Blokko

My understanding is that my Caterham SV (1.8 Rover K) has a fuel tank of 9.1 imperial gallons (41.4 litres). As I generally get 38mpg when touring that would give me a theoretical range of 345 miles - but not all of the fuel in the tank is usable. I tend to refill at about the 250 mile mark to be on the safe side.

Nope. I think this was one of the original cars there on the day. There seem to have been more non-kit cars there this year than in previous shows. Amongst others I saw few TVR's (old and more recent), some VX220's and Elise's, some early UK Ford's (Escort's mainly), Porkers as well as the US cars (which I presume are original).

Possibly my last-but-one Caterham related outing before I sell the car and move out to Boston. Billed as the biggest kit car show in the world - they were expecting 4,000 kit cars on the day. Here is a link to some pics I took yesterday - https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10201807510738742.1073741843.1511311827&type=1&l=3125210d7d Named the album "The Good, the Bad and the Fugly". Some great kits out there, but also some monsters! There were also quite a few non-kit cars about of interest (some Brit classics as well as some American metal). Great day out - weather held (I have the sunburn to prove it )

Saw your post on this a few days ago on BlatChat. Glad that you managed to get things sorted in the end!

No picture to hand, but on my standard Caterham (SV) dash I found that on more than one occasion when I needed to hit the horn in a hurry I fumbled and missed the button (adjacent to the dip switch and flash switch for the headlights). I decided to swap the horn button for a flash switch. Bit odd having three similar switches next to each other, but this was I find it much easier to hit the horn if I need to. Unfortunately I damaged the dash getting the old horn button out (cross threaded) so I have had to put a large washer on the dash facia. Must get round to painting it at some point....

Sorry to hear about your woes :-( Just seen your post on BC - I would be down in the dumps if I was going through the same palaver. I can offer no advice, but at least with the likes of Roger on the case hopefully you will be able to get to the bottom of this before too long (hopefully without having to shell out for a new engine). Stick with it if you can - I've had 35k miles of fantastic touring in my 2 Caterhams and I've enjoyed some great track action as well. Have to say, this post backs up my reluctance regarding purchasing an older 7 for my upcoming stay in the US.

Simon told me he had sold a car to a guy in the US, not to me. If I was going to build then I'd really like it to be a Caterham. I've owned 2 and I'd feel much more comfortable taking on a build of a Cat than any other kit. That said, I'd consider taking on a Westie build at a push (plenty of moral and technical support would be forthcoming from Se7ens List if needed, I'm sure). When I went round the factory they had a MegaS2000 in the workshop. Looks great as an out and out track weapon, but not really a tourer / occasional trackday car (which is what I'm after). I'll probably get kicked off the forum for saying this, but 150bhp is plenty for me

Will make contact with Seven & Elans and Tom @ the Westfield dealers. As much as I want to build / own a 7 for my stay in the US, I think I might come to resent the extra daily commute time from NH into Boston after a while. Maybe I do need to save the build for when I get back to the UK and look instead at used, older 7's (as suggested by Croc). Having knocked around with the Se7ens List guys and gals I'm not averse to looking at other sevenesque cars - particularly if I were going down the used car route. So, what criteria should I be looking at for a used 7 for me to be able to register / use it in MA?

Before this whole move to Boston thing cropped up, we had expressed an initial interest in attending PBB. Our enthusiasm dimmed though when we saw that the itinerary included a return journey by boat - my wife just wouldn't be able to handle that (our last two tours involved boats - France last summer and the Se7ens List tour to Northern Ireland. Both times Jayne was very ill on the crossings and vowed "never again". We are going back to France this summer and we are going by Eurotunnel) If by some miracle I had a 7 in the US I'd love to organise a Se7ens List tour of New England (maybe into Canada). The original 2005 tour was a little before I joined that Caterham / Se7ens List fold - would have loved to have been on that tour (despite the shipping issues)

I had a good chat with Simon when I did the Westfield factory tour a while back and he told me that he'd just sold a car in the US - wonder if it was yours? What engine are you using? Maybe I should wait for you to jump through all the hoops and then follow in your footsteps :-)

Showing my naivety here - I just assumed that a modern engine like a Ford Sigma or Duratec would coast emissions tests as they are used so widely in current mainstream cars. Is it the mating with the Ford Type 9 gearbox that is the problem? I can well understand Ford Zetec or Rover K's being problematic on emissions as they are older engine designs. Maybe my dream of being able to build a 7 during my US stay and then driving it around the NE of the US (and doing some trackdays) is going to be beyond my reach :-( Not sure I fancy running an older 7 - really wanted to scratch that new build itch..... Will see where matters take me - may well take you up on your kind offer of additional info via PM at some point in the future. Thanks Hettric....

After a bit of searching I’ve come across this post here - http://usa7s.com/vb/showthread.php?t=5137&highlight=Massachusetts So, if I were to purchase a brand new Caterham and new engine / gearbox would I be looking at registration in MA being a) just forget it, or b) challenging but achievable? As per Mike’s (croc) suggestion, would building / registering the car in NH and then (at a later date) moving to MA and logging an Interstate Transfer with DMV be an option? This all stems from my original BlatChat post here - http://blatchat.com/t.asp?id=239317

Also meant to add that I tour with the Se7ens List and I live local to Guy and Terri Foulger, who some of you may know from the Grizzly Bear Bear Blat....

Yep

Unfortunately I'm already have vacation booked for the first 2 weeks of July - Wolverhamton (UK) to Loire Valley (France) then Normandy d-day beaches on the route home. Will be about 2.5k miles round trip - in the Caterham, of course :-)

Another UK / BlatChat member saying Hi! Purchased an ex-Academy Caterham back in 2007. Sold it last summer and, somehow (against expectations), within 2 weeks I'd purchased an SV Caterham (1.8 k series). Joined here following on from this post - http://blatchat.com/t.asp?id=239317 Will be trawling the threads for more info on new / second hand purchase of a Caterham (or maybe even a Westie) - and maybe even posting up a few questions. Already been warned that a newbuild might be problematic if I'm based in Boston / MA.