Taber10

Thanks for posting the picture and the museum--I'll be back in Ohio some day.... Not to take away from the outstanding Lotus 11--or any other Lotus for that matter, but to say that it was the "....most successful..." when there are still at least TWO racing series for the Seven going today may be overplaying the Eleven's successes back in the day and ignoring the LONG STANDING successes of the Seven. Just a thought....

Great video, and I would NEVER criticize anything Jay Leno says about cars, but he does say, "....Caterham and others copied the Lotus....." during the introduction while describing the original Super Seven. I think I could word that more accurately.

Ben, I have an SV--or "Sumo Version" as they are sometimes called, and I can say that for my navigator and myself, we really enjoy the extra room over what the S3 or "classic" Caterham offers. In my case--slightly over 200 lbs, 6ft 3in and of specific importance to this discussion--a size 12 shoe, which practically demands the SV size cockpit, esp. in the footwell. In the late '70s I drove down to Caterham--the town--to check out the Caterham--the car--and squeezed into a "classic" chassis while wearing a pair of boots--big mistake! If you get to NorthWEST Florida, you are welcome to "test fit" my SV.

Sounds like a great trip! Please look for the United States Air Force Museum in DAYTON, Ohio, and not Daytona, Florida.

6. When the hood is installed, it touches the top of the engine. I can imagine this will cause wearing issues quick down the road. I did also find in the garage, a large roll of thermal padding. Maybe he intended to install this into the inside of the hood to help with this? I have the Ford Zetec SVT motor in my 2007 Caterham SV, and ever since delivery in 2007, the underside of the aluminum bonnet has rubbed (lightly, I think!) on the engine. In my case, it rubbed on the very expensive and hard to find variable intake cam timing solenoid. In the Ford Focus, the spark plug valley cover has a "bulge" for this solenoid, and Caterham USA or RMSCI decided to leave this cover off, possibly to lower the profile of the motor. I have modified and reinstalled the cover, because it prominently displays "Powered by SVT" and although I removed the top of the bulge, it does continue to rub. Bottom line, after nearly 10 years, the "damage" is insignificant in my case. Of course, the idea of a thermal padding, if it would resist wear, sounds like a good idea to me.

OK, its a given that I'm not very mechanically inclined, so I'm looking for help. My directional (turn signal) flasher quit working last weekend while I was at a show in New Orleans, in the rain! I have removed the switch, checked it for continuity, checked the fuse, and verified the emergency (four way) flasher works--which verifies the bulbs, wiring, etc. Skip informs me that the four way flasher module does not affect the directional flashers, so I must have another flasher module. It does not APPEAR to be located near the fuse box. Does anyone know where I should look for the directional flasher on a 2007 Caterham SV? I have tried, with my limited physical mobility and an inspection mirror to search under the dash with nothing located. Any suggestions would be appreciated.

Wow--months short of 10 years with my car, and I had never noticed that the two rear wings were not symmetrical! Andy Steinman just posted pictures of his white Caterham with side exit exhaust, and his left rear wing is also "cut short." Now, his was converted from clamshells apparently at some point, so maybe the exhaust was changed from rear exit to side exit also?

Didn't Chris Boardman set some sort of indoor track "hour" record with the Lotus bike? I remember that there was something special done with it. There is one displayed at Barber Motorsport Museum, as that is "also" a "bike" museum! We can refresh our memory at LOG 37 in a couple months....

I haven't registered yet, but I plan on being there. Although it is only about 4.5 hours, I'll probably have to trailer also. But, the trailer gives me a GREAT secure parking spot at night... Taber

Skip, Thanks for the link--I hadn't heard of this publication before, but I've just subscribed. Taber

As you probably know, the Series 4 has a "one-piece" fibreglas nose and bonnet that hinges forward like an e-type. IF you looked under the bonnet and didn't get distracted by the webers, exhaust, etc. there was a baseball sized mud dauber nest that was so old that it appeared to have a varnish over the dirt. Given the whole facility--containing approx 200 cars!--was very clean, I am assuming the bugs were from before the car arrived at this facility, but actually I have no way of dating the nest accurately.....

Yesterday, on my way back from Key West, I stopped to look at this Series 4, mainly because I don't get many opportunities to see a Series 4. I would say that it has some real "patina": there are cracks in the paint--I can't tell about the fiberglass. The exhaust is pretty rusted, I guess to be expected if it has been in Florida's salt air for that long. The agent was very helpful, but not that familiar with 7s--or even British cars for that matter. The showroom has a couple of MGs--a "B" and a "Midget" but primarily the stock is American iron. Couple of Italians there. The Lotus is on consignment from an older collector who has already sold off a couple of De Tomaso's, a Ferrari, etc. through this same outlet, so he isn't that worried that the Lotus has sat for nearly a year. The asking price has dropped from $29,995 to $22,995. One of the tires is flat, and there appears to be evidence of some '70s vintage insect inhabitation under the bonnet. I don't have time for this project as I have to get started on the Lego Caterham I got for Christmas!

Plus One on the non-competitive driving. However, I do look "fast" on my frequent runs to the Post Office.....

A quick look through the Ford Focus forum back at least ten years will show that 1turbofocus is being very modest--he has helped countless guys with the Zetec--I think it would pay to call him since he so generously offered!

I think that is a great price; my "spare" SVT cost nearly that without the bell housing, ECU, "longitudinal" sump, headers, collectors, radiator, fan or clutch pieces. The VCT solenoid may be "priceless" if you didn't have one and didn't want to do the "delete" conversion.

Pickles, Congratulations on your purchase. I suggest you do not let the wife purchase a "Vette": At least here in Florida, during the heat of the summer, it was very hard to jump in the Cat 7SV with the Vette parked there beside it. BUT if you ever get to the Panhandle, I can let her drive a 2015 Convertible....

S5? Took me a minute or two to identify with that. But of course I may not be the sharpest knife in the drawer.....

Joan and I drove the CAT7SV from Ben's place back to Florida's Panhandle in 2007. We wore our Bose Noise-cancelling headsets most of the way, usually removing them in small towns. Just outside of Childress, Texas and Sherriff's car approached from the rear, and followed us into the town. We of course immediately pulled off the headsets, I dropped mine into my lap so he wouldn't see them from behind. At a light in town, he pulled alongside of us, very close, and I happened to look up to see his passenger--a uniformed officer--staring right down at the headsets. But, when the light changed he took off, and outside of town we resumed wearing the headsets. They really help. But I like the idea of an intercom setup, like motorcycles use, but I'd like to find something that isn't designed to go with a helmet, like the ones I've found, or as expensive as the aircraft systems seem to be.

....Lots of Trouble Usually Serious! Just saying...

Bob, Thanks for posting these pictures! Also, for the news about LOG 37 in May. Since I have an Elan M100 and a Caterham, I was pretty sure I needed to make another LOG, and Barber's (Birmingham area) is "close" to me. Do you want to comment on how the Non-Lotus Sevens were received in NJ? It was NOT a problem at Barbers, but I wasn't as sure in Gettysburg, PA. Thanks, Taber

IF I were going, I KNOW I would need help with my suspension......

theduke, Welcome aboard! I didn't know there was another LSIS in the panhandle, although at our Brits on the Bay car show in April, another Caterham--1989 S3--showed up from the Atlanta area. Last year we had Tripp's recently restored Lotus 7 S2, featured in the Nov 2014 issue of Hemmings. I don't autocross, but it would be neat to watch your car some day--it looks good sitting still, and as you mentioned, looks very fast on the course. Taber

Can anyone offer an opinion about a '74 Lotus 7 Series 4 (http://www.taylormadeclassiccars.com/sevens4.html) made in New Zealand by Steel Brothers? Basically, would it have the same collectability as a UK produced Lotus? Would parts interchange? (Not really an issue--who has S4 parts....) But mainly, would this detract from the value? Just wondering if anyone has an opinion. Thanks,

Again I'm glad I have the SV--as you know everything is bigger and has more clearance on the SV, so the door locks presumably don't jam as bad!

Looks a lot like Gert's. He's on here.