breezy7

You might try posting on the California Caterham Club site, here is a link to a restoration of a '62 7. http://californiacaterhamclub.com/chat/showthread.php?1352-Got-our-quot-new-quot-62-Seven-1500-home-today/page2&highlight=series+2. Where are you located? There might be a Lotus club in your area, try http://www.lotuscarclub.org/localchapters.php I seem to remember that the Lotus LTD club had folks who specialized in each model of Lotus. Mike

I went with the Falken Azenis 615 K as a replacement on my 7 and have a set on my Miata, not may choices with 14 inch wheels. I got mine from Vulcan Tire. http://www.vulcantire.com/cgi-bin/tiresearch.cgi?stock=626&f=azenis_rt615k_t.cst

# 9 under running gear is listed as" spare pig complete". What is that?

I used a plastic frame that mounted through 2 holes drilled in the nose cone below the radiator opening. Attached the frame to the car with plastic bolts and nuts and a dab of RTV on the nuts to keep them from loosening. Never had a problem with road clearance. I filed a notch into the bolt thinking it would give way before tearing any fiberglass, fortunately never tested the theory.

I don't know anything about these guys but they have been mentioned on the forum in the past. http://www.kineticvehicles.com/index.html and http://www.facebook.com/pages/Curtis-Unlimited/163756193652207

From my experience with a Caterham used similarly to what you are describing: I had 14 inch wheels and tire selection is limited when replacement time comes. Have you talked to Caterham about different sized wheels being available with different car models not just what they show on the spec sheet? I had the standard inertia reel seat belts, as a safety issue I don't know that any seat belt will help much in an accident with these cars plus with a 4 or 5 point harness you are not able to move around the cockpit and I always wanted to be able to look over my shoulder and not rely on mirrors when changing lanes which I could do with the inertia belts. I didn't have the LSD and didn't miss it nor the fire extinguisher system though I did keep one in the boot. I installed my own battery cut off as something of a theft deterrent though it wouldn't take much to by pass it if someone was just a bit determined, I had the removable wheel which I usually took when leaving the car unattended and made getting in and out a bit easier.. I went with the 5 speed due to cost and the overdrive feature and skipped the long first gear mod, most of my fun time with the car was using 2nd or 3rd gears so a short first gear wasn't an issue. I assembled my car and though I had some mechanical experience I talked to other owners who had no previous experience and they had no problems with the build. It comes down to peace of mind. How comfortable are you going to be with the process? If you do decide to tackle it there is lots of help available from the folks on this site. To get a look at what is involved take a look at these two places http://www.thecaterhamproject.com/index. http://californiacaterhamclub.com/resources/AssemblyGuide.pdf If I had to do it over I would have gone with a painted body, bare metal is a pain and I was never happy with the results of my polishing though it can be done and does look great. Try to see what the registration policy is like for your home state it can be a bear some places and better to know now. Good luck. Mike

Very nice Steve! Looks like you've been giving your buffer a workout. What's the next addition to your stable? Something red and Italian? Mike

More pictures at the Locost USA site. http://www.locostusa.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=41&t=15697&start=105 As much as I like 7s that black élan sure looks good. Any hints on where next years event will be?

You can cut the cost a bit more if you are over age 62, a lifetime pass to 2000+ federal recreation sites is available for $10. They are sold at most sites that accept the pass or for $20 via mail. The pass may also allow discounts for some of the fees inside the park. More info here:http://store.usgs.gov/pass/senior.html

Maybe you've already tried these but here are a few sites that might be of use.http://www.lotus7register.co.uk/ http://www.simplesevens.org http://www.historiclotusregister.co.uk Posting a picture here could help.

Blokko, the sales tax would come in at the state level where the car is registered, that is why it doesn't show up on the site. Mike

The power train options are available under the car tab click the "power train options" to download the PDF. It shows the 5speed as $2995 and the 6 as $5250 and the sequential as $13,500! The 140hp sigma engine lists for $7750,the 180hp Duratec $14,500, 240hp Duratec $17650 and a whopping $24,850 for the supercharged 310hp Duratec.

A dedicated site for Caterham U.S. is up and running.http://us.caterhamcars.com They are offering kits as well as rollers, wasn't the original plan was only for rollers? The 7 160 model with the 3 cylinder Suzuki engine was shown when I first saw the site a few days ago but now it is not listed.

My Caterham had a plug above the closeout panels near the driver's left knee. It is a standard OBDII connector for reading fault codes and will give the temp the ECU is seeing. I don't know what years Caterham USA included it in their wiring harness though. The sending unit in your picture is what I remember on my car but it did have a ground wire attached to the unit. I thought this issue had been addressed before on the forum but a quick search didn't show any results.

Yep,should have been TCM. I just looked at the schedule and the making of Grand Prix is not on there anymore.

Turner Classic Movies is showing Lemans at 8PM EST and Grand Prix at 10PM EST on March 13. Following at 1AM is half hour show about the making of Gran Prix. Seems like I remember a bunch of Lotus Formula Fords were used in the movie.

The latest R&T lists their picks for the last 50 years. Caterham made it for the 2000s. http://www.roadandtrack.com/the-51-coolest-cars-of-the-last-50-years-mega-scroll

From the California Caterham Club Wiki: Standard rotors front and rear mossmotors.com Search for Triumph Spitfire rotors, any year. They go from $20 in OEM config up to a lot for cross drilled and slotted. Link to the page http://californiacaterhamclub.com/wiki7/pmwiki.php?n=Main.Parts Mike

You might want to post on the California Caterham Club site. Link to their for sale section: http://californiacaterhamclub.com/chat/forumdisplay.php?7-For-Sale-Wanted Mike

The California Caterham Club site has a PDF of the assembly guide under the resource tab that may help. I don't know what years it covers but can't believe there were too many changes over the years.

Its gotta be a bugger getting the car on THAT trailer! I thought the F1 boys were the kings of downforce.

BruceBe do you have a price for each model? Mike

How about a picture under the hood?

Have you tired looking on the LocostUSA forum? They have a for sale section or someone there might give you a lead. Here is a link http://www.locostusa.com/forums/ Mike

I looked through 4 of my books about Lotus and Caterham and they all say it was a Lotus designation. Production began in 1960 with Sprite engines and was the first 7 with clamshells since the cycle fenders were not legal. 0-60mph listed as 14.3 seconds and top speed of 85mph per the R&T article in the previous post. Mike