jfgw

I actually quite like the sound of it - V6's can be quite musical... Still long for the days of the V12 Ferrari's though....humph!

Just back from the UK and a couple of days at the Goodwood Festival of Speed. A side note, if anyone is considering attending in the future I could not recommend it highly enough. Standing next to Hans Stuck, Nick Mason, Jacky Ickx with numerous Le Mans Porsche 917's, Auto Union's, Mercedes SLR 300 (#658) etc is almost indescribable, and there are just so many like this... Anyway, back to the point. I had the chance to take a few photo's and talk to Dan (the person who engineered the 620R), and ask a few questions. Photo's I took are here - http://s1209.photobucket.com/user/jfgw/library/Caterham%20at%20Goodwood%20Festival%20of%20Speed%202013?sort=2&page=1 I also have tons of others from the event which I will put in another album and create a separate thread. Info I gathered: The 620R is in an S3 chassis, not an SV. Has only been engineered so far for a RHD chassis - they have not done a LHD one so far. There are some significant challenges with pipework routing which would need some re-engineering. Crank in the 2.0 Duratec is stock but pistons and rods are forged. Compression ratio has been lowered to 9.5:1 by using a different head gasket. Supercharger is Rotrex - believed to be available from them separately, but whole kit is not currently available separately from the entire car. They would not remove the nose cone, but there is a water-based intercooler as well as an oil cooler and the water radiator. The revised vents in the nose greatly aid cooling and so far (based on the race series) they have had no overheating issues. It has been mid to high 80s in the UK recently too. ECU is an MBE unit - different than the R500, mapped for 94/95 RON There may be other info I gathered but can't remember - let me know if you have more questions. I have to say for 50k GBP on the road, the car was just awesome - beautifully finished and apparently Alexander Rossi drove it up the Goodwood hill right after he drove the Caterham F1 car and said F*** that's fast.... high praise indeed. I did watch it go up the hill and even though it was in the Supercar section with various other quick cars, it did appear to be very quick. I WANT ONE!!! James

Yep, I'm keen to know all about retrofitting the supercharger and all the cooling gubbins to a Duratec in the US - at what appears to be low boost, and so that we can use it with 93 octane, are the internals strengthened at all over a normal Duratec or Cosworth sourced one? Hopefully they'll be knowledgeable and happy to talk...

Will do Tom. James

I will be at the Festival of Speed tomorrow and Saturday and will do my best to get some photo's as well as find out a little more about the packaging and cooling challenges and solutions. Love that video - WANT ONE!!!

Tom, PM replied regarding your Superlight. Thanks, James

Hi guys - just putting this back to the top in case anyone else is considering selling. Ideally looking for a Superlight or similar... Thanks, James

I received a little more info: "Yes, I built the car in 1999/2000; no limited slip; 7K miles; wet sump; Sierra 5 speed; never overheated, standard brakes; DeDion"

Are there any pictures or details available online anywhere? Also Craig, this car does not have a title for road conversion, correct? Thanks, James

WOW! Retired, with 2 Caterhams and organizing a 7 register in Cape Town - PERFECTION! Good for you James

Thanks Mike - very classic looking example! Mike M - I'm in Powell, NW Columbus.

Hi everyone, Some of you may remember me from my 2.1 Vauxhall-engined and Quaife sequential equipped Caterham I sold last year. That was the most difficult car sale I ever made, and as I suspected, I am now looking for another Caterham So I wanted to post this ad to let everyone know I am in the market. Please let me know what is out there, still for sale or being considered for sale. Many thanks, James

Really great video, good find! I'll start another thread in the general area about feasibility of building an R600 over here...

Sorry, these items are no longer for sale.

All, with a heavy heart, I need to announce that my Caterham has been sold . Good news though is that the car is going to a very good home and a fellow member on this site, who I will let introduce themselves in their own time. The real question though is how long I will be able to last without a 7.....

It has occured to me that I have a very wide range of price on this thread, so wanted to update this to let anyone who is interested know that I am looking for offers >$50k. I am not in a hurry to sell the car, and am looking forward to enjoying it in 2012, but will sell the car for the right bid. Thanks, James

Bringing this back to the top following some discussion in the General Discussion forum

Kitcat - I don't want to hijack this thread so we can talk on the for sale thread I put in my original link. It has a 98 Arch motors frame - carbon spec a la superlight, built by Chris at sevens & elans, 2.1 VX C20XE lump.

My car might fit the bill for you if you'd like to chat. I have not been trying to sell it very hard at all as I absolutely LOVE it, but I will let it go for the right deal... http://usa7s.com/vb/showthread.php?t=6768 Thanks, James

Zuspiel, I actually drive the car on the road 99% of the time - I have only done 2 trackdays at Mid-Ohio in the car. Without the screen, roof or doors, you really don't hear the straight-cut as much as when the weather equipment is on, so that's not a big deal. The sequential box also feels like a thoroughly engineered unit, which is very enjoyable to use, even when 'pottering around', with the ability to provide breath-taking acceleration when the opportunity presents itself. The car is also pretty docile at low revs, and because of the torquey nature, doesn't need to be driven above 4000 rpm just to run smoothly like a lot of more-peaky engines. I don't have the normal Caterham seats - I replaced them with the tillets a few weeks into ownership of the car, and love the tillets - surprisingly comfortable as you don't move around at all! Good luck with your search. James

Pretty cool...http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/formula_one/15579228.stm

Terry - Southampton, or at least Hampshire is home in the UK.

Thanks, yes it is! QED states 245bhp on the Q450 cams with injection set-up, as a 2 liter. I have not put the car on a rolling road, but with the extra capacity and the head-work, I would imagine 250bhp at least wouldn't be unreasonable. Wheels are 13" - as is the spare set. Tires are 185/60 13 (F) and 205/60 13 ®.

Sorry for the delay - for those who have requested engine bay pics, please follow the photobucket link http://s1209.photobucket.com/albums/cc400/jfgw/Caterham%207/ Thanks for your interest. James

here is the link to my other thread describing the engine build and lots of pics http://usa7s.com/vb/showthread.php?t=4974&highlight=jfgw