Cranky

If Coffee Break is right, what is happening to yours happened to his (and to mine, in part): the steering wheel is hitting the bulkhead before it can fully engage the locking mechanism. It is blocked from sliding forward enough to fully engage. I also have Alaskossie's issue: the front wheels better be pointed straight, otherwise finding the wide groove in the splined receiver to push the wheel onto can be a real PITA.

I thought you might have it, but I took off the wheel and tried it with just the hub and still had the same problem. The hub itself doesn't quite slide on far enough for the balls to lock. I need to do some studying to see why it won't go on any further.

OK, reverse works fine now that I understand how to get to it. I was a little confused at first because "down" meant second gear to me, but I finally grasped what you meant.

When I start the car, the speedometer and tachometer needles swing from end to end and then settle back down to 0. After that, they don't move. The oil pressure gauge never moves off of 0. I did verify that I have oil using the dipstick and I'm assuming that it is circulating.

The idle stalling issue is something I can live with.

The steering wheel problem is still vexing me.

I'm still waiting on my manuals and extra keys. I'll get more serious about fixing things once I have those.

Here are a few shots of the dash. I'll get some engine shots later in the week. My garage is about 100 degrees and nasty humid, so I haven't wanted to spend a lot of time in there setting up pics.

http://photos.barbierifamily.org/photos/i-zs4KZV7/0/L/i-zs4KZV7-L.jpg

http://photos.barbierifamily.org/photos/i-x6HrRXW/0/L/i-x6HrRXW-L.jpg

http://photos.barbierifamily.org/photos/i-cc9kbHL/0/L/i-cc9kbHL-L.jpg

World of tanks?

Handbrake needs adjustment

Can't get it into reverse

Oil pressure and RPM gauges are reading low

Stalls at idle before warmed up

Steering wheel releases without pulling the release plate

It has the Duratec 175hp engine with the 5 speed trans.

Just got a "new" R300. It needs some significant sorting before it is ready to take to the streets. Here are a few pics I took this morning:

http://photos.barbierifamily.org/photos/i-N7WGnnc/0/L/i-N7WGnnc-L.jpg

http://photos.barbierifamily.org/photos/i-HVK7ZNM/0/L/i-HVK7ZNM-L.jpg

http://photos.barbierifamily.org/photos/i-h3724Hb/0/L/i-h3724Hb-L.jpg

It looks like the lock mechanism is a set of four ball bearings that jut out inside the inner column. They are held in place with a metal sleeve. When you pull the release, the sleeve moves out of the way and the balls are free to move out of the way.

When I push the mechanism onto the column, it goes far enough for some of the splines to engage, but not far enough for the balls for reach the groove. I need to figure out why it is stopping and not fully engaging.

Just bought a "new" R300 that needs some sorting. The first and most critical issue is with the Momo quick release steering wheel. It doesn't lock. I can pull it right off the column without squeezing the release plate.

Any ideas or suggestions?

I live in Texas, a state that requires a front license plate. How does one attach a front plate to a Caterham?

Do Caterhams come with an OBDII port? Specifically, would an R300 with a Duratec 2.0L come with one?

I entered my info and got a reasonable quote. Then, because I have an almost 15 year old at home, I checked to see what the rate will be when I have a third driver at the house that will not be driving the car. They told me I was declined. :cuss:

I'll have to call them tomorrow. I won't be happy if I can't get insurance until the last of my children has left the house.

I called my State Farm agent this morning to ask what it would cost to add a Caterham to my insurance. She called her underwriter and came back with the answer that they won't insure it because they consider it a race car. I did some searching here and saw several older references to State Farm insuring Sevens in Texas.

Does anyone know what information I need to give to my agent to get them to insure a Caterham? Failing that, what are people's recommendations for insurance?

This would be far a car driven

Tell more more about them.

What are those prices? When I see something like a Seven 360 for $59,340, what does that include? It looks like the base car ($44,900) plus the options ($13,940) plus a mystery $500 (destination charge?) but not the engine. IT lists the engine as $10,500 plus another $2,500 for installation. So am I correct in assuming that the full retail drive-out price is $72,340 for the car they list as $59,340? If that is the case, the used market is looking better.

http://www.chariotsofpb.com/Inventory/InventoryDetails/tabid/2245/company/CHARIOTS/vin/SDKLDK3NS11070411/Default.aspx

The ad lists this car as a "5-SPEED MANUAL!" (not sure why that gets an exclamation point - must mean that it was written by either a female or a used car salesman).

This picture sure looks like a six speed:

http://cthst.com/chariotsofpb/11070411-22sm.jpg

Am I missing something or is the ad copy wrong?

Thanks for all of the great advice and a special thanks to pksurveyor for giving me a ride in one of his Sevens.

I'm still undecided about several things, but I now know that I don't need an LSD, a plumbed in fire extinguisher, or the aerofoil wishbones. I definitely want the 5 speed and not the 6 speed. I want a painted car. I'm not inclined to pay extra for leather but wouldn't mind it either. I'm skeptical about the value of the heater (at least here in the Houston area). I want a quick release wheel. A master battery switch would be nice, but not essential.

I was surprised at how tight the SV chassis was. I have some friends that I don't think will fit even as passengers if I get a standard chassis.

Thanks again for all of the help. I'm sure that I'll have more questions soon.

I'm looking at the specs for new Caterhams and I have a lot of questions. For context, I'm looking for Caterham that will be fun to drive on the roads. It will see very little, if any, track time or autocrossing. I have no experience driving anything vaguely similar.

1) The 280 comes with 14" wheels, the 360 comes with 13" wheels, and the 480 comes with 15" wheels. What difference does it make and why would I prefer one set of wheels over the other?

2) I see having a 4-point harness as an option but not a 5-point harness. I think I'd much rather have a 5-point harness. Is it easy to add a 5th "point" or would it make sense to just by a 5-point harness aftermarket and skip the Caterham option?

3) How important is having an LSD for non-racing road use?

4) How important is the plumbed in fire extinguisher for a non-track car?

5) Why do I want a Master Battery Switch?

6) What are aerofoil wishbones and how much of a difference do they make?

7) Their site lists 5 speed and 6 speed transmissions, but not the gear ratios. Any idea how they are set up? Any opinions as to which you think I should choose?

8) The cost of engine installation ($2,500) is more than the cost to build the car ($2,395). How hard is it to install the engine? If you opt for unassembled kit, does that also mean that you won't be getting the engine installation? It seems like it would be hard to install the engine in a kit.

9) When considering building it myself or paying to have it done, what should I consider? I have very little mechanical experience aside from changing my oil; should I even consider it or is that crazy? How much does self-building impact resale value?

10) Any advantage to painting the aluminum body aside from the look?

I translated the price sheets from the US Caterham site into a spreadsheet that covers the 280, 360, and 480 models. If you put a "1" in the quantity columns for each option, it will update the total price for you.

This is definitely not official. It was a manual translation and could easily contain errors. I just put it together so that I could play with options and see what the retail cost would look like. I thought I'd share it in case anyone else wanted to do the same.

2014 Caterham Price Modeler.xlsx

I'd be thrilled to check out any of them, but I would be most interested in an R300.

I think I'm interested in a Caterham, but I have never experienced one other than in pictures and videos. The nearest dealer to me is Dallas, so I thought I'd check here to see if there is anyone in the Houston area that would like to show me their ride. It would be much appreciated.

On Fleabay is a repeat appearance of this R500 at Lamborghini Palm Beach. Only a 1000 miles, some price negotiation and this makes more sense than a new Caterham as it has only 1000 miles, has more hp than a new 480, lots of good options and is cheaper. And if you are on the East Coast then it is cheaper to ship than the West Coast and you probably get better customer service since it is a Lamborghini dealership in ritzy Palm Beach.

 

http://www.ebay.com/itm/2012-Lotus-Caterham-R500-Superlight-/151338569591?_trksid=p2054897.l4275

 

I'm new to this 7 stuff. This looks like a nice car. What would a reasonable price range be for this car? What questions would you ask the seller? From what I've read, it seems like a great track car, but how would it do on the streets driven in a non-insane way?