Kitcat

Limitations as a DD: Driving a 7 is a process, ck weather report, unhook battery tender, pull off car cover, start (hopefully), strap in, add ear protection, possibly goggles, go, wave back to the hordes of people waiving at you, answer questions at every stop lite/sign/gas station, hope it isn't dark, raining, too cold, too hot, forget abt leaving anything in the locked trunk, there is no lock and no room in the trunk:). It's my favorite car of all time and I mite be tempted to try it as a DD if that were my only car choice, but I think trying to do something practical with such an impractical vehicle wld make me start to dislike the car.

As far as I am concerned, John's car is the new yardstick for se7en clone performance. Given the objective parameters by which car performance is typically measured, which he recounts, his car is king. Does it satisfy the "spirit" of the original seven? Let the debate begin. What is nice about the multiple approaches to "seven-ness" is that everyone has their own dream car. And the flexibility of the design allows some people (like me) to live the dream in a lightweight under-powered little car with exquisite handling. Others have cars like Johns, and in between there is everything imaginable. What John leaves out of the equation is driver skill. His car is perfect for him since he is a driver of obvious talent. But his car wld be a death trap for a putz like me as I lack the skill, talent and experience to try to pilot that rocket ship around a curve. Thus one person's perfect 7 is another's disaster. The fun seems to be in finding your match, and then driving the wheels off:)! Mike M

Tom: The difference between my car (which is no slouch) and this car, power-wise, was amazing. It was like being strapped to a rocket. The alleged handling problems of a solid rear axle car never materialized either, even tho northern Ohio is not noted for its smooth roads. I do believe this car wld compete with any most any other Caterham, except for the uber dogs of Croc/Karl and the various turbo cars out there. Mike M

I saw and drove this car Sunday. The pictures do not do it justice. It is extremely pretty in person. The yellow is darker, ditto the red steering wheel. All set off nicely by the black interior and new gauges. It is basically a new car: everything has been replaced, improved, or reconditioned. It is a rocket ship! Wow! Talk abt tall 1st gear. Craig said it wld pull 60 mph in 1st. I shifted at 50- mph. I wld guess low 4's in the 0-60. It is quieter than my X-flow. Tho a 4 speed sounds old school, my 1st is so short and 5th so tall that I have 3 useful gears, this car has 4. Someone shd buy this car now, so I am not further tempted!

Wear ear plugs AND ear muffs. I used foam plugs on the 700 mile blat that screwed up my hearing. Since adding ear muffs, no problemo. I was 60 on that trip and I think my (ahem) advanced age made my ears more vulnerable. My tinnitus (Pn:tin-uh-tis) is mild.

Mine has been 4 years so far(:. Happened on 1st long blat. Right ear only.

I get 6 1/2 inches from the center of the front of the frame to the floor, 6 3/4" from the center of the rear of the frame to the floor (on a floor that probably isn't totally level so I wldnt be surprised if the rear is actually 6 1/2"). Mike M.

Michael: I think your scale wld be of use to others but my Caterham has non-adjustable shock perches, so ride height, weight balance, etc., is fixed. I did have it weighed with me in it once, out of curiosity, and it was very close to perfect. Maybe Proj217 cld use them tho, his car's handling is totally screwed up. My car just got back from the shop and, per a brief blat, is running great again, so hopefully the rough running engine problem has been cured, well see. They replaced spark plugs, tuned and balanced carbs, reset timing, replaced alternator belt, adjusted the valves. The engine feels, sounds and runs better. And makes power differently. Now much more power up top, low end has been sacrificed a bit (no loss). Since the car is back, I will try to get/post ride ht #'s, front & back for proj217. Mike M.

M.D: Does my X-flow have a crank sensor?

In auto-X'ing around here, the courses are set up using small orange cones. Typically no damage is done if the car hits a cone (or "cones"). Your course was set up with stacks of tires. Had you "coned", your car mite have been smashed up.

Dunno, and the car's at the shop where they are chasing a mysterious misfire. Maybe someone else will chime in. Why not open a new thread on that issue. Someone will post.

Stunning!

It's good you never "coned"!

Steve: Looking good! I called Montrose a few days ago based on your advice. As you know, they hand build each one of these to exact spec. Takes abt 10 weeks. Not sure I can (or want to) wait that long. Not cheap, I think $10K was ballpark. I saw that they have a tire storage option. Doesn't look like you got that. It is a 7" deep 32 inch wide channel that runs the length of the trailer beneath the car rails. So the stowed tires are directly below the car when it's on the trailer. My tires are 22" x 8" so wld fit tho wld stick up an inch. Since my car has 3 1/2" ground clearance, it wld work fine. One of the things I have learned is that in addition to the safety of tandem wheels (2 per side) is the trailer then tracks/tows much easier/straighter. Apparently a single axle is much wobblier, wh/seems logical. I assume the odd shape is designed to reduce wind resistance and make towing easier. And it gives you amazing access to the car. How did you find it towed? Any thing you'd do differently, lessons learned, etc.? Were you tempted to buy another trailer and if so what? Mike

Martin: I appreciate the thot but, like Slomove (and our out going prez/sec), I am too slammed at work, to do much more than daily roaming of the forum and an occasional blat/extended blat. Nearly 100% of my posts here have been from work (since I am self employed I don't have to worry abt my boss:)), so as you can see, I am here a lot. That's why I thot Al's idea to vet people before putting their names up made so much sense. Without enthusiasm AND time, it will be tough to do justice to the club. Mike M.

Karl: Trailer size, mfg? I am actively looking. Thx, Mike

Wow!

Typically need a Snell approved helmet and Moto helmets are not. My State Farm car ins covers "drivers schools". It paid for auto-x damages.

Slngsht. Great! Consider yourself nominated for treasurer. I am off to the members page Croc/Yellow SS???? You guys wld be a perfect team: Prez/Sec.

Thx Al. Your link takes us to a section where we can nominate folks for Prez, Sec & Treas and but it suggests getting their ok in advance. So before I nominate anyone, here are my suggestions and hopefully they will let us know if they approve. If so I will "officially" nominate them in the member's section. Prez: Slingsht (East Coast) Sec: Slo-move (West Coast) Treas:?? Someone w/math skills want to throw their name in the ring? Croc? Obviously there are tons of excellent other candidates, (Yellow SS,. Martin, Solder Guy). Anyhow, hopefully folks I have suggested and those that others suggest, including self- nominees, will respond so they can be officially nominated and voted on. More than anything, it seems to me that the key will be the willingness of a nominee to serve.

Leave your ego at home, it is humbling. And watch video of hot laps there before going to help learn the track in advance. Have fun.

Proj217: The biggest advantage of an experienced se7en shop is they can take your car for a spin and tell you immediately whether the car's handling is spot-on or needs to be tweaked. And of course, they will not have to reinvent the wheel, they will know where to start. FWIW: I am running 1.4 degrees neg camber up front, 1.8 in the rear, 4.7 castor, .06 toe out front, .03 neg tow in rear. My car's handling is neutral, predictable, steering effort is heavy when parking, perfect at speed.

Proj217: Altho I am repeating myself (many times over ), how fresh is your rubber? I found my se7en initially extremely challenging to drive on the track, then went to fresh tires and suddenly it was the car I always heard about: drivable, predictable, catch-able, velcroed to the track and reading my mind. Just a thot. Mike M.

Ditto what Martin said. Anyone can spin, a good driver saves it, wh/you did. I cant tell what happened and I watched several times. I know I had many moments like that on my old worn-out tires. It was true knife edge driving, the slightest miscue resulted in the handling destabilizing . On better track tires I had a much wider margin of safety/comfort and the 'moments' pretty much ended.

It's a bird, it's a plane, no....