Anaximander

That's kind of sad that the California buyer of Mighty Mike's Stalker put it up for sale so quickly. Mike put a TON of energy into modding that car over the 6-7 years he was developing it into what it is. I think the second owner owns a couple of muscle cars like a Viper, etc. I have come to realize that here in sunny Florida, as is likely the case for California, that open cockpit cars are only fun to drive on temperate days that are becoming fewer and farther between. Folks in the NE, Upper Midwest and some parts of the NW have more comfortable days to play with these cars.

To watch Sabine hustle a Transit Van around the "Ring" gives me hope for autocrossing my new 2020 Honda Civic Si that is a national class winner in SCCA G Street. I am having to get used to the turbo hang of the 1.5l engine and relatively low horsepower (206). And, the fact that I am driving a 4-door sedan. I did put 200 DOT Yokohoma's on the car and am looking forward to my second autox with the car in mid April on a track with excellent grip. Croc, Thanks for sharing your story about Sabine. In watching a few videos about her, she appeared to be larger than life! She may have had her life cut short but certainly did not seem to miss any tricks in living a very full life. BTW, I sold the Corvette after 14 months and 9300 miles. Too porky for my tastes after coming out of sevenesque cars.

Shane, I have been following part of a thread where there is talk about vehicular conspicuity related to the color of the se7en. When it comes to your Stalker, I don't think that too many people would be able to use the defense that they did not see your car. I don't think it blends in with the scenery unless you are in a Peter Max movie. Happy New Year and somebody needs to buy your hot rod Stalker.

Dale, I very much appreciate you waiting up for me on the second day. That was an act of kindness. I wasn't calling anybody stupid. I was saying that I felt our group behavior on public roadways was stupid. As you know, years earlier, some of that behavior resulted in the tragic death of an Ambush participant. I cannot think of any reasonable rationale for using quiet country mountain roads as a playground for out of towners exposing the local innocents to potentially catastrophic carnage over numerous days of an "event". That is just my personal opinion and others may not be as concerned? Wishing you and your family the happiest of Holidays and safety until we get this pandemic behind us. Bob

Shane, Sorry to see your Storker go. I am sure that people do not know how fully sorted that particular car is since you rebuilt it (updated chassis) with many components that were not available to the earlier Stalkers. Someone looking for an exceptional track weapon without a lot of finicky bits will love your car for sure. As Croc and others have mentioned, good on you for getting a couple of Miata's and bringing your son up in the racing tradition and learning about momentum as opposed to brute horsepower. Like my friends Krista and Glenn Minehart, all of their children can outrun them in SCCA autocross events and they are very proud of their brood. Whatever you do, keep the secret from Suave that you are selling his fellow Storker. I won't mention this to Les Suave, his evil twin who could somehow try and derail your plans. Much good luck with the sale and somebody is going to get a very well sorted Brunton Stalker! Happy Holidays. Bob Schilling

Thanks for your thoughtful insights Kitcat. Croc, Kitcat has admitted by self-proclamation to hold the secondary title of Sir Spinsalot! Someday, when things settle down, I would love to see both of you at NJMP and heft a glass or two. Bob

Kitcat, Can't say that I am overly impressed with your fellow Cincinnatian wandering all over the double yellow lines of country lanes demonstrating his 7 on BAT. I sold my last sevenesque car after disregarding my common sense one day a couple of years ago in the NC mountains with a bunch of Johnny Racer wanabees (Stalker Stupidbush aka Ambush) that should have been taking their stupidity onto tracks designed to have fun and reduce the chance of injuring innocent bystanders. I was frankly very disgusted with myself and remember giving up my sportbike buddies who were doing similar things at very high speeds on public country roads many years ago. When I mentioned to my sportbike buddies that we would all be going to prison if we had killed someone, their response collectively was "what's your point?". Having been a prison psychologist, I advised them that prison isn't a really fun place and you don't get time off for blats when you feel like it. They still didn't get it and at age 52, I actually grew up a bit and left my buddies that I had been hanging with for a couple of years in what I considered to be a stupid state of mind. That's what tracks are for. Sorry about the soap box and I will get off it pronto.

Bruce, Happy Holidays! I have been enjoying the 2019 Stingray as a fun bopping around car in the countryside. My wife is not all that excited about riding along and feel exposed in low slung cars so I do most of rides by myself which is still great fun. That 620R at Hillbank would be quite a fun car if you could buy it right. However, I really like the business models of Mark IV in New York and Bruce B. in Washington State. I think they offer good value for the dollar and seem willing to work with customers in a very fair way. Much good luck in your search. Searching is half the fun! Astro Bob

In my above comments, I added some confusion concerning the Classic XL Stalker that is out in California. After talking with Glen Minehart, he advised that the Classic XL's have the same frontal dimensions for the shock placement of the wider rearend XL's but the rear of the car requires that the shocks be placed lower in the rear end to accommodate the less tall design. Glen also said that if someone wanted to put smaller tires than the 17"s that come with the car, that the rotors would have to be downsized and the attach points for the calipers would have to be modified. Glen advised that for all around street, autocross and track performance that the Stalker AXR's are the model that can do all of those tasks exceptionally well. The proof of that is that Jason Minehart, running a Stalker AXR has been placing second pretty consistently in the SCCA National Autox events and is also reportedly running the car on tracks in Texas. Hope that clears up any confusion over the particular car that is for sale in California.

Lightguy, Croc's answer to the build issues of a 420r vs a Stalker XL are spot on. Shane (aka xcarguy) has numerous builds with the original Brunton Stalker classic chassis. I have owned both the classic chassis and the first M-Spec Stalker (LS1) with inboard shocks as well as a magnificently built Stalker XL with an LS3/480. I also owned for a brief period,a Caterham 300r Superlight with 400r specs. The Caterham is of course much truer to the original Chapman 7 design and the steering responsiveness is nothing short of like it is wired directly to your brain. The Classic Stalkers did not have the modern inboard suspension due to the limitations of the chassis dimensions. The Stalker XL I owned had about the same wheelbase dimensions as my C7 Corvette. In other words, a fairly wide stance as opposed to the Caterham. There is a Classic XL Stalker for sale out in California that because of the body dimensions, does not have the same inboard setup as the more rounded XL's and cannot support the length and shock position of the more rounded tail XL's. The advantages of the Stalkers are that they source all USA components and everything is readily available in the USA and there are no hassles with importation. It is also true that the Stalkers have a bit less panache than the Caterham. I have found Bruce Beachman to be an exceptional seller of Caterham's and came very close to buying a 420r kit that he just had landed a month ago. However, I decided to keep my 2019 C7 Corvette because I don't find myself autocrossing during these pandemic times. Some of our venues in Florida are respectful of the virus and some seem to think that it is unnecessary to utilize much precaution and I decided that it was not the best of times to swap spit (aerosolized droplets) with my fellow autox'ers .

I am sure you are going to gives us curious folks more pics, any lingering problems with the car and an asking price. Neat looking car from the one picture.

Congrats Richard on the very fun car. If you want to zip around cones faster like in slaloms, you can consider installing a faster steering rack. The rack that they typically come with is more track oriented. The width of the XL is pretty similar to my Corvette.

Hey Dave, I went from se7esque cars to a Corvette. Time to start shredding:smash: Just kidding. Vettes are indeed quite porky compared to the lithe Caterhams but have some amenities that are usually not found on the more raw sevens. I do miss the visceral feel of spunky 7's. There is a wealth of information contained here and as Mike (aka Croc) pointed out, no limits of people willing to help you spend your money on these delightful and esoteric cars. Good hunting!

Spitfun, I was talking recently with Glen Minehart, the father of Scott Minehart who makes Stalker cars, and Glen was mentioning that Classic Stalkers with LS engines are less than ideal for autocrossing. He advised the the 3.8L supercharged V6's are better because they do not tend to spin the tires all over the place. On a track like xcarguy is using it for, I suspect that the extra power of the LS engines is beneficial. OTOH, the Stalker AXR's with LS engines which are specifically made for autox are really kicking butt and Jason Minehart is currently about the second fastest autox car nationally on a fairly consistent basis. Jeff Keissel in his specially prepared Midget continues to dominate the national autocross segment with something like 8 National titles in E Mod but Jason is working hard to try and catch him.

Congrats on the spectacular Caterham Yogi! Bruce really spec'd this car out exceptionally well. After watching Croc's video of his RHD 420r in Europe, I realized even more, what a potent track machine this will be for HPDE's. I can only imagine how much fun you are going to have driving the twisties outside of Seattle on warm Summer afternoons. The build should be a really wonderful experience and we look forward to lots of detailed progressive pictures. You will know your car much better than most who own sevens. Have fun! Bob

Kitcat, That is great information for myself and others to know about. I am not sure how many Caterhams Kampena Motors is selling in the Sonoma, CA region but as you and others know, they too have extensive experience with Caterhams and racing. Like you mentioned, I have also heard great things about Tom Carlin's operation and I suspect that he works hard to insure the reliability of the Birkins he is selling and like Bruce, tries to keep an inventory of spares so that his customers can get certain parts in a timely manner based on the hearsay I have paid attention to.

Yogi, In my exploration of buying this car, I had the same question about the seats because I have shrunk to 5'7". In talking with Bruce Beachman, he said that the seats are on sliders and that all I would have to have done was mock up the seat with it in the full forward position to determine if I needed to drill a few holes for the rails a bit forward from where the holes have already been drilled. So, no problems whatsoever with seating position. I too asked about leather seats as opposed to the composite seats and Bruce mentioned that one of his customers who had spec'd a car with leather seats had traded them out for the composite seats and would likely like to sell his leather seats. I had a 300r Superlight with the composite seats and in terms of them being useful for HPDE's and other spirited activities, composite seats are much more preferable because the excess padding of leather seats disconnects you from the car. I have had several Brunton Stalkers, 3 with aluminum seats and minimal padding and 1 with more padded seats and for any kind of really spirited driving, the composite seats are the way to go. You can always add a bit of padding or some cushions when just driving around on leisurely drives. I used to be known as "flat butt Bob" which suggests that I have not had a significant amount of padding on my backside. I found my Kirkey race seats with minimal padding to be quite comfortable. Unfortunately, I did not own the Caterham long enough to really understand how long I would be comfortable but I did appreciate being "one with the car". The first picture is of my former Caterham with 208hp and the second is a partial shot of the Brunton Stalker XL with 495hp with Kirkey seats and thin padding. Hope that helps. If you are in the Seattle area, you are going to be sooooooooooo fortunate because at this time, essentially Bruce and one other company in the country down in California are the leading selling experts on Caterhams. You would also be able to get high-performance driving training from Bruce as well as be close enough to have any questions concerning the build answered first hand. Much good luck in your decision process. I only wish that my wife and lifestyle would have supported enjoying the car beyond the build. If it did, this car would not be up for sale . Bob Schilling

Hi fellow se7en lovers. I had a very lengthy conversation with Bruce Beachman of Beachman Racing concerning the Caterham 420r that is ready to be crated and shipped to the USA. As some of you know, I had a 2008 Caterham 300r Superlight with 400 engine specs and found it to be the most intuitive responding car I had ever driven. My wife however has never ridden in any of the 5 se7enesque cars I have owned over the past 6 years. I was frankly excited to get the kit, take an inordinate amount of time building it in my garage which would have necessitated the sale of my 2019 Corvette for space and secondarily money reasons. My wife can tolerate riding in the Vette but she has never been a fan of my low-slung, open cockpit, frenetic sevenesque cars. So, after considerable talking and thinking, I sadly had to email Bruce and advise that I would not be able to take advantage of this terrific offer. As some of you may or may not know, for the under $49k price inclusive of the 2.0L 210hp Duratec and transmission, Bruce and his team take care of all of the documentation and shipping arrangements. Bruce advised that he does not charge the customer add-on fees for performing these activities and the customer is only responsible for the actual freight cost either to their home on the East Coast or to his facility in Seattle, WA. If someone wants to build their own car, Bruce advised that they are not quite like Lego's but are fabbed up such that there are no fitment worries, wiring harness worries, windscreen installation worries, etc., because these issues are taken care of at the factory. The car ships in three crates with all of the necessary components to complete the car in a relatively short period of time. Bruce also insures, as an official Caterham parts house, that should anything be missing from the kit, that he personally takes care to get expedited shipment of any missing part to complete the build. In addition to the above-mentioned services, Bruce stated that he supports all of his builder's throughout the build via email, text or phone calls as necessary as part of his responsibilities that are built into the modest money he gets for the sale of the car. If someone wants to save the $7k build fee, and have reduced shipping costs if they accepted the kit on the East Coast, the car is available through the early part of next week (end of September) to be re-routed to another destination here in the Country to facilitate a build for some lucky individual. Bruce advised that the specs are: 420r includes the following: 5-speed gearbox; Limited slip differential; Lightweight flywheel; Sport suspension pack; Uprated brake master cylinder; Carbon fiber dash; Composite race seats; Momo steering wheel; 4-point race harness; Black pack (black windscreen frame, Carbon fiber door sills, carbon fiber rear wing protectors, and black headlight bowls). R-pack instrumentation; key and gear knob; Shift light; and Polished exhaust. Bruce advised that it takes about a week for the kit to be crated for shipment and us folks on the East Coast could have the 3 crates delivered about 2-3 weeks later and about a week to clear customs and get the car to your doorstep. Bruce advised that people that are organized and methodical, seem to have a much easier time with the build and the hard things like wiring harnesses are plug and play. I hope that in the next day or two, someone will be able to jump on this terrific opportunity and keep this black beauty on the East Coast. He also said that his local custom painter said that a black car is the best starting point for someone to have the "tins" repainted in some custom color(s) of their choice. Bob Schilling

It was sold some time ago at Gator Motorsport.

Senna, Those large yellow "torpedo" looking devices with the circular hydraulic rubber collars are large inside diameter pipe bending mandrels with the size of pipe they are used for labeled on the mandrel. The larger blue machines are the actual outside diameter hydraulic pipe bending machines. The Vietz company is in Hanover, Germany. Nice looking car. Looks like your choice of repair shops was pretty spot on given the sophisticated aftermarket parts they sell and install. S1Steve, I had not seen your post. It must be very cool to see uber large pipes being worked on. I am sure that the welders who put them together are exceptionally skilled as well. I have heard that they x-ray the welds to check for integrity.

This thread reminds me of most of the expensive hobbies I have been involved in. There seems to be a standing mantra that most of us repeat to our wives periodically: "Honey, if I die, please don't sell the car (insert whatever item(s)) for what I told you I paid for it". Of course, over the years, her rejoinder has been: "If you die, I am going to sell that (name item) cheap".

Mike, Talk about a piece of history. I often had wondered until today why Weber carburetors were designed and originally manufactured in Italy. It turns out the Eduardo Weber, the son of two Swiss parents was an Italian mechanical engineer who designed the carburetor. Sadly, Weber was a Fascist and reportedly, about 18 days after the end of WW2, some resistance folks paid Weber a visit one morning at his factory and he was never seen again. He is either dead or maybe he went to work designing Holley carbs? We could possibly create a conspiracy theory tying him to American manufacturing?

John, It was likely Ward Memorial Blvd. I never talked with the driver of the car that got caught so my understanding of the story came from hearsay of some of the other IV residents at the twin towers of Francisco Torres that UCSB subsequently purchased and expanded into a 19 acre site. I do know that some of my friends at the time devised a scheme to turn on and off the lights of one of the buildings so that the letters spelled "F*CK" about 7 stories high. It stopped traffic for hours around the building as word got out of our prank. I learned to pick a simple lock during that time but was not much of a participant in the final act. An old high school chum that became an attorney was part of the cadre that pulled off that very funny stunt. IV was a hotbed of learning and excitement along with antiwar protests. Famous folks like Andy Warhol hung out in IV reportedly in about 1969. I was getting so off track and flunking out of school that I returned to LA to get my head right to continue on with college. They were certainly fun times playing in the sand dunes of Devereau School on the Pacific Ocean. Some of my group would get pretty stoned at the time. Thankfully, like Bill Clinton, I never inhaled. Kitkat, many of us have only had 1 or 2 degrees of separation from many really cool events and people. I suspect that many of us that have been drawn to seven cars have lots of stories of the very interesting people and events we have experienced along the way. It is that sort of yearning for adventures that lead us to sevens and other fun machines and people.

John, In 1968 while going to school in Santa Barbara, CA, a kid that lived in the private dorms (Francisco Torres) we lived in Isla Vista, was loaned a Lamborghini Miura S as his "school" car for a short while. The rich little so and so was clocked at some incredibly high speed on the road leading into UC Santa Barbara and a California Highway patrolman gave chase only to lose the kid in our small town. The story goes that the driver and his companion drove into the first open garage in IV, closed the garage door in an attempt to evade the Highway Patrol. Someone called the cops and you guessed it, that same HP officer responded to the call and arrested the two kids. They both went to court for something like reckless endangerment or some such thing and the judge sentenced the two students to something like 2 months of weekend lockup so they could continue to matriculate in school. The passenger reportedly complained to the sentencing judge that he had not been driving and reportedly the judge had admonished him that he could have turned off the engine and thrown the keys out the window to stop the recklessness so was guilty by association and inaction. I fawned over that Lamborghini as I only had a lowly red 1964 Triumph TR4. Long story short, I think that the family took back the Lambo and that was my first close up regular contact in the parking lot, on a regular basis for a brief period of time, with what turned out to be one of the first supercars ever put into "production". 12 cylinders of handmade beauty was that engine (3.9L V12). Of course, growing up in Southern California, if there were 7 examples of any truly exotic car in the USA, usually 4 or 5 of those examples would be in Southern Cal. It was an amazing time in the burgeoning era of supercars. I was lucky enough to run a Country Club parking lot and the nightmarish stories about lot workers going on joy rides was not completely a myth:driving: The only thing is that I didn't realize that some of the original Cobras and other exotics I was parking would become multi-million dollar pieces of rolling history.

Skip, There are 2020 Vettes galore down here in Florida. Just go to Cargurus and you will find a half dozen of them for sale. Some at actual MSRP.