Kitcat

I have new respect for the Ultralite! Maybe the Caterham R500 was slightly faster overall, maybe not. The cars seemed pretty equal to me, esp on the part of the last lap when there was no traffic. Both you and the Caterham driver seemed to know the track and drove great lines, but I wld give you the edge there (climb the curbs, baby). Very different than the tracks we drive on in the midwest, ours have much more elevation, greenery and trees (to hit). Mike

On behalf of Bster13, I will ask about cockpit temps. Those of us w/Caterhams find that surviving that problem is one of the challenges w/long trips, esp in the summer. Doesn't help that the exhaust exits on driver's side.

Have had a coupla bad rain moments in the Se7en, even ran out of gas in the rain. Now I pick my drives and if lots of rain is likely, I take a different car. But cloud bursts, short showers are no problem. The top leaks a little where it meets the windshield, and the inside of the windshield tends to get foggy. A small towel is handy for defogging and mopping up on the fly. On a hot day, totally sealed in from the rain, it really sucks.

255's in the rear? I thot they looked huge in the photos! I swapped my stock Caterham driver's seat for a Tillet, like yours. It is wonderful at the track but not remotely as comfortable as the stock seat on extended drives. You will want to experiment with a bit of foam here and there before starting your long drive. A Lumbar pillow helps too (on both the stock and Tillet seats). In ck'g I realize I have owned my Cat 3+, not 2+ years, time flys.... Mike

Whatta car! Lovely! Congratulations! It is certainly a high-end, high-content Caterham. Will the reality of ownership match the (nearly 50 years) of anticipation? Time will tell. Your trip will be an amazing test of car and driver. I can say that every time I get in mine (after 2+ years of ownership and nearly 50 years of anticipation also), I am amazed by the car and the experience. Mike

Ahhh, the oil lines.... Well, I just finished the oil change and pulled off the oil cooler and drained it and refilled it-I wld estimate it holds abt 2-3 oz's. Never thot abt the oil lines tho. Since I change my oil every 1-2K none of it ever gets too dirty. Mike

Thx Bart (I shudda asked 12K miles ago:)). If Martin hadn't mentioned in passing on his gas-filed engine post it never wld have occurred to me. Mike

Does the Caterham oil cooler need to separately drained when doing an oil change? Or, does the oil cooler drain using the standard technique? My understanding is the Crossflow has a 4 quart oil capacity, but I never seem to be able to get more than 3 quarts in when changing the oil & filter. Mike

There is a stunning looking Vintage 550 Spyder listed for sale at Lotustalk.com, under "Cars for sale-Not Lotus". Claimed to be 1300 lbs, 190 hp at the wheels, fully sorted, etc., $28.5K. Mite be best not to look, it is so beautiful:)!

My #'s are identical to Dingo's. I mite see 40 lbs at high RPM's (6.5K redline). I am similarly skeptical of the oil pressure gauge's accuracy Mike

Skip: Thanks, that helps, I will give it a shot this weekend. Mike

Jon, et al: Any chance you have some photos/diagrams that you could post detailing the critical bolts, column locks, bushings, shafts, sleeves, for steering wheel/column disassembly? I have a non-working horn and am advised that repair can be effected only if the steering wheel & hub are removed along w/possibly the upper shaft. Thx, Mike

Har, har har, them librals had it comin!

Do a search here for "wink" for some threads about a mirror many of us use and like on our Se7ens.

Also had the identical problem in the identical area last year on my '97 Caterham, built in '98. I assumed this was atypical but it sounds like a common issue at this point. I ordered Caterham spec rivets from Sevens and Elans tho used hardware store rivets short term as I wanted to be on the road quickly. Mike

Bruce: I am from Meadville, a small town in western PA. When I was a kid (late 40's-early 60's) this town of about 14K people was booming. Now it's a shell. What happened? First, the two largest factories shut down taking 6000 jobs and all the related secondary jobs. Good for Mexico/China, bad for PA. Second, strip malls opened just out side of town with big box stores (Walmart, etc) selling things (from China) for a fraction of what the once thriving concentration of mom and pop stores in the town charged. So the business heart of the town was gutted and the tax base migrated to just out side the city limits. Now they cant operate the traffic lights (stop signs are replacing them) or fix their bridges, etc., etc. It's pretty grim there with a future that is murky at best. Mike

Consider offering it to Ivey Engines in Portland. They build/rebuild/tune Formula Ford engines that start life as exactly what you have for sale. They have complained that there is a diminishing supply of basic engines to use for Formula Ford. Mike

Excellent info, thx! (Chance favors the prepared:)). Mike

Sold for asking price to a lucky buyer in California, per Chris T.

Yeah, and with surfers in the water in the background. Way to rub it in. It was 5 degrees here yesterday, 16 today. Hey, I went skiing a few days ago, that was fun: just like driving a Se7en, except slower and quieter. Mike

Sweet! Where is the chassis, engine, etc.? I was under the impression that it was built and ready to roll???? And what more reg steps? Mike

Finally saw the new Panamerica. Its somewhat ungainly shape didn't improve with an in-person viewing. And man, it seems huge! Its 196 inches long, 76 wide and 4000+ lbs. The sheer bulk, more than the somewhat odd shape, was the biggest surprise. I am predicting it will be an epic flop and that deep discounts will be needed to move the cars and that the resale value will be terrible. Hopefully I am wrong as I am a big Porsche admirer. Mike

Drive more, and farther and spend less on "upgrades". (Two out of three wouldn't be bad:)). Mike

Do Caterhams have VIN #'s? I know mine has a # but I don't think it is strictly a VIN#, not as many digits or something??? Anyhow, congrats on being so close. And you may actually be able to drive it, unlike the rest of us snowed-in, salted-in residents of the northern climes. Chris T built my car and did an excellent job. He has also been a very helpful resource, tho I know not everyone has had happy experiences w/his shop. Mike

Impressive. Any big hills along the way? Did the tail try to wag the dog?