CV Drive Shaft Conversion.

The elantrikbits CVDS Will Make A Huge Difference To The Driving Experience Of Your Elan.

Over many decades, the conversion of the elan drive line from rubber Rotoflex (Donuts) to CV Drive shaft conversion has become a very popular and sensible upgrade. The CVDS system provides far greater reliability and a more satisfying and positive driving experience.

A CVDS conversion completely eliminates the annoying windup-unwind experienced on acceleration and de-acceleration which is caused by non other than the rubber donuts, you either love’em or hate’em, most elan owners grow to hate the rubber donuts.

We manufacture CVDS conversions for both the elan and plus two elan, both conversions are identical in design & looks but the plus two CVDS has longer intermediate shafts to cater for the wider wheel track.

Current rubber manufacturing processes also have a downside in that the compounds used to manufacture the rubber do not promote longevity, in fact, even brand new, straight out of the box donuts have been known to fail within a short time frame after fitment.

We have a great video on this page below that you can watch which will show just how bad rubber donuts can get, even relatively new set of donuts with less than 500miles driving time can disintegrate within a short time.

There would be very few elan owners today who can honestly say that they enjoy the job of replacing Rotoflex couplings, and in all reality, why would you even bother to continue with rotoflex when they simply continue to fail.

If you decide to convert your elan over to CVDS, the time you spend, (One weekend) could mean the last time that you’ll need to “get under” your elan to attend to the drive line, such is the supreme reliability that CV drive shafts provide…. not to mention the new driving exhilaration you will experience, yes, it is different, you’ll experience the slickest gear shifts ever, no more kangaroo hops, you’ll wonder why you never discovered this years ago.

Question:
Is the elantrikbits CV DS Conversion Difficult To Install?
No, not at all. Customer feedback has shown that it can take longer to remove the old rotoflex couplings and intermediate shafts than it will take to install a new set of elantrikbits (Croucher engineering) CVDS conversion.

In A Moment You’ll be able to watch the professional video which shows the complete process in detail.

We often receive customer comments such as:
The CV’s went in “Like Flynn” &  now the 2 other elan friends wish they had selected your CVDS instead of the “others”.

It seems that people really only “get it” until they see it “in the flesh” or make a direct comparison between the various products on offer.

So What Is Inside The CVDS Conversion Kit That Make It… Kind Of Work So Well?
For starters, high quality products, including a set of four European quality GKN Lobro CVs, but they are not your standard straight out of the box variety, we dismantle each CV to tweak them for smoother operation, bearing races are lightly polished.

We also wave the magic engineering wand over the CVs and carry out a mod which prevents the CVs on your CVDS conversion from ever locking up on full droop, no need for limiting cables, or shortened strut rods. (When installed to standard Lotus elan rear suspension)

Next time you compare CVDS products, take note if the product has been given the same attention to detail that the elantrikbits product has.

So How Does It Look When The CVDS Is Installed Into The Elan?
In two words – Very Neat!

The photo above was sent to us by one of our many UK customers, (Mike H) he was very pleased that everything fitted in perfectly and even at the extreme angle shown in the photo the CVs still rotated by hand without locking, at full droop the CVs will be notchy when rotated, and that’s normal, but in real life out on the road, full droop angles are rarely obtained, but beware, there are some products that will simply refuse to rotate at extreme angles.

On Board Lubrication Facility.
Note: Look closer at the photo above, each adapter plate has a captive grease nipple, this time saving feature enables simple injection via grease gun of the special CV joint extreme pressure grease at the required service intervals, there is no need to remove the CVDS to carry out the lubrication servicing. GKN CVs will provide many thousands of Kilometres or miles of service life, in fact they will more than likely outlast your elan.

The Half  Shaft Axles.
The axles are no less important than the CVs, these items are CNC machined from the highest quality alloy grade of steel to exact dimensions, the end splines are also CNC machined to accurate tolerances within + or – 0.001 to ensure correct fit to the internal spline of the CV inner drive cone.

Are All Cee Vee Joints Made Equal?
Unfortunately no. You see, we’ve checked them all out, and while it is possible to purchase what looks to be OEM after market CVs, the reality is that when it comes time to fit and install it is quite a different story, there is much truth in the old saying “You get what you pay for”.

The CVs we use are genuine GKN Lobro, yes, they are expensive, but they are engineered to do the job they are designed to do. GKN Lobro CVs are also said to be able to cope with engine power outputs in the region of 300HP, so you are not going to blow a CV with the power output from a twin cam lotus engine.

CVs are called constant velocity because they provide a constant rotational speed right up to their maximum operating angle.

Sadly, that is not the case with UJs which speed up and slow down during each revolution, the phenomena happens within milliseconds, but can induce strange vibrations and harmonics at certain speeds. Also, UJs are normally associated with sliding splines which can lock and unlock under power which produce unnerving handling characteristics.

There are several big advantages for conversion to CVDS.

The Adapter Plates.

The adapter plates begin their life when they are CNC laser profile cut (Batch cut) from a very large sheet of mild steel plate. The plates from one batch to another are uniform in dimension. The plates are then carefully edge linished, face and edge machined, recessed, index drilled, and auto tap threaded, the 7/16″ Dia HT threaded studs are manufactured to critical lengths. Finally all of the components are de-burred, cleaned and sent to the electroplaters to be coated with gold zinc passivate for protection against rust.

The Finished Product.

When the components have been received back from the electroplaters, the assembly can begin, all batched machined components are matched during manufacture, batches are re-matched before assembly, once the assembly is complete, the details are cross checked against the order sheet, the CVDS conversion are then ready to pack and ship to customers across the globe.

Installation instructions are either emailed or packed with the order, and we are here to answer your questions should you have any.

Air freight delivery time is usually about seven to twelve, the international shipping cost is included in the purchase price, the order process is simple, you place the order through our web site, we print your order receipt out, we will email you to let you know that your order has been received, then leave the rest to us. We will also keep you up to date on the progress of your order, we’ll notify you when your order is ready to be shipped, it is a smooth, seamless stress free process.

The CVDS conversion is ready to fit straight out of the package, there is no need for any reaming or fettling, cutting or grinding, unless there is an issue with the components the conversion is being fitted to, but ninety nine percent of customers find that the install process is a straight forward swap from removing the old, and installing the new.

Now for the video:
You Might Want To Brew A Coffee, Then Return Here To Watch Our Latest Video, Produced By Peter Boita, One Of Our UK Customers Who Is Also In The Business Of Producing High Quality Audio Visual Video Productions. The Entire Installation Was Carried Out And Filmed At Thompson Garages Limited, of London.

The video Out Lines The Complete Process Of Removing The Old, And Installing The New CVDS Conversion, Plus The On Road Test Results – If You Are Thinking About Upgrading To CVDS This Is A Must Watch. (Turn your speakers on.)

Video Produced, Shot And Edited By:
Peter Boita – Big Group AV – London UK.