Published by the Golden Gate Lotus Club

www.gglotus.org

PO Box 117303 Burlingame, CA 94011

Friday November 19th, 1999

7:30pm

4. GGLC Holiday Party - Pacific Fresh - Sunnyvale (see info below)

5 The Toddler Toy Rallye -Fremont 11:00 am sponsored by the GGLC & Fremont Touring Club. Round Table Pizza, Mission Blvd between Hwy 880 and Hwy 680, Fremont CA. Benefit Rallye for Needy Kids! Workers needed ! please contact Kiyoshi at: kiyoshi.hamai@etak.com

16, 17 California Melee’

Sept 27 - Oct 1

Lotus Track Day, Vintage Races, Concours, Banquet, Tours, Rallyes, Tech Seminars

Napa - Mare Island, California

Pacific Fresh Restaurant

Sunnyvale, Ca

Saturday, December 4th

This is just a reminder to everyone that on Saturday, December 4^th we will be having our annual Holiday Party and White Elephant Gift Exchange at Pacific Fresh in Sunnyvale. We’ll begin the evening at 5:30pm with a no host bar and appetizers, and we will begin seating at 6:45 with dinner being served at 7:00pm. There are 5 entrees from which to choose and the cost is $30/person. RSVP and payment must be received by no later than November 20th. Please choose one entree and one dessert from the following:

Dinner choices

1. Cajun Swordfish topped with fresh salsa and sour cream

2. Seared King Salmon topped with fresh basil rock shrimp sauce

3. Baked Alaskan Halibut in Phyllo Pastry stuffed with crab & spinach

4. Filet Mignon of Beef wrapped with Bacon

5. Vegetarian: Pasta Primavera with Marinara sauce

Dessert choices

1. Chocolate Fudge Tort

2. Creme Brulee

All entrees include soup or salad, fresh bread, coffee, tea, or soda. Pacific Fresh is located at: 1130 N. Mathilda Ave. in Sunnyvale.

You may RSVP in person at the November 19th meeting, or mail your check to the address below:

Scott Hogben

2008 Notre Dame Ave.

Belmont, CA 94002

e-mail scott.hogben@twtd.cpii.com

See you there!

Directions:

From San Jose: 101 North, exit Mathilda Avenue North. Pacific Fresh is on the right side of Mathilda about 2.5 blocks up from the exit. Cross under Hwy 237, and turn into the parking lot just after the Charlie Brown’s sign.

From San Francisco: 101 South, exit Hwy 237 East (towards Alviso, Milpitas). Exit Mathilda Avenue, turn left on Mathilda going back under 237. Pacific Fresh is 1 block up from 237 on the right side. Cross under Hwy 237, and turn into the parking lot just after the Charley Brown’s sign.

From East Bay: 880 South, exit Hwy 237 West towards 101. 680 South, exit Calaveras Road which then becomes Hwy 237. Continue on 237 about 2-3 miles, exit Mathilda Avenue, turn right on Mathilda. Pacific Fresh is 1 block up from 237 on the right side. Cross under Hwy 237, and turn into the parking lot just after the Charlie Brown’s sign.

(at the Holiday Party) Don’t forget that that proud, long-standing tradition of the White Elephant Gift Exchange will be carried out again at this year’s Holiday Party. For the uninitiated, this is where you demonstrate the true meaning of the Holiday spirit by exchanging (wrapped) automotive-based gifts of dubious value with your fellow GGLC members. Don’t miss out on the fun !

~ co-Ed.

Sunday, December 5

By Kiyoshi

Start Time: 11:30 am

Start Location: Round Table Pizza - Mission Blvd, Fremont California

First Car Out: 12:00 noon

Entry Fee: A brand new unwrapped toy worth $10 or more plus $2 (to cover costs)

The annual Toy Rallye is a benefit event. Entry is a brand new toy worth $10 or more, per car. These toys are then donated to the Washington Township Volunteer Bureau. The Volunteer Bureau distributes these toys and food to needy families in the Union City, Newark, Fremont area.

The Toy Rallye is a A-B variety rallye. No experience is needed. Entrants are grouped into class by experience.

First timers are welcome. Simply follow the instructions, be observant and win.

What's needed?

A car - any car as long as it runs!

Driver - Well, someone has to drive it!

Navigator - While you don't need a navigator... it's more fun with more people in the car!

Equipment - Bring a clip board, paper and a pen (who doesn't have this stuff around the house?)

Directions:

FROM HWY 880 IN FREMONT

1) Take Hwy 880 to southern Fremont

2) Exit Hwy 880 onto Mission Blvd EAST toward Hwy 680

3) Go through the signal at Warm Springs

4) Immediately get into the right lane

5) Turn into the driveway for Round Table (just past Taco Bell)

FROM HWY 680 IN FREMONT

1) Take Hwy 680 to southern Fremont

2) Exit Hwy 680 onto Mission Blvd WEST toward Hwy 880 (Those coming from Pleasanton take the 2^nd Mission exit)

3) Merge onto Mission Blvd and get into the Left Lane

4) Make a U-turn at the 2nd signal (Warm Springs)

5) Get into the right lane

6) Turn into the driveway for Round Table (just past Taco Bell)

GGLC members - Rallye workers are needed! Please contact Kiyoshi at kiyoshi.hamai@etak.com or call (650) 617-0177. At least 6 people are required to work the start & finish and 2 checkpoints.

By Scott Hogben

On Saturday October 23^rd I drove up to El Sobrante for Lotus Day at Mike Ostrov’s and I must say that it went very well indeed. I had an obligation that prevented me from making it to Mike’s in time for the drive around the San Pablo Dam, as well as the lunch that followed, however I did make it in time for the beginning of Mike’s talk on fiberglass repair. But I must back up a bit and say that when I arrived I was grinning from ear to ear because of all the Lotuses which were parked in front of his shop. In this day of gargantuan SUV’s, and soccer moms in their minivans, not to mention the benign sedans that are pumped out by most manufacturers these days, it was so refreshing to see such a nice variety of Lotuses. We had a little bit of everything: Elans, Europas, an Esprit Turbo, Sevens, and of course, Mike’s beautiful Elites. They drew quite a lot of stares from passers by, and well they should, what a display!

When I walked in the door to Mike’s shop I was happy to see a large group of familiar faces, as well as some new ones too, attentively listening to an explanation on the various types of cloth, resins, fillers, and the do’s and don’ts of a proper fiberglass repair. I’ll admit that it was a little difficult for me to follow along immediately because my eyes kept wandering off looking at all the Sevens and Elites that seem to cover every square inch of Mike’s shop! Add to that all of Mike’s Lotus automobilia which adorns the walls of his shop and you can understand why my eyes could hardly lock onto any one thing for more than a minute or two.

After showing us the various materials and tools that should be used to attain a proper and sound repair, Mike was kind enough to provide an excellent "show and tell" sample of poor fiberglass work in the form of an Elan bonnet which had been "repaired" at one time by a previous owner. It was interesting, and somewhat humorous, to see a screw driver taken to the repaired area and watch the layers of glass cloth peel off to expose a piece of cardboard inside! The autopsy sure was an attention getter to everyone, but above all, it was an excellent example of how NOT to repair fiberglass, and the consequences of such a poor repair.

After that, Mike rolled out his trusty repair table for some hands-on fiberglass lessons. A few members brought some of their body parts to seek some direction on where to start with their particular repairs. One gentleman brought an Elan bonnet with some cracks showing through the paint and began to grind away under Mike’s tutelage. It turned out that this job was going to be a fairly involved one, so after some advice from Mike on how to complete the job, it was time for the next repair question.

The GGLC’s own co-editor Daren Stone stepped up and decided to dig into repairing one of the cracks in the engine cover of his S2 Europa. This was a great opportunity for everyone to see what is needed for proper fiberglass repair work as the area was small enough to complete the structural portion of the repair that day, leaving the finish work for later. I think Daren’s only disappointment was the realization that he was committed to repairing the rest of the engine cover now! (to say nothing of the rest of the car ~ Ed.)

The day simply went too fast for me and I left Mike’s shop at about 6:00pm with a few members remaining to watch Pete Richen finish up the last glassing on the rear quarter panel of his twin cam Europa. I think it’s safe to say that we all learned a great deal that day and I’d like to thank Mike for sharing his expertise and for allowing us to come up and dirty his shop for the day, we really appreciate it Mike!

As I was driving home I was thinking about the day and some of the comments that I heard people making about how pleased they were with the event and with the club in general. I heard the same sort of compliments from people at the track day earlier this year, many of whom were members of other car clubs. They commented on how their clubs don’t do the things we do and how we have a really great group of people. I couldn’t agree more. It was a great day indeed and I’d like to thank everyone who attended, and a special thanks goes out again to Mike Ostrov for being a fantastic host!

See you at the next meeting!

Scott

By Jon Rosner

The big sleeper of the 1999 Internationale Automobil-Ausstellung (IAA, the Frankfurt Auto show) was the Lotus M250 "Monaco" concept car.

This was the first time anyone has seen a full size mock-up of the car Lotus plans to slot between the Elise and the Esprit V-8. Keeping with current company trends it is a mid-engine two seater built upon an ultrastiff bonded aluminum chassis.

Plans call for an UNDER 2,200 lb. car with 3.0 liter V-6 of 250 horsepower tied to a six speed gear box. Acceleration to 60 is expected to be under 5 seconds with 100 mph coming in less than 11 seconds. This in spite of the anticipated inclusion of all the little extras that made the Elise the purist car that Americans were not expected to buy in large enough numbers to justify the huge expense of certifying it for the US market.

With better power to weight ratio and a further development of the aerodynamic work started with the Elise the Monaco has the street potential for completely embarrassing most of the very complex variable valve, automatic everything sensitive, four wheel steering, road hugging weight added electronic engineering marvels that most mechanics dread to work on even at the dealership level.

Roger Burton, Lotus Field Service Engineer, made himself available at the show to answer questions about what the company learned in making the Elise and how the Monaco was different.

Beaming with pride Roger said; "This is the first full size prototype, two months ago we had a scale model ! We wanted to take some of the depth out of the sill of the Elise."

( Please note, ingress in an Elise requires strategic placement of one's posterior followed by twisting and lowering yourself into the seat as in a Formula 1 car.) "The chassis on the Monaco is a larger variant of the Elise chassis concept. The car has a fixed roof, and there is the possibility of a convertible," (rag top…..yousa !!)

"The sales of the car (Elise) outstripped our wildest dreams, it just bowled us over really…. There was never any intention to introduce an air bag, never any intention to ship it to America…. The original concept was to produce something that was alive, a driver's car. We looked at the Seven and we wanted to use modern technology.

We are very concerned that we only have the Esprit for the US, whatever we build next has to be able to go stateside. We hope to have two or three versions of the Monaco in next two years, but with the rate of change at Lotus…..who knows ? Things at the factory (in terms of what we plan to produce) could change completely in the next six months. And we can tailor the product to the market requirements.

We have the full support of Proton (parent company), It goes to show how strong Lotus is that it pulled through on its own even while the Malaysian economy was sinking. We are a big asset to Proton and the banks are more than happy to finance us.

Everything we build - there is an order for it. It is a very healthy position to be in."

In order to lower investment risks the Elise was designed with a very low breakeven point, and that included the idea that it's a whole lot less expensive to hand lay up complex pieces like the front and rear clamshells

than to make a mold. The drawback being, how many guys can you put in a

room hand laying up large bits ? You quickly end up with a production

bottleneck. And with demand for the Elise being so high Lotus was forced to

address a second issue of too little paint shop space.

For the US, air conditioning, electric window and central locking are now virtually standard equipment. It was never considered feasible to add

these to the Elise. And with the engine not planned for continuation after

2001, and the added expense of smog equipment it made a lot of sense for

Lotus to go back to the drawing board."

But ah, we digress, we were talking about the September auto show in Frankfurt, the IAA.

Audi placed you in a giant fishbowl, Saab's display rained ! But Mercedes took the prize with a multimillion dollar, multi level display. Walk in the door and go over the tubed escalator, as you rose up the four stories

through the chiffon draping you could see the classic Benzes placed in mid

air on a tilted platform. Arrive at the top and work your way down through the displays to the stairs leading to the next level down and peer over at the waterfall steps of dozens of silver Benzes leading to the rotating focal point. The new 200 MPH Vision SLR an impeccably finished 200 mph prototype glimmered like a diamond set on a turntable.

And off in a side hall in a much less ostentatious display sat the sleekest

little silver bullet of the show. A real sleeper just like its predecessors. In 1962 Lotus displayed a car called the Elan, and that car went on to set the industry on its ear with new standards of ride, handling and acceleration. Lotus did the same thing again in 1996 with the Elise. Except that someone forgot about those of us waving wildly for attention from this side of the pond. Is it too much to ask for a relatively simple

car ?

With the sole exception of the Mazda Miata, a lovely if slightly

underpowered steed, the US sports car market has been getting fed the notion that 2900 plus pound sports (Honda S2000) cars are "light," that $450.00 oil/maintenance charges are standard (BMW & Porsche) fare and that your mechanic needs a BS in Computer Science to work on your chariot. And that may now be changing.

If it is built, the Monaco will be the second generation utilizing the

extraordinary Elise chassis concept. The New Elan, the Esprit and the Elise

have shown that Lotus can build dependable cars. The Monaco has very nice lines, is stunning in terms of projected performance and has the potential

to appeal to a very wide segment of the US car market. If it is priced competitively and backed up with good service Lotus' greatest difficulty will be meeting the demand. Now where do I send my

deposit ? (I’ll hold it for you ~ co-Ed.)

By Kiyoshi

Rumors are typically more fiction than fact… I’m not sure which these are, but now you’ve heard them too!

Noise from the Lotus factory says that they are planning on exporting the Elise II or whatever it’s called to the US. That’s good news! But, that car will not likely hit our shores until 2002! That’s bad news.

That would imply that the Esprit would be the only Lotus model sold in the US for the next 2 years. That would be a lousy business plan in my book and from the other factory noise my opinion is not alone…

So, noise #2 from Hethel is that the factory will get OBD-II for the current Elise and then try to get waivers on the bumpers and air bags. Given the recent rule changes at the NHTSA regarding private parties importing cars that don’t comply with these regs these waivers may become a reality!!! If so, then look for the current Elise model to hit the US shores in 2000.

Keep your fingers crossed!!!

editorial by Jim McClure

Six steps to driving a car in England:

1. Rent the car for three days only, and pay the additional premium to get the deductible down to £25, instead of the usual £300. Your chance of wrecking the car seems to be the highest in the first three days, especially if you have just gotten off of the non-stop from the west coast and haven’t had any sleep in 20 hours. Better yet would be to hang-out in London or take trains for the first few days to get acclimated.

2. Don’t assume that the driver in front of you is David Coulthard and will fly into the upcoming roundabout without lifting from the throttle. Many locals, here, actually do come to a complete stop, though there is no one to their right. I know this, having once put the nose of a Nissan under the bumper of a Peugeot on a motorway exit ramp.

3. Use the far right lane for passing slower cars, then get out of it, and do not pass someone on their left side. We all wish that these rules were taught and enforced in the US. I think that restricting passing in this way leads to less accidents. Here in the US, we have to get used to cars flying by on both sides, and having to use the "slow lane" to pass, because of the idiots that won’t move over.

4. It would seem that you can drive as fast as you want in many areas, just follow the speed signs when coming to a village. This summer, though, I saw hand held radar being used on the motorways, and cars ticketed for doing over about 90. I saw one of those three wheeled "pensioners" cars doing over 70 on the motorway though, and that was the scariest sight of the trip.

5. Now take the car back to the rental counter, but if you got a scratch in the rented car, a chip in the windshield, etc., take the car to the nearest destruction derby track first and race it! You’re going to lose that £25 or £300, if there is any part damaged or missing on the car, so you might as well get your "moneys worth". A hubcap fell off my Avis car, and it cost me the £25 deductible. They charge £100 for a hubcap, £100 for a punctured tire, and the full £300 for a chipped windshield. Even if the other driver was at fault in an accident, don’t expect to get this money back.

6. Now go rent that Elise that you really wanted to drive on these twisty roads. Better yet, drive it to the Hethel plant where they now offer a "Lotus Driver Training Experience" on the test track with instruction from one of Lotus’ own test drivers, for about $500 per day. Call 0870 900 0565.

Going to Beaulieu or Goodwood? I found an interesting B&B on the way, just by happenstance. After getting up there in the morning, I noticed an original condition AJS in the back yard. The mistress of the house said to go have a look at her husband’s collection, which included a Vincent, a Manx Norton, two Silver Clouds, and near a dozen historic stationary engines. The husband had already left early to buy another toy at the Beaulieu auction, so was not around, but his wife assured me that he loves to talk about vintage machinery. £40 for two per night; Royce Cottage, Shipney Road, Bogner Regis, West Sussex, tel. 01243 865788.

GGLC Officer Election - 2000

Vote today...

Copy/Paste the ballot below and email to khamai@tsoft.com or print and mail to PO Box 117303, Burlingame

CA 94011. Ballots must be received by November 18, 1999 (or you can call them in to me at

President & Vice President (vote for one. Candidate with the most votes is President and runner-up VP)

Secretary

Treasurer

Membership Chairman

Events Coordinator

By Kiyoshi

Well finally after way too many years business called for me to take a day to stop in Las Vegas the first week in November. So what’s impressive about that you ask? SEMA! The Specialty Equipment Manufacturer’s Association, or all the automotive aftermarket guys that bring you everything from headers, cams and ECM chips to fuzzy dice. Or, think of it as acres and acres of the world’s largest PEP Boys store!!! (you mean nobody knew anything ? ~ co-Ed.)

Over 5000 booths, and aisles full of fancy cars, buxom babes, and the promise that "my" new fangled whatcha-giget will boost horsepower by umpteen percent and dramatically reduce emissions.

What took me SEMA was to investigate new business channels for the company I’m with. At least that’s what I told my boss… You believe me, right?!? Anyway in recent years the major car makers have begun using the SEMA show.

So, I’m here to share with you a few highlights and low lights…

TIRES

Tires are supposed to be round, soft and black… right? Not any more… The latest trend in tire-dom is colors! Take the BFG Scorcher with red, blue, yellow, green or purple striped tread!! Yokohama, Toyo and Kumho had their color tread tires too… but BFG was the ONLY tire maker with a entirely green tire! I’m not sure what the point of a colored tire is… white walls are virtually gone, and one would have thought having red walls, or blue walls, or purple walls would be more appealing. In my humble opinion any guy that brings home a colored tire will likely end up returning them because the significant other will find that they clash with their new Nordstrom’s outfit!

SHOW CARS

I’m not sure what’s happening at GM, but I didn’t find much of interest there. Some new V6 powered Tracker 4x4 and a souped up Pontiac, but not much else. The Chrysler stand was another matter. Chrysler brought out the new PT Cruiser. It’s based on a Neon platform, but has a sort of blend between SUV/wagon/39 Ford body. Actually, I thought was kinda of cool. Also on hand was the 300M with a hotted up engine and video rearview mirrors. Where once were exterior mirrors were tiny video cameras and on the inside at the base of the A-pillar were 3 inch LCD video screens.

At the Ford stand were a number of cars worth noting… First an Excursion 4x4 with 4 doors and a 4 foot long pick-up bed. The Excursion is huge, but this thing can’t decide if it’s a pick-up or a SUV. Next to it was a 2000 Taurus that was supercharged and claimed to have about 300 HP on tap! Very stealthy looking. Also present was hopped up Focus R. This new pocket rocket is turbocharged and has 225BHP. Zero to 60 is a claimed 6 flat. Big fender bubbles and wide tires. Finally, Ford presented the Mustang R. This latest ‘stang is for off road use only.

Next to Ford was the Mazda stand and there spinning was a Monoposto Miata which claimed to be inspired by the Jag D type and Lotus Eleven! The windscreen had been chopped off and the passenger compartment fared in.

CUSTOM CARS

There were hundreds of custom cars… They came in 2 schools… 10 feet of ground clearance or slammed onto the deck. But, the most outrageous was a Cadillac Seville with TWO engines, 4 wheel drive and a combined 600 HP!! (a push me pull you). I didn’t get the point, but it was WEIRD!!!

1972 Lotus Europa Twin Cam #2553R. 51K miles (16K miles since complete restoration). Immaculate! Smog Exempt! Essentially stock with some nice upgrades. $10,500—let’s haggle. Call Stephan for the details @ (925) 229-5162 (h) or (510) 245-4523.

1995 Plymouth Neon American Club Racer (ACR). This is it! The ride that has dominated SSB & D-Stock since its introduction in ’94. Meticulously maintained Coupe with 150 hp twin cam; 50K miles; rev limiter; 15" X 7" TSW’s with new RE71’s, plus stock alloys, A/C; PIAA drivers; K&N, DMV paid thru June ’00; suspension properly set up at Roger Kraus Racing; factory service manuals; etc., etc. All Plymouth/Neon–identifying labels removed (only wears Lotus emblems). Very Black. Always garaged and/or covered. Call for more info (925) 229-5162 (h) or (510) 245-4523 (w). Asking $8,000.

CD Changer and Security System

81000 miles by original owner.

Lovingly maintained, all records available.

$16,500 Call Justin or Julia (650) 851-3565

The Chapman Report is published monthly by the Golden Gate Lotus Club, PO Box 117303, Burlingame, CA 94011. The GGLC is a non-profit incorporated car club and is not affiliated with Group Lotus, Team Lotus, or Lotus Cars USA. The GGLC's annual membership dues are $20.00.

Opinions expressed in the Chapman Report are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of the GGLC or its officers. Technical advise should be used at your own risk.

Submissions to the Chapman Report are accepted. Please E-mail them to motofab@wenet.net in Word Perfect or ASCII DOS text. Submissions may also be mailed to The Chapman Report at 3507 Edison Way, Menlo Park, CA 94025-1815.

1999 GGLC officers are: President: Scott Hogben, Vice President: Mike Schlict, Secretary: Bruce Weinberg, Treasurer: Laura Hamai, Event Coordinator: Victor Holtorf, Membership Chairman: David Anderson, Social Director: John Ridley.

Chapman Report Staff: Editors: John Zender/Daren Stone, Circulation Manager: Tom Carney, Advertising Manager: Mel Boss, .