theDreamer

I wish I could say the same. Chris informed me last Thursday July 10 around noon EST that my parts were packed and waiting for Fedex pick up. GREAT, I thought. I asked for a tracking number once he had it but he never replied. That could be due to legal issues because the parts were order and paid for by the body shop not me. Anyway, yesterday I contacted the body shop and asked for an update. They emailed me late this afternoon Wednesday July I6 to say: as of today at 3:38 pm the parts were in Feltham. That’s like a suburb of London which is about 220 miles or 4 1/2 hours’ drive down the M1 from Redline’s shop. That’s over five days to go 220 miles! I’m NOT a happy camper. I know this may have nothing to do with Chris but it irks me to no end that NOBODY seems to give a flying F… how long it takes to fix our Caterham. 73 days since the incident and still waiting.

This car just listed on BaT is going to generate lots of discussion. https://bringatrailer.com/listing/caterham-seven/

I’ve learned that Chris Mintoft, (Redline Components) is a one man operation. He doesn’t always answer the phone because his out the back filing orders or sitting at a computer answering emails. I tried ordering parts using his on-line system last year. Some of those feel through the cracks. However, Chris was able to supply me with perhaps the last known NOS HPC nose badge in captivity. (Yes it was pricey) I suggested that the appraiser and the body shop try him first for all the parts needed to repair our seven. Chris submitted his estimate back on May 27th. I understand that it took time to verify everything and for the appraiser to sign off on it but still that was 44 days ago. So I PM’d Chris via Facebook yesterday to see if he'd got the go ahead. He replied that he’d just put the parts order out for FedEx to pick it up. I’m not sure when he got the the nod, what he had in stock or what he had to search for and frankly I don’t care anymore. What matters is the parts are on their way and Earl at the body shop as guaranteed that our car will be finished two weeks from the day he receives the parts. Once I get the car back I’ll go through my list of things I think I need or should have on hand and then will place another order with Chris.

It was bad timing with the holiday long weekend taking most eyes away from the auction. One would think it should pick up now. 1&3) I don’t see the colour or lettering & stripes as being a negative as these items are just cosmetic. Easy to add a nose band, center strip or rocker panel letters afterwards. 2) It would have made more sense if the front fenders had been carbon fibre to match the rear fender stone guards. Otherwise yes, body colour would work better. I find the huge gap between the rear tires and fenders to be more off putting but who cares when you’re enjoying the view from the driver’s seat, eh? Also the misaligned exhaust plus damage seen behind the muffler does not make for a good first impression. Fixable and should have been corrected before the photo shoot. 4) Agree, missing heater would knock down my max bid limit if I were bidding. 5) Correct, not the fastest Cat but enough for a first time Seven owner to enjoy. As I stated in the comments; This looks to be a good car for the uninitiated to get a taste of a truly analog automobile. Better videos would help this sale a lot too. Bidders want/NEED to hear all the mechanical sounds. Wind noise and whipped hair does nothing to enhance the ad.

I do not believe that is the case. My car came with two different spare tire brackets. One has a single arm and therefore only uses a single lug nut. That is what is on my car now with the OEM 16” HPC wheels. It is still in the body shop, DON’T ASK, so I cannot take a photo of it. But the second bracket is like mrmustang’s photo with two arms for two lug nuts. It’s shown in the circle with other parts that came with my car. I cannot see Caterham making up four different drill jigs for four different wheel diameters (let alone consider different sidewall heights) so the spare tire will sit nicely on spare tire frame. It would make more sense to have one hole set for halfway between the center of the 14” and 15” rim sizes with a bracket that would work for those sizes. Then have an adaptable bracket for the other rim sizes. I know this is plausible because I have seen a Caterham 1700 Sprint which was shipped with Revolution wheels, I assume 14” when first ordered. Later the original owner had James Whiting make a number of changes. One was to modify the mounting bolt and the accessories (I assume the bracket) to fit 16” HPC wheels. See the final line items at a cost of 30 GBP on the work sheet.

Hmmm... It maybe registered as a '61 series 2 but those look like the newer style Caterham rear fenders and instrument lay out.

Most urgently needed, one KN Caterham Cars alloy wheel size 7Jx16 from an early 1990’s HPC. Would prefer one in like new, near mint condition. It MUST use the alloy wheel lug nut cover, NOT the plastic cover. I would prefer no road rash, blisters or blemishes but open to a good solid wheel. This is to replace my damaged wheel and must match the other four. My HPC can be seen in the May 2024 issue of Lowflying magazine, “A Glass and a Half”. This was a low mileage, all original 1993 HPC and I wish it to be as close to original after repairs are finished as when I received the car in March of 2024. Please include crating and shipping to K0K 2C0 Ontario Canada in your price.

I will join the others to say thank you to all who took the time to design and/or critique the different designs. Most importantly kudos to @Slonie for all the work he did on his design and @JohnCh for championing this change for the 20 year anniversary. P.S. I have to add that I LOL'd when I first saw the small image at the top of the page. Everything looks great except the .net is so small it looks more like steam rising from the rad area. Just made me chuckle as I know some of us have had over heating issues.

ah... Because the drivers belts will be certified and in date for competition, (and probably purchased elsewhere) whereas the passenger belts are the standard street legal, (not for competition use) Caterham supplied items.

Sorry, I thought I had posted this car back in February when I posted one of the Bug Eye Car Guys video. As for this S2 replica the only fault I can find is that the steering wheel does not fit the period that the rest of this car evokes.

Yesterday the appraiser sent in his estimate based on Redlines quote and the dreaded flat rate book. Insurance sure has changed since the last time we made a claim. They don't seem to want to be involved and are happy to leave it all up to me. I had to pay for the towing and storage bill (long story) although they did send me a cheque to cover it after the fact. Also, I'm the one who is contracting the work to be done, not the insurance company. They wanted to send me a cheque as a buyout but only for the amount of the estimate. Any extras would be on me to cover. Instead they are sending me a cheque but made out to the body shop. That way when things start going over budget (as they will) the body shop will negotiate for the extra money whereas I’d be screwed. So as soon as I get the cheque and deliver it to the body shop they will order the parts from Redline and schedule it in. We also made arrangements with another shop to do any of the mechanical work that the body shop is not able to do. That includes a four wheel computer alignment. Now the waiting begins. I still have not located a new wheel and the estimate only allowed $140 for the damaged wheel’s repair. Plus, the appraiser didn’t allow any money for a new tire. Yeah, like I’m going to drive on that tire after it was compressed so hard that it warped the rim. Now we are in that hurry up and wait stage.

What diameter and width wheel? They did make several different mounts that were wheel dependent. I know this because one of the Caterham sevens I was looking to buy had been converted from 14” five spoke Revolution wheels to the 16” HPC wagon wheels. The invoice for the work clearly showed that a new mounting bracket was purchased for the 16” spare wheel. My car came with two. One uses a single lug nut and the other is a double lug nut. The single is on the car and the double came with the spares. (see image) Sorry, I’m not selling either of mine but thought you should know that not all mounts are the same.

Ah… the beautiful little Hawaiian seven is back up again.

This car has been up for sale several times before. I do believe this is a price drop from the last time I saw it listed. Not sure what the deal is. The photos make it look to be near mint as per the mileage given. However, as I’ve recently learned not everything is as it appears. The very first car I ever owned has come up for sale. It seems the original owner (I was the second owner) tracked it down a purchased it back in the 1990’s. He then did an extensive body off nut and bolt full restoration. The photos look fantastic and the price reflects such a meticulous, spare no expense professional job. The problem is the newest photos were taken in 2007 when the car was nearly fresh out of the shop at 59k. The family selling the car state it now has over 100k and have no recent photos. They claim it’s stored in a hard to reach area so who knows what it looks like now. It may be a similar reason why this car is still unsold. Someone in the area with a true interest should look into it. I may be totally wrong and this is a true find that might be purchased at a reasonable price.

As a young boy my family travelled all over the states. My dad followed the unlimited boats, went to the big air shows and antique car meets. I know we went through Montana a couple of times but it was just another wonderful vista for me to view from the back seat. As adults the wife and I have done the same. First trip was to Marblehead Ma. to meet Dave Kaplan of DSK cars. Then as a motorcycle racer, more car adventures, harp guitarist, (look that one up) and finally as Ducati club members. And you know what? We have always met the nicest people. Might be the likeminded groups we hung with or the towns we visited. Plus I’m sure our Ontario plates and Canadian speech had something to do with it, eh? But we’ve found that in most places the vast majority of people are warm, friendly and interesting. This is not to say we haven’t had a problem or two but I think the greater majority are decent folk where ever you go. I’d like to revisit Montana and Utah as an adult at some point.

Just saw this 1963 Lotus 1500 Super 7 Series 2 listed in Canton Ohio. https://www.facebook.com/marketplace/item/1730692644199252

Highly recommended. My car has no visible stars on the rears but multiples on each front fender. It was part of the 30+ years of patina so I was not worried about it. Now I’m not sure if I’ll get both touched up or leave ‘em.

“…I am not likely to finish before I am 70 years old.” You mean 70 years young, eh? Owning a seven will make you a kid again. (Not that I ever grew up.) “I have found places in Vancouver that will store collectible cars, at a reasonable price.” What do you consider reasonable? I know what people have to pay for storage in Toronto and I thought Vancouver was even higher. Don’t mind me I’m just pushing your buttons. Welcome to the addiction. Your parameters for choosing a se7en are quite reasonable actually. There is nothing wrong with a solid carbureted car whether a Ford Xflow or if you’re lucky a twin cam Lotus powered car. You’d be surprise though how much knowledge there is here for the other engine makes. I have a 2L Vauxhall powered Caterham and there is a repair shop in Kingston (about an hour’s drive east) where the mechanic is well versed with the C20xe having been trained in Old Blighty. There is also a growing number of Lotus Elise S1’s and early S2’s with the Rover K series engine here in Canada. So you can find people to help you should you purchase a seven powered by one of those. There is lots of support across Canada from British specialty shops, sports car clubs and racers. We have several members in this group plus on other social media sites that own sevens and live in BC. I’m not familiar with Peugeot drive trains in sevens but then there is a lot I do not know. So, have at it! Find what suits your needs in good nick at a price you can live with and enjoy it.

Anyone here ever drive one of these? I’m sure it shares some characteristics with the seven but I’m also sure it is a very different experience. Comments, criticisms and anyone here going to bid? https://bringatrailer.com/listing/2000-lotus-elise-340r-5/

The Sigma engine was also known as the Zeta but for legal reasons Ford was forced to change the name. They chose Zetec then later they changed it again to Duratec. Ford built them in 1.2L up to 1.7L then jumped to 2.0L with aftermarket performance builders going as big as 2.3L. (At least I do not think Ford released a 2.3L version.) As for the LSD, raise the rear wheels off the ground enough that you can spin them. Turn one and if the other rotates in the same direction and speed it’s a LSD. If the other wheel does not turn or rotates in the opposite direction it’s not a LSD.

EdWills, you must have missed all the posts about my Purple Reign. It is definitely an Arch Motors chassis (see image). Earl is confident that any frame tubes can be brought back into alignment and that no chassis welds will be affected. The upper wish bone will be replaced, lower too if need be. There should be no need to strip the car. The damage appears mostly contained to the left front corner with some force being sent further as I indicated. Earl was quite sure that he would not need to remove anything more than the damaged parts.

So did you buy RickRa’s 280? It should have adjustable seats. They may just be stuck. Also, for now you can use a pillow to sit on. My wife made this one for me and it just does the trick perfectly.

Oh the joys of dealing with insurance companies. Nobody told us that it was our responsibility to find a body shop, a mechanical repair shop and arrange towing. The adjuster should have explained all this to us during one of our numerous phone calls or sent an email. The insurance company wanted the car moved ASAP so as not to pay anymore storage fees then necessary. However, they can’t just give the towing company a credit card number over the phone. Oh no, they have to cut a check and it may take 7 – 10 days to arrive. Meanwhile the towing company isn’t going to release the car until the bill is paid. Catch 22 as the insurance company will not issue a check without knowing the exact amount and the towing company cannot give them an exact amount until they know when the check will arrive. So, I had to pay the bill including the added charges to move the car 4.8 kilometers to the collision centre that will be doing the repairs. Now I get to wait the 7-10 days! The car arrived at the body shop where Earl (the shop owner) and I went over it. WOW, worse than I thought and we did not do a complete investigation. Things like the wheel bearing, tie rod, steering rack, main frame rails etc. all still have to be evaluated. I understood that the rim and tire would be toast. Same for the upper wish bone rod end. What I didn’t see was how bent the upper wish bone and upper suspension pickup points were. You can see in the image how far back the rubber boot on the sway bar has been moved by the amount of exposed bar. The upper shock mount is about ½” back and the upper wish bone shows cracked and flaking paint both on the bars and the welds. The lower wish bone mounting bolt is bent revealing a gap between the washers and the pivot mount. The diagonal bar running past the headers is warped about 3/8” as is the brace running from the top left to bottom right near the steering rack. Now we wait for the appraiser to make his appearance and then hammer out a dollar amount.