Fantastic analysis . . . very well-crafted message, one of our all-time classics. the watches and cars have so much in common, from their original days to the questions we face in enjoying them to this day.

love the Lotus, as well. I would say that you have made the right choices, all along the way. of course, the crucial question is whether you are happy with the watches and the cars, and the answer to this seems obvious!!

thanks for posting this.

Jeff

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: Jeff, that is a very interesting question.

: I have a 40+ year old Lotus Elan S4. It is from 1968, the same
: vintage as several of my watches.

: When it was new, it was one of the most advanced sportscars, with
: double wishbones and disk brakes all around, electric windows,
: advanced quadcarb twincam engine and a weight/horsepower ratio
: way ahead of its time. (READ: One of the most advanced
: watched being the first automatic chronographs, modern case
: design, high-tech Corfam strap and connection to
: motorsport)

: The chassis was rotten so I fitted a new one with extra rust
: protection. (READ: Has the case refurbished with wonderful
: new sunburst grinding)

: The paint was faded and there were cracks in the fibreglass, so I
: spend a winter repairing the fibreglass and had the body
: repainted. (READ: Paint on the dial was peeling so I send
: it to Richard Bethge in Germany and had it refurbished)

: The fabulous Lotus 1,5 liter TwinCam engine didn’t produce the
: 115 bhp that it did when it left the factory, so I took it apart
: to rebuild it. (READ: The innovative calibre 11 movement
: didn’t run smoothly and the chrono wasn’t resetting to zero,
: so it was taken apart and reoiled)

: When the engine was taken apart I used the opportunity to have it
: bored and stroked to 1,72 liter and the cylinder head had a
: “fastroad” cam job by QED Engine Development, giving it 150+
: bhp (READ: The calibre 11 movement was improved to
: overcome weaknesses, thereby becoming a calibre 11 I)

: The old, stiff and very narrow diagonal tyres were replaced with
: modern wider radial tyres improving cornering speed and breaking
: a lot. (READ: The old Corfam strap was falling apart and
: the original sun buckle had vanished, so the strap was replaced
: with modern leather and a reproduction buckle was sourced from
: eBay)

: Emblems, chrome, gear knob and other fittings had faded and was
: replaced with new parts from the numerous British garage
: workshops. (READ: Found a new NOS bezel and had it fitted
: together with a new Heuer crown and pushers)

: Nowadays most people that I meet driving the Lotus, think it is a
: wonderful car with lots of history. They have stories about
: uncles or neighbours having a Lotus and they are impressed that
: an old car will do 0-100 km/h in less than 6 sek. But in the
: Lotus Klub Denmark there are a few nerdy purists that have no
: respect for my car, because it is so modified and
: “improved”. They prefer faded paint, narrow tires and thin
: chrome. (READ: They prefer unreliable unmodified calibre
: 11, yellowish faded lume, unpolished case and cracking Corfam
: straps)

: So where do I stand in the “relume” debate?
: - When it comes to my Lotus, making it able to take part in the
: modern traffic and beating Golf GTI’s, I am in favour of
: “reluming”.
: - For those of my watches that has survived untouched till today, I
: am a nerdy purist.
: - For a lot of my not so perfect vintage Heuers, I have no problem
: improving them, including a relume if that is needed.

: Not a very clear answer!

: Peter, Denmark
: www.watchsite.dk

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