IamScotticus

Need pics of the roll bar mount not "ARB", which is sometimes confused with anti-sway bar. Most post 90s DeDion and all Caged chassis and thereafter are metric. Metric fasteners are used mostly throughout the chassis and rear shock tower mounts are located differently. If you go around and check the various suspension bolt heads, they should be metric for metric chassis. Therefore forward roll bar mounts aren't interchangeable between chassis. Due to all the changes made, its risky to buy a seconnd hand rollbar unless you know its made for your chassis. And no, Des's RB will not fit your DeDion. I think the best you can do is get a "standard" DeDion RB without a diagonal. For example, this bar on a '97, isn't forward sweeping, its vertical. it has canted sides that mimic the profile of the windscreen. https://caterhamparts.co.uk/road-bars/2897-rollbar-standard-s3-metric-chassis.html

@MV8 I totally get what you've said about keeping the projects small but she's not a runner until some big things get done. Motor needs to come out for lower seals and a flywheel surface as I was leakling oil and chattering. Master cylinder is frozen and brake lines have corrosion on tops of many lines. I don't trust them. I have a few upgrades and side projects lined up. I have a V6 T9, clutch parts and prop shaft ready to go in. I have this crazy idea of a downdraught carb (who would do a thing like that?) so I have an original Cortina manifold and 32/32 DFM I rebuilt. I have a few other minor projects to toss in during the refresh. For an individual, I have ammassed a respectable collection of spares, seals, gaskets, etc. I have almost everything for a dry sump but that will wait till after I have a runner going. So, yea, I will need to avoid having a multiple project quagmire going on, but I won't be driving before engine and brakes. The 15 yo tires are already cracked. You don't see cracks on the surface but when strapped down on a trailer, they open up under compression. I doubt they're good for anything but slow test running.

I'm not really making a build thread here, but since I have neglected Beater for the last fifteen years, and severely neglected her the last twelve years in one of the worst climates USA has to offer, its amazing that I'm dealing with minor cosmetic issues and other items that would need rebuilding after so much time e.g. the master cylinder being 26 yo, lower seals etc, It's pretty much a given this ride isn't rolling until a lot of stuff gets taken apart. So, its a lot like a build thread. What I did right in my 7 journey is I bought the car mostly complete, having to source the engine in Washington State and the rolling chassis on the East coast, and other bits gathered along the way, it all came together in Ft Worth at BAS where Jeff and cohorts know their stuff being Brit make specialists and 7 racers. When I brought my pile of parts to BAS the lead mechanic asked me why I bought a Caterham? My answer was "So I can bring this to someone like you and you know what you have". And in short order I had a running car I proceeded to destroy. Almost. Actually I proceeded to upgrade several parts like seats, wipers, scuttle, windscreen, all the bits to get close to Roadsport spec pretty. Then I tore it up driving it onto a U-haul trailer hooking the muffler on the apex which removed the rear wing clean off. My perfectionism was severely damaged and SDKLLKRSS got set aside. Life, roommates, wives, careers and other toys got between us for the next twelve years. Some guys get these cars as retirement toys and neglect them as they get too old or broke to enjoy them. I got my car when I was young and broke, neglected it, and am now back into it as I get older with more $ to spare. Not the best way to go about it I'll admit, but both me and Beater are still in good shape whereas had I kept driving, we would probably be much more banged up by now. I don't know. All I know is (1) I should have bought a DeDion Xflow with T-9 and Ford hubs & (2) Im really happy with the chassis I have. The mid 90s imperial Arch chassis with the top wishbone are probably the best live axle cars they made. Although the powder coat was inferrior, as I'm discovering. So I have had to come to a reckoning with my perfectionism. The car will never be perfect; hell, it never was. But if Im going to get progress going on it, I have to stop chasing the idealistic and just let the ugly bits be ugly. The smiles will be there, the cell phones will come out of car windows, I will be asked questions at every stoplight and fuel fillup. I just have to remember they don't have my microscope for detail and won't care about the dents, dings and the pressed in carb fuel inlet barb that should be replaced with a threadded barbs or the calliper guide pins should be safety wired. They won't know about stuff like that. So she will be named "Beater" and she will be a rough and rowdy road warrior terrorizing the city streets once again. Before Im dead. Today I turned the engine and wiped down the chassis with WD-40. Why WD-40? Its what I have. Yes, those are rusty rotors. The red cable wraps are flags to remind me the suspension is loosened. They need to be on all the front arms. All this stuff needs to come out and the tubes touched up. Rust abatement is #1 priority now.

@ProfGriff What is the PCD?

I would disagree. Des's bar is very early Cat standard bar, wrapped in foam padding, with a diagonal added by someone, which could be removed. Very vertical. This is an FIA

Must specify DeDion or Live Axle, Metric or Imperial. A simple Rollbar would be so easy for someone to weld up, consider getting a welder to make a jig based on your bar and making one to your spec.. This is my plan to replace my FIA. I want a DeDion style standard bar for an Imperial live axle, but it was never made (TIKO) so I need to have one made. It won't be cheap, but neither will buying a bar to find it doesn't fit or got bent in the shipping. It works out about the same.

Nawwwww...Don't do anything crazy like that!

So, are you dry sumping the steel pan or staying wet? I don't know what bottom end I have but it's probably Cat OE. I passed on a really snug looking used Vegantune cast sump for a beat up rusty (was) FF style steel sump to hopefully avoid any fitment issues and being steel, is repairable. Its in the hands of a race prep shop now getting a facelift.

I thought I made it clear I supported his effort. I was only suggesting he put his money into a complete project instead. I will try to fix it. @J1000 This forum is for all Seven regardless of make or state. My opinion was meant to be a suggestion that getting into a more complete 7 is a better start that starting from what is there. You may not get a lot of help from me on it, but there are plenty of guys with the skill sets to help you aling the way. Please dont let me be the sole representative here. Like I said, I do wish you well with your project. I sincerely hope it gets going and doesn't languish on for years luke so many do. Thats all I meant.

OK, so tell everyone what you decided on!

COSTCO is $300 off on these QuickJacks. https://www.costco.com/quickjack-5000tl-portable-car-lift-system.product.100833778.html My take on these is one should have some competency assembling hydraulic systems as the setup and bleed is critical. Its probably the best solution for the small 2 car low ceiling garage. I don't know how well they fit on our cars. I suppose with the skillset one could create a perfectly fitting system for chassis lifting. Negative reviews indicate some issues with fitting defects, missing parts and poor manufacturers support (MIChina). I would suggest collecting it from the COSTCO warehouse and refusing it there if not complete. Should be ideal for drive up lifting under the wheels. Don't use in earthquake areas.

Just for the sake of discussion, isn't it a fact that coolant flowing slower with higher pressure will absorb more heat than a faster coolant flow?

Might want a restrictor in place of a thermostat to slow down the water flow.

I suppose opening the heater circuit or unplugging the intake manifold coolant circuit and pluming into the water pump could help alleviate hot spots while warming up. I suppose one would need to know what the running trmp is without a thermostat.

Is that available from Cat? They tend to list parts by car model designation. What model is is?

Can we see the buckles? is there a submarine strap?

Nice header tank. Who's is it?

Its much easier to tell the admirers its a Lotus than to explain what a Caterham is. Everybody know Lotus. Im going to make a sticker with one of those QR scans that directs to a website.

What is Mr. Murray known for?

How are the brakes?

Any resolution?

These are available at Caterham. Should work on Escorts and T9s https://caterhamparts.co.uk/clutch-cables/2568-clutch-cable-lhd-de-dion-vxrv-and-live-axle-95.html They aren't known for reliability (First Line FKC1020)so get a few. They shear at the eyelet crimp. If anyone knows a better cable, chime in.

Vibration?

Have the 7 delivered to a specialist like Rocky Mountain to sort it before export. It can be adjusted for your driving style. Any parts can be swap traded. get what you need while its still here.

How do you get it?