Kitcat

He seems to be motivated, in part, by that fact that newer Se7ens are hard-to impossible to register in NJ. Hence my comment (nicer car, less $, easily registered). Just a thot. Mike

Call Ben at Caterham USA, or Chris at Sevens and Elans.

There are newer cars than the Lotus Seven S1 or S2 that can be registered in NJ. Mine was, for instance. Many improvements over the originals too. Make me an offer I cant refuse:). Mike

I am with you Gert, tho I do recognize that it is controversial. For instance, Sarah P has equated global warming with gravity. And many of this site's good people see it differently, per previous posts on this topic. Somehow, what should be a matter of science has been transformed into a political and cultural dispute. Maybe that makes the problem easier to understand? I do hope we are wrong and they can all someday say "we told you so." At this point, unfortunately,that doesn't seem likely to me. Mike

WoW!!! It will be a beast on the track. Looks like you have really put a lot of thot (and buckets of $ and time) into making it your dream Se7en. Now I am getting antsy for it to be done and it's not even my car:). Mike

For some reason, I have always liked the looks of the Pacer. A lot. What can I say? The Aztec tho is a serious contender. I noticed that GM just promoted the man responsible for it at GM, Mark Reuss. If this is an example of the bold new thinking that GM is allegedly embracing it makes me nervous. His dad ran GM too. So much for a clean break w/the past.

It has the "Ugliest car of the '80's" award all sewn up. Can it get the coveted "ugliest car of all time" award? It's got my vote!

Your Se7en just keeps getting prettier! Mike

The peanut gallery is officially closed. And kudos to all you folks who perform countless hours of (thankless) volunteer work to make good things happen for others! Mike

I had the full screen on, wh/really doesn't weigh all that much, its the areo drag that hurts. I had the standard roll-over bar on it then, not the FIA bar that I am running now (wh/weighs abt 20 lbs more than the stock bar). I always have my spare tire with me, I just took it off for the weigh in. I have an oil cooler and the car has been fully painted twice. My impression is that each coat of paint weighs about 5-10 lbs. My X-flow engine is supposed to be abt 30 lbs less than yours, so I am not sure why it was a few pounds heavier than your car. I have a small battery that weighs abt 15 lbs. I was very happy with the 1225 weight, tho. Mike

I am sure the date was much discussed and we peanut gallery members (Alaskossie knows what I am referring to) shd probably pipe down, but... PA in mid-Oct can be cold/wet/snowy/miserable and it catches the end if hurricane season perfectly. Of course, it can be mild and sunny too, but the odds of weather misery go up in Oct.

Spare is 30 lbs approx. 9 gallons of gas 63 lbs approx Top/doors/jack etc., abt10 lbs total; So net just under 1200 lbs. My X-Flow, identical car otherwise, netted out at 1225. Mike

Based on the gouges in the roadway, he's not the first to get "big air" there. Edit:never mind, I see that point was made in the story accompanying the photo (Duh).

Top of his doors? Or Bottom? If top, what was the engine doing for O-2?

Looks extremely well thought-out/executed. Target weight for the completed vehicle? The anti-roll bar seems humongous. Is it needed? I think many of our Se7ens, mine included, are bar-less. Keep us posted! Mike

I really wonder if it would be possible to climb it on foot-it's that steep.

Add ski pants?

Congratulations-from one Se7en nut to another:Let the upgrade-itis begin! Won't be much opportunity to drive in Canada before Spring anyhow so the wait should be tolerable. Mike

I added the Brooklands set up because someone on the seven's list guesstimated it was like adding 20 hp. Who knows, but I was immediately hooked:)!-it wld cost quite a bit to add that much hp to my engine. As noted, the car is definitely faster but 20 hp???? It takes 10-15' to swap the regular windshield back in (2 bolts per side, behind a panel held in place with 8 screws). Speed it up and just leave the small panels off. Mike.

Mike-sorry, I have no times. I typically don't time myself and only get a number if someone else times me. I was pulling 100 mph at the fastest part of the track w/full windshield, 106 mph w/Brooklands, if that helps. I seemed to get up to speed faster. Ran almost everwhere in 4th, before I was in 3rd, spinning the engine much faster. I was using 4th because I was getting wheelspin out of 3rd (non-LSD car) in many spots and the car seemed just as fast at lower RPM's in 4th. Before there was wheelspin in just one spot. All of this was at Putnam Park race track in Indiana. A1.8 mile fairly tight course. I didn't notice any wind jostling. I had the passenger screen down, was wearing a full face helmet, belted in real tight w/5 pt harness, Hans and arm restraints, carbon fiber Tilton race seat:all kept me pretty pinned down. I am 5'9' so sit pretty low in the windstream Mike M

Robert: In mildly powered cars like ours, I think the Brooklands makes a big difference in performance. My car is much livelier above 40 mph. I am able to drive a gear higher around town. I was faster at the track and wasn't left for dead on the straights. An added bonus is it dissipates the dreaded cockpit heat much better. And as you point out, it looks cool. I always wear goggles but haven't been hit in the face by road crud after 2-3K miles of this set-up. The other Mike

It was 23 Saturday when I drove to work. All that unwanted engine heat pouring into the cockpit in the summer seems to disappear in the winter. Someone needs to figure out how to reverse that:)! The heater really helps keep my legs and lower half warm. A sweater, heavy leather jacket and gloves was all I needed up top. I had the full windshield and side screens in place. My only problem was my new carbon fiber race seat stayed ice cold so my butt froze. Next time, a pad goes on the seat. The car is in storage now. I don't fear the cold but the road salt is definitely not good for these aluminum/steel cars. Mike

Once you have the cowl piece made, think about putting something between it and the cowl to cushion it where it touches the cowl. My Caterham Brooklands piece rubbed all the paint off the cowl where it actually touched (about 6" in the middle of the cowl). Didn't notice it until I remounted the regular wind shield last week. Mike

The Westfield's license says:"Queensland-Sunshine State" LOL, don't tell Florida! I wonder who used the slogan first? Nice diffuser BTW, never saw one on a Se7en before.

Unbelievable how fast things can change! Condolences to you and your family. What a huge shock. I truly hope your mom's recovery continues to proceed. My son was in a wreck this summer when his 19 year old friend over corrected and flipped the van they were in. The friend died next to him, his other friend was ejected and suffered a massive brain injury. My son was thankfully unscratched, but is dealing with the emotional fall out of such a traumatic event. Even tho it was 6 months ago, we are all just coming out of the shock now. Mike