Kitcat

All I can say is that when it comes to cars-and women-4 father is one lucky dude:)!

Thx Steve. I have had lots of people on my rear bumper (Sadly!), but no one has noticed a wheel lift. But I do spin the inside wheel a bit on "Dead Bear" curve at Putnam (motor rev's up). So I am putting some sky there under that wheel. Seems to help the car rotate and its only for a 1/2 second. IF I had more power it wld be more of an issue. I like the comfort the soft suspension provides and since 95% of my miles are street miles, I will probly keep it as is. I like your solution. I know I have the stock Caterham "street" suspension, so 150 lb springs is probably right. Mike M.

And into your lap, bouncing off your face, etc. And wait til you see what that little sand blaster does to your paint job!

I am really surprised at the amount of sway in my car.If you had asked me, I wld have said my car cornered totally flat. It was a memorable morning and loads of fun. Dean's 7 looks even prettier than I had remembered.

My low pressure problem turned out to be an inaccurate gauge: it reads 10-25 lbs low.

The photo makes me sick. I feel your pain. Curbs and auto-x are never a good combo. As others have said, TG you are ok (But the photo still makes me sick).

Google Sevens and Elans. Chris T has supplied most of the consumables for my X-flow. What he didnt have, Ben at Caterham USA did (Pn: Kate-rum, btw).

As usual, stunning photos MoPho! Half are easily "screen savers" And Skip, whilst folks were not IN the road the sure were lining it. And if you want to see evidence of just how far off the track a race/rally car can get, maybe MoPho will re-post the legendary footage of him running for his life when being chased down by an errant race vehicle:).

Yeah, good old DB6, he invites everyone to dinner, makes a number of great meals then, every so often, gets up and takes a crap in the middle of the table. The viciousness of his posts is really off the chart. I have seen a few of the banned ones and the degree of hatred is limitless.

I am shocked at the lack of crowd control. Hundreds of people right on the edge of the road-just seems like a matter of time before there is a tragedy and the whole thing gets canceled. But, yeah, he does an incredible job of threading his way thru the human pointer cones to the top.

We also have a top, "doors" and even "windshield washers/wipers", and a heater, unlike the X-bow and Ariel. I have to admit the differences are pretty small, tho, since I try to avoid the rain/cold in my car and most of my gear goes into the passenger space, wh/the comparo cars have also. Similarity includes that the "thinly disguised race car" description is apt for all.

Tom: Your car may be fairly competitive w/Mike and Karl's cars if the 197 hp was at the rear wheels. Your car weighs 150lbs+ less and really is a track spec car. Plus "old age and treachery" etc. Of course, the short right foot cld be an issue:).

Tom: Did you buy your se7en before, during or after the trip? How does your car compare to the ones you rode in? The variety of Caterhams produced over the years is somewhat mind-boggling, it would be hard for a car-mag to sample them all.

In Car and Driver's "Lightening Lap" issue at VIR the Ariel Atom did a 2:57.6 and the X-bow a 2:52.3. As a point of reference, the Nissan GTR did a 2:55.6, and a BMW M3 ran a 3:05.4. I suspect the current Ariel wld be a bit faster given its ongoing development. I don't think either car qualifies as a se7en since you'd be hard pressed to pack your luggage in one and take a 5 day road trip, as I have done. It wld be interesting to see how one of the high-end Caterhams compared on the Lightening Lap.Maybe someone can volunteer their car for this year's test:).

Brunny1. So you have contempt for Al for rarely participating here, and also for those of us who do ("the same old handful who keep up the incestuous banter")? I find your post and its hostility ("frats that smoke each others dick") to the folks who built and sustain the club and this site to be pointless: No one makes you visit here. Why not start your own se7ens club, do it the way you believe it should be? Your negative attitude and general nastiness are out of place here. Mike Mooney

Thx for the update Al. I gotta say, based on what I have read here from Bessie, it's more likely that she will be changing your moniker:)!

Michael: How much extra weight, counting bolts and everything? When will you add a serious driver's seat? It will help, even in the tight fitting Caterham cockpit. Mike M.

Just finished looking at an internet slide show of the damage. Truly unbelievable devastation. I had no idea it had been so incredibly destructive. I am sure the aftershocks are terrifying. It will definitely be years of recovery. Words fail me. Hang in there!

Bessie: You have definitely got the upstarts beat on "attitude". $$$ just can't buy your kind of swagger!

I somehow hadn't seen it. I am with you Tom, Wow!. If anyone ever asks what its like to own/drive a se7en, I am going to show them this video:). It definitely captures the visceral experience & crowd reaction.

Ditto what the others say. The thing that is hard to convey abt a se7en is just how different it is than anything else you have ever driven. Both good and bad. It is exhilarating , yet can be extremely hot/loud, etc. For me the high of a 15' drive to work lasts all day and vastly offsets any inconveniences occasioned by the car's lack of practicality. And you better like people, because EVERYONE one will want to talk about it. I agree a ride is in order. I was shocked during my first test drive how unlike anything I had ever ridden in it was. It took me a few weeks to process the experience (neighboring cars' hub caps being at eye level, deafening noise, people hanging out of car windows snapping cell-phone photos, instantaneous acceleration/braking/turn-in-it was total sensory overload). Mike M.

Maybe it's like the T-shirt says, its not the destination but the journey that's important? And your journey has been impressive. FWIW, of all the cars, tame and wild, that I have owned in my 64 years, if I could only have one from this point on, I would chose my '05 Honda Accord, 4 cyl, auto, 4 door. It got 33 mpg at 70 mph, was quiet, comfortable for 5 adults, was totally reliable, and had excellent handling. When I took it to the track it was consistently faster than, say, the Miata's there. Mike M.

John: Performance Alignment in Blue Ash has scales and can also align the car with you in it, corner weight it, etc. All the Cincy racers get their cars done there. They are 20' from you. Mike M.

The "rule" for tweaking handling is just make one change at a time. Hopefully that will let you isolate the result. My wild guess is that the wide track alone will resolve things. It wld be interesting to put Karl's wheels on before changing anything else to see effect. Of course if car is torn apart, house surrounded by snow etc, that may not be feasible.

I didn't realize it had been driven. Never mind:). You can fix under-steer by playing w/air pressure sometimes, or adding more anti-roll bar in the back, wh/makes the front stick better. Or by adjusting rake it seems. Let us know if the tweaks help and if you like the (hopefully) more neutral handling.