Kitcat

My RA1'a are great, in the dry. They have 6-7 track days and abt 4K miles on them so the tread is abt 1/2 gone. They were fine in the rain when new. Now I hydroplane over 50 mph. But as the tread fades, their dry traction increases. Since I mostly drive in dry weather it's not a problem. In the wet, I pull over, or drive on low speed back roads. Mike

A Caterham Seven w/185 hp and racing seats is a pretty fair track weapon. It needs an FIA roll-over bar, maybe some honeycomb on the fuel tank & and cut-off switch. I added all that to my car and, with an underpowered Crossflow, it does respectably at the track (holds its own against most cars , does not dominate). Mike

I use the top on my Caterham a lot: rain is no stranger to the Midwest. The first time I put it up it took 45'. Now it's under 5'. I also use it to extend the driving season into the colder months. With practice, you will develop a technique for getting in/out smoothly (Although not gracefully). Mike

I plan on doing the track day. Should be a lot of fun. Mike

No way Cincy compares to Houston but 48 hours after the remnants of Ike passed thru, we still have 600,000 homes w/o power and we are being told it will be Sunday before all is restored. It is the largest and longest power outage ever in these parts. 5 people died here because of it, trees are down everywhere, cars crushed, roofs off, signs down, all schools closed, ditto many businesses, etc. Again nothing compared to what Ike did on the Texas coast, but at least noteworthy

Yes, I was surprised tho not shocked. The dyno "grand prix" can be misleading. Maybe it was the dyno. Maybe Caterham exaggerates the power of its engines (No!). Maybe a little of both? What was useful was it allowed a safer tune to be used (I was running dangerously lean). The bottom line is the engine runs strong and sounds fabulous. And combined with the weight and handling, provides a very balanced package that is tons of fun to drive on the street and the track.

I think the weight savings between rotating and non-rotating mass is the square of the amount saved. For instance-save 4 lbs by going to a lighter battery = 4 lbs. But save 4 lbs by going to a lighter wheel = 16 lbs. If the new wheel is 10 lbs lighter = 100 lbs. Multiply that by 4 wheels and you have done something.

Nor does a AAA card help when you break down where there is no cell phone coverage, as I found out.

Ian7: My "135" hp Crossflow (wh/measured 93 hp at the rear wheels on a chassis dyno) tops out at 108 mph, per my GPS. I run full windscreen and clams. Since it felt like 208 mph, I can not imagine what the 176 mph, etc., vehicles described above must be like. I do know that at a recent track day at Nelson's Ledges, my car wasn't all that much slower than a Caterham 260 that was running there, proving that top-speed isn't everything. Also, I was running faster laps than my friend in his BWW, tho he was hitting 125 mph at the fastest part of the track, where I was at 95 mph. Mike

Its a Lotus Super Seven. If they look interested, I explain how Caterham bought that part of Lotus 36 years ago etc. It is NOT a kit car. It comes fully assembled in England. To get it into this country it has to come in pieces which are then assembled. and, It gets 25 mpg, goes 110 mph and costs abt $45K new.

Don't know abt Birkins but I could not find a replacement starter for my Crossflow mounted in my 5 sp Caterham. Dave Bean's didn't work. Went to the parts store and tried everything-some teeth didn't match, some teeth matched but the body was too big to fit in the small space, or the shaft was too short, etc., etc. Finally had the starter rebuilt, then the solenoid rebuilt and then replaced. Finally discovered the problem was a bad connector. Every time we'd fiddle with the system the connection would get jostled into position and we'd conclude our "solution" worked. Then a week later the car wouldn't start.

FYI: JohnK is building (re-engineering?) a WCM kit and I suspect many of his comments reflect issues he has faced in the course of that multi-year project.

Sounds a lot like my Irish luck with my Caterham:). I too have a new steering rack waiting to be installed, etc. Seems like the only thing I haven't replaced/upgraded in the last year is the frame and the engine. Chris at 7's and Elans tells me the engine will need a rebuild at 25K( 22.5K on the odometer at the moment). Who knew steering racks even wore out? Anyhow, there is always another track day, right around the corner. My car has been amazing sine the various repairs/improvements have been made. I am faster and safer at the track days and, while I hesitate to use the word "reliable", it has been bullet proof this year (I know I will pay now for saying that).

Hallett??? It would seem to be an ideal 7 track as it appears to favor handling over horsepower. It's about 3 hours northwest of Branson (In a Seven).

Typically, they will ask if you want it air freighted or if putting it in the "container" is OK. I assume the container arrives by ship. I have several parts in the container as I type, including a carbon fiber racing seat that I am drooling over getting. Since the stock seat that I have works fine, there was no reason to pay the exorbitant air-freight rate. Caterham is not Ford Motors so suffers by comparison. On the other hand, for those of us who are not mechanically inclined, it is nice to be able to call someone and describe a problem and have the needed parts ID'd and shipped out (In my case to my mechanic's shop). Or, my mechanic will call them and they will figure out a solution together.

My experience with both RMSC and Sevens and Elans is you will get the part quickly if they have it, otherwise it could be a while. They can arrange for overnite shipping from England if you want to pay the $100++ cost. I have done that. The personnel are unfailingly nice/helpful. Both are periodically absent from the office for extended times, typically working on various Caterham cars or car-related projects. So they can be difficult (impossible) to reach when you really, really need them. Nonetheless, it usually works quite well and it's great to have knowledgeable people willing to help with advice and parts.

Posters on other forums have said RA1's kept getting better, all the way til they corded. That has been my experience on the 2 sets I have run. R888's are said to be more susceptible to multiple heat cycles, reaching their maximum grip 1/2 thru their tread life and falling off after that. I have no experience with them (yet) so at this point it's all hearsay. Mike

The "Help" section of this forum has detailed instructions for attaching photos.

No lift issues with my clams up to the 110mph top speed on my stock Caterham. Many track days too, and no lift issues there either.

It should be a $40+K car. Just needs the FIA roll-over bar for the track. The color combo does nothing for me tho. At 4300 rpm at 75 mph, driving it to the track would be noisy/buzzy. My 5 speed Crossflow spins at about 3800 at 75, my typical cruising speed on the Interstate.

Prettiest track I have ever seen (and most dangerous-lots of trees & walls to hit if you go off).

I passed a deer in my Seven recently, right next to the road. It looked like a giraffe from where I sat. Fortunately, it froze.

Looks like a late 50's Testa Rosa 250. It has knock-off wire wheels wh/were the style back then. If so, it's worth around $5-6M. A '62 just sold for $10.5M!

This lovely car is probably too modestly powered to be a dominating track car-respectable yes, but not an ultimate track-rat(of course you cld add some FM turbo power). So I wld be inclined to go for the more aggressive roll-over bar and full weather kit and skip the cage. I use my Caterham as a semi-daily driver and have put abt 8K on in in my 14 months of ownership. There have been very few days during that period when it wasnt at least somewhat likey to rain. On yesterday's 300 mile trip it rained 4 separate times. This Westfield seems to have the same potential to be a car that can be reliably driven to work and on trips yet hold its own, tho not dominate, as a track car.

Andrew7, nice to meet up w/you & your dad and see your amazing Lowcost BEC. The vintage races were amazing as were all the old, and sometimes oddball, cars. Great to meet Bart Lami too. What a resource for info on Caterhams he is. The 300 mile trip back to Cincy was uneventful, except for the 1 hour monsoon (I pulled over) and the 3 cloudbursts, which I motored thru. I loved the BeaveRun race track and my new goal in life is to do a track day there someday. Maybe even with Bart as instructor? Mike