James A

Jim, I've used Cometic gaskets and ARP studs on street engines and race engines and have done a number of rebuilds and had no issue, here are some things I do on each rebuild though: -Deck the head and block to insure they are flat and have the correct surface finish. -Use the ARP thread lube when assembling, use it sparingly -Use the recommended 3 stage tightening sequence and absolutely follow the correct torque order -Once the head studs are torqued I walk away and recheck the following day and proceed with the rebuild -ARP has a stretch limit for their head studs, once they have a permanent set beyond a certain point don't reuse the studs they can yield, follow ARP recommendations -Although I don't use this, some very experienced builders recommend copper-kote be sprayed on the gasket surfaces -Always chase the threads in the block, if a head stud does not seat by hand all the way there are a number of issues that can occur -Make sure the threads in the block are cleaned out of all liquids and particles and use the ARP thread lube sparingly -Insure the washers and nut surfaces are smooth with no abrasions I'm sure others can add to this list, good luck.

Lots of good suggestions here, but I think your tire pressures are way too low. Toyo recommends 17-22psi cold and 22-29psi hot. On a typical autocross run you will not generate enough sustained heat to get to the hot recommended pressure. I would start with 22 psi cold and experiment with even higher pressure and monitor tire pressure between runs to see what you are actually gaining.

This is terrific news I have sourced my engine and gearbox from Jon when I built my 7 in 2002 and have since bought many parts and sought advice from Jon. I am glad he is back!

In my experience when a T9 is over filled the oil leaks out of the selector shaft at the front of the gearbox and drips on the ground under the joint between the bell housing and gearbox. I have never seen one leak out of the small breather hole on the top cover, I suppose it is possible but I haven't seen it. And, unless you have added a fill plug on top cover of the gearbox, as many have, it is hard to over fill it from the normal fill plug on the side of the box as it runs out when it is at the correct fill. I guess you could have the gearbox really un-level as you fill it but it would have to be really out of level. Are you sure it is not coming from a breather hose on the engine, or some other source? A little over a liter if the box is dry (if it is a refill a liter would be good) is the correct fill amount for the Type N T9 five speed

I have done 4, T9 overhauls now but they were all 5 speeds I don't know how similar they are to the Cat 6 speed though. Here you go: https://www.dropbox.com/s/4i6b4ll85wqsfu2/%27N%27_Transmission.pdf

I have had many sets of wheels powdered coated and the heat used would have no effect on aluminum wheels! There is a great local powder coater near me who does a lot of automobile components, wheels, suspension parts, frames, brake calipers, etc.

i highly recommend having suspension components powdered coated. Once the bushings are removed send them to a local powder coater, if you can't find one there is one near me who does a great job on suspension components, wheels, frames, etc.

If it is the original Girling clutch master cylinder you can buy a rebuild kit from Pegasus Racing for around $20, it is very easy to rebuild. https://www.pegasusautoracing.com/productselection.asp?Product=3504

If appearance is an issue just buy caliper paint, the really good purpose made kits, and paint your calipers. When I rebuilt the Girling front brakes on the race car I painted them a matching color to the car:

Also if you look at Paul's (pksurveyor) pictures above the upper is the Cather 4 pots the lower is the Girling 2 pot.

Post a picture of them and let's see if someone can id them.

I have a street/autocross/track day Caterham SV with he AP 4 pots and an EP Race car that is required to have the Girling 2 pots here are the differences that I can attest to: The brake pad life on the 4 pots is significantly longer. The feel, ability to finely modulate the brakes is better on the 4 pots. Other than that, the car can be stopped in a similar distance, I have never experienced any fade of either brake. The two pots are super easy to rebuild yourself with a $25 kit, I haven't had to rebuild the 4 pots yet. My 4 pots fit inside a set of Caterham 13" wheels, but with just a couple of millimeters to spare. If you have the Girling 2 pots they are terrific brakes!

Mintex 1144 front and rear on the uprated 4 piston fronts, they work great on the street and on the track and no squealing at all. Also be sure to flush the brake fluid and use a high temp fluid.

Here is the Avon recommendation: http://www.avonmotorsport.com/road-legal/performance/zzs As to the lugs, the Caterham manual for my car list the torque as 55 lbft (75Nm) and warns not to over tighten. We retrofitted ARP lugs and tighten them to 75 lbft, for track/racing application.

Which Avon tires are you using and what size? Are your lugs standard Caterham issue or have you replaced them with an upgraded lug?

I have found Aeromotive fuel pressure regulators to be very well made and reliable: https://bit.ly/2t6RwfX

Very nice! Every drive is an adventure.

If the car has been tracked or autocross with R Comp tires in the past I would check each weld on the De Dion tube especially the welds that hold the end plates on. Check the De Dion aluminum ears, you likely have the old style that have a large hole in them rather than a web, these crack through and that leads to a rear tire going in a different direction. Again, if you are going to run R Comps I would install an Accusump or similar device as it is easy to starve the engine of oil in long sweeping turns.

Pegasus racing here: https://www.pegasusautoracing.com/advcat.asp?CategoryID=HARDQR

Andy, it will somewhat depend on what year the car's current registration is. You can see the Texas regulations for registration of an imported car here: https://bit.ly/1nuWdpO If you look around this this site there are also forms for home built vehicles, although the import registration looks easier.

That is the set up used in the Elan and Cortina, the engine could have been an early Lotus 7 set up but the headers are all wrong for a 7. Definitely not Europa as it is a Ford gearbox. The headers make me think Cortina as I don't believe the ones pictured would have cleared the firewall of the Elan. Elan headers have to drop almost straight down and are four in to one with one pipe under the car and very little room for that one pipe.

Cam, I'm with you A7s for autocross because they stick from launch and don't need a lot of heat in them, and R7s for track although on cold days I track the A7s. The only issue you may need to look in to is the camber on the car. Sounds like the car may be set up for bias ply tires with very low camber. For A7/R7s you will want the 1.5 or 2.0 degree camber ears in the rear and set the front close to the same. As an alternative to the R7s for track take a look at the Hoosier radial race tire, we run Hoosier 43549 in S80 compound on the E Production race car. These are somewhat narrow because we are restricted on wheel size and this is the biggest tire we can use on the rims SCCA allows us to run. If you have larger wheels you can find wider tires, the S80 compound serves us well in Road racing.

This business in Oxford, CT: Quantumechanics at http://www.quantumechanics.com

I bought the Ford Focus Chilton manual for the year of my Zetec engine and use the wiring diagram in that combined with the Caterham manual.

I did go look at the SP Components website, they have some nice bits and pieces, thank you for the reference. I am still using the original gearbox in my Caterham I built in 2002, with a lot of autocross and track days on it, I think the T9s are good in our application. We just had some questionable expensive rebuilds on the Caterham race car, I hope I have solved that by doing it myself. And, unfortunately the shop supplying parts, Quantum Mechanics went silent, simply stopped responding to e-mails or calls, I'm not at all sure what has happened. There is a supplier in Ft. Worth but man oh man they are expensive. Still working the UK angle to see who has all the parts and will ship to the US.