All Activity

https://route7.austindavid.com/ is open and free to use. Cost-modeling says "always free" but usage will help tell if we approach any API usage above the free tier.

Our little group will be heading up to Canaan on Friday afternoon for Saturday's HPDE on 5/30. Our friend Tom will have his VanDieman sports racer there and should be very quick as he continues to get it sorted. Canaan is a great little track to learn on and is always fun in a Seven. Ride-alongs will be available, hope to see some other Sevens there!

In some good company at Rocky Mountain Caterham, Josh took the pics and I'll have it back next Tuesday. New tracsport dif, removed the overly firm Nitrons for the original adjustable Bilstein's and had the height set to 'fast road'.... front track adjusted etc. A few other things done.... strangely we found (he found) that I had 8 in wheels all around (no wonder the fronts were hard to fettle under the fenders)...so I sourced new wheels all around of the proper size.

@Vovchandr you drove there? Hey hey!!! Get the miles on that thing.

Night meet

Nose badges on steering wheels is not new. The Original owner of my car wanted anything that said Caterham replaced with Lotus. He said as much in a detailed letter to the shop in Delaware that was building the car instructing them to use the Lotus nose badge he mailed them. I believe this was because the car was licensed as a Lotus back in 1993. I returned the car’s badging to being 99% Caterham. I ordered an HPC nose badge to replace the Lotus badge on the steering wheel. The only thing left that says Lotus is the small shifter knob emblem. I like that big chrome ball. Plus, I like to tell the story of how the Caterham 7 logo came to be and point to the shifter emblem so people can see the connection.

Really interesting video on Keith Tanner's Locost build.

Sounds good. A fabricator who will work with 3D objects like this is a rare find.

The little changes add up. Been most of a year now since this little beast came to our garage. In this picture changed the steering wheel, harness, all mirrors, 12V adapter, fuel gauge mod, striping, phone holder, half hood. But today added this emblem to the steering wheel. An Ebay nosecone emblem, probably a knock off. The 7 is flat while the one on the nose is 3D. Still looks good, ain’t no Bentley. Flat black paint on the MOMO and it’s an improvement. Now to figure how to sew a red stitch like in the Honda Si in the background 🤔

Yesterday a friend said that a friend of his is a metal fabricator, has a CNC machine etc, and can probably come over and make mounts when my engine arrives. I have a new set of Birkin mounts to fit a Zetec engine so I have a start at the frame side. I'll level the car up on jack stands, mount the exhaust manifold and level the engine, that should give us a start.

Yeah it’s weird. She said something about some policies being grandfathered in. Could be because the car is a “kit car” spncs not a “Caterham” idk maybe they think I’m a factory five guy so they up charge an old xflow. I just had a call with JB Taylor broker (ACC) who quoted $260 for a year in CA. So I have no idea what’s going on. Agreed value 35k, good+ condition car they don’t care if it was a kit car and the rep knew what a Caterham was. We’ll see how it pans out I guess. They will need to write a new policy in CO though after I slog through the DMV…. Again. I’m up in eastbay so don’t make it down to peninsula a lot. Cars and coffee for me is my toddler and the local coffee shop down the street. She loves the “race car” ride.

The lowered floors are a big plus for some folks. Definite minus (pun intended) for a man of my Chapmanesque stature

I'll start small and if you want more just ask. Supplies: The (2) M10 x 60mm w/ washer and nuts from your rollover bar The (2) M10 x 20mm caphead bolts from your rollover bar Two (4) M10 x 16mm bolts. I sourced mine from McMaster https://www.mcmaster.com/nav/enter.asp?partnum=98093A610 5/32 x 47 rivets to replace however many you choose to remove from the interior door panel Waxoyl if you are that kind of guy Tape and towels to protect bodywork Black silicone sealant if conturing the sill protectors rather than replacing -or- Catherham's shortened sill protectors for cars outfitted with a cage Tools: See the picture of most of what was involved Rivet gun Assorted socket and box wrenches You might need a ratchet strap to aid in the fit into the rear mounting brackets Something like an engine crane to hold the cage while working (picture) Steps: Put the rear of the car on stands and remove the rear wheels and shocks Remove the rollover bar Remove the sill protectors if replacing with the shortened versions, or loose-fit the cage to mark where to cut the sill protectors I'm assuming you have carbon fiber sill protectors If removing be aware that in addition to the rivets there is a very tough rubber adhesive to overcome There is a very real possibility of breaking the sill protector during the process I had my best success using a box cutter and patiently scoring rather than sawing or grinding (pictures) Gently pry back the door panel to locate the interior chassis boss and locate its position on the panel I estimated the position and used a punch to check alignment, adjusting as needed before making my final punch to drill Drill the door panel, enlarging the hole using step bits, and then debur Run a punch through the hole in the door panel and the interior and exterior chassis bosses to mark where to drill the skin Drill the skin as you did the door panel Install the cage Leave all bolts loose until all are installed, then torque to spec Fit is determined by your chassis and cage so I can't tell you in advance what you might need to do I would fit the two bolts that go up and into the verticals of the cage first, but leave loose The left (driver side) rear chassis bracket needed to have both holes elongated, and even then it took creative work with a ratchet strap to make fit Only one of the four front bolts aligned without modification - the other three bracket holes needed further elongation Be aware that the above steps make it sound like it was a measure twice and cut once operation, whereas in reality placed and lifted the cage dozens of times while aligning If you cut the sill protector in situ then a little black silicone sealant provides a nice optional finish (picture) Note that clearance between the windscreen is minimal, likely contacting in some places I've run foam tape across the top of the windscreen but only time will tell if this is a good solution My plan (hope) is to attach the rearview mirror to the cage to minimize vibration and to allow for easier swaps between the windscreen and aeroscreen, but that clearance is an issue Reinstall the shocks and wheels

I finally got around to reading @chrisp993's blog. It's well worth checking out if you haven't already done so. It's brought back a little trauma from my build, but other than that, I've really enjoyed it.

I would appreciate more information on what was required for the swap as I intend to do the same eventually.

That's weird. I just got my Hagerty renewal invoice, it's for $467 (includes $70 for the Driver's Club), about the same as the last few years. My car and location seem similar to you: 1990 Caterham Super Sprint, and I'm also in the Bay Area (Menlo Park). Maybe we have wildly different coverage, but seems odd. PS, I often have my Seven at the Cars and Coffee in downtown Menlo Park first Sunday of every Month (outside of Coffee Bar).

My God, those bumpers.... that 5mph deal really screwed up some cars... I've had AH's/a TR3/XKE but really got tired of the constant fettling...hence the later Caterham. Have fun...1500 right.

In the “Photo of Your Car You Took Today” thread I mentioned the wife won a sealed bid auction for a 1981 Triumph Spitfire 1500. A local LBC (Little British Car) club known as the Boot ‘n Bonnet Car Club inherited the one owner, low mileage 1981 (build date was June, 1980 but VIN model year is “B” for 1981) Spitfire as seen here: Spitfire Auction n.pdf . She beat out the next nearest bidder by $19.80 because she used the cars build date of June 1980 in her bid. It had been sitting for over three years before the club took possession. Because of this it has some issues. The club member who was storing the car said the automatic choke was stuck on and would cause the engine foul the plugs and stall. It would require removal and cleaning of the plugs before it run again and of course he’d have to repeat this after so many engine starts. When we first went to see the car we noticed the rear end was damp as were several other areas. We knew it would need some things done like replacing dried gaskets and seals and rubber items like wiper blades and tires. The wife had a devil of a time getting her insurance company to honour their quote. Three phone calls and over three hours and they still won’t sign off on what they had quoted. Five minutes on the phone to a Hagerty rep and her new car was on our policy with all the same items including Road Side Assistance. She also had a fight at several Service Ontario Centers trying to get the ownership transferred. They all required a new appraisal. They would not accept either of the two that came with the car. Finally she called a friend in the business. Was able to do a quick appraisal using the Governments 1 page form. He did note all the items that would have to be repaired or replaced in order for it to pass safety. We went back to a Service Ontario Center and they accepted the paperwork without questions. So Linda finally got the ownership transferred into her name as an unfit vehicle and a temporary plate good for 10 days to allow us to drive the car home and to the shop that would do the safety check. With everything now done we arranged to pick up the car. The day came and we went over everything with the cars recent custodian. We decided to drive the car home from where it was being stored because I wanted to give it a good shake down. The plan was for me to drive it part way home and stop to fill up with fuel. I would go over everything I had learned with Linda and then let her drive it the rest of the way. I pulled out of the driveway which was on a step hill and put my foot to the floor. Clouds of grey black smoke billowed out of the exhaust pipe and I could not get it above 30 kph it was running so rich. After a couple of kilometers it started to clear itself and before I knew it I was doing 80 kph in top gear. It seemed to be running fine. I made it to the first stop sign and turned south onto the main road and the little Spit hummed along rather nicely as the engine temperature had started to rise. However, it died after only 6 kilometers. We phoned the chap we had just left and he came with some tools I did not have. He snapped in a spark check viewer and there was plenty of spark. Next we pulled the plugs expecting to find them fouled yet they were clean but DRY. They should have been wet from all the cranking so the verdict was fuel starvation. Lucky for us a call to Hagerty and a flatbed was there within the hour. It was delivered to the shop that is doing the safety. They will be going over the car and get it running as well. I expect there will be a list of items that we will have to address. It has been sitting at the shop for week now as they were backed up. Tomorrow it is supposed to be first in. Being Friday I don’t expect to see the car until sometime next week. Little British Cars, they always need something, right? I’ve attached some photos we took on our first visit to see the car. These are not in the ad I linked above.

First attempt is Triumph because the Ital is a wider Standard 10, lots of parts compatibility and the best chance of the part interchange. If a Spit back plate and hub dont go straigt on without backspace issues, it's not worth making major alterations. OEM still works. I just think Spit drums will be lighter, better balanced and more proportional to the 7. As a bonus, there are Spit finned alloy drums available.

Hagerty just increased my premium from $555 to $1200 annual after one year today. I’m shopping around now. The sales rep on the phone said “kit cars” in California have been “reclassified” as the justification because they are more popular now, whatever that means. I’m relocating to Colorado soon and the quote there was $900. will try Grundy I guess. Quite annoying as I couldn’t even get through the quote process with them last time since the system was down. How does one find a broker? Worth it?

How about Sprite/Midget brakes? They're in that size range. note--drums would need re-drilling

The plate USA 7S is registered to a Grey 2014 Mini Paceman Cooper 4x4 which the last MOT showed having 76,862 miles. No personal info available. Sound like a car owned by anyone here?

Bumping this, and a new question. I am asking if Marina/Ital 8" rear drums can be changed over to Spitfire 7" drums? Doing this offers a few benefits: Spitfire parts are easier to source. Front ans rear brakes are copesetic with a common vehicle. The brakes are smaller and lighter for a lighter car.

It would be cool if it was someone on here, but it could be a Rugby plate too.

Good morning All, Currently in the U.K. on holiday. We were in the Bedford area heading to the train station when I saw a car, not a 7, parked in a drive way with the registration number “USA 7S”. Wasn’t fast enough to get a picture, but wonder if it belongs to someone on here?