but can see the potential from that wording. Jonathan

"Is it likely then to be a faulty gauge?" It's hard to tell. You've already had a good look at the connections. I'd now: 1 Test the gauge directly by mimicking the sender with no resistance and with high resistance. 2 Test the sender by measuring the resistance with a multimeter. "Is this an easy swap to do myself?" Yes, swapping a like for like gauge is easy. Be gentle when you tighten the bracket on the new one. You probably won't need a wiring diagram... unless anything comes loose. Please let me know if you'd like one. Jonathan

This post explains the interaction between the hazard warning light switch and the indicators. And as soon as I can find a very clever improvement to the circuit that's somewhere in the archives I'll add that. Jonathan

Have you got the appropriate wiring diagrams? Let me know if you need any. Does the rear left indicator light up when you rig a good feed to it? (Crossed with Andrew's.) The hazard light switches are unreliable, so it's not that unlikely that you've got two duff ones. They sometimes come back to life if cycled a few times. Jonathan

There's a Seven out there with a radiator blind that's adjustable from the cockpit... Jonathan

Was the alternator warning light behaving correctly with the old alternator? And you haven't changed the lamp to an LED? Which terminal on the alternator is now connected to the Brown/Yellow wire? And have you got some instructions or a pin-out for the new alternator? Jonathan

8 ply tyres seem to be recommended. Whatever they are. https://www.lotus7.club/forum/speed/trailer-tyres-0 Jonathan

The reconditioner mentioned most often is BiggRed. Their website seems to be down. They also supply repair kits. https://duckduckgo.com/?q=site:lotus7.club+biggred Jonathan

There are four (or two) Dzus fasteners. Release them all and lift it off. SNAP! Jonathan

The archives are full of hints, but they aren't completely consistent. Here's a brief summary of one method for filling with coolant. Having aligned the major axis of the Seven with the pole star... Jack the nose up as high as possible. If you have a heater then make sure that the circuit is open. Fill the radiator to the top and then the expansion tank to the mark. Some Sevens need a bleed tee adding at the highest point of the circuit. Then lower the car and check the level. Then start the engine and massage the big coolant hoses. On mine this removes any trapped air. Then check that the hoses go hot appropriately. At this point I also check that the fan comes on at the right temperature. But on some Sevens this isn't enough, and the next step is to drill a small hole in the thermostat. Under a full moon. Jonathan