Legs

Front suspension, yea surely I can get the upper and lower wishbones on in a couple hours. Starting with the lower, only 4 bolts, easy! Well 3.5 hours later, the lower wishbones are on. Torqued up, then untorqued, then torqued, aaand untorqued again. I couldn't get them to sit level when torqued as some blogs suggest as it is a not so easy task to tighten them up when on wheels, but I'll follow the manual on this one and figure it out when it comes time to drop it down. I had a good time getting the last washer in, as seems to be the norm. The holes were 1-2mm off on the LHS, so that took some figuring out, but the threads eventually pulled right on through. I think I've to instill a personal rule: however long I think a task will take, multiply it by 3, and that's how long it will take. Time for a beer.

I've been slow to provide any updates, sorry. But thank you for prompting me to do so!! First couple weeks were busy (wrong kind) with work and covid knocking both of us out, but had a productive past two weekends! First one was all about preparation; bubble wrap and cardboard the body, pool noodles / oil hose cover the cross bars, spraying some dinitrol around the grot traps in the engine bay, confirming components, etc. This past weekend, we got the gearbox mated to the engine on Saturday along with engine install prep - removing the alternator, starter, serpentine belt, plenum, clearing the engine mount threads, taping wires down, and then protecting the cam headers. Everything takes longer than it will in my head hahaa. Sunday was engine install day! Ultimately it went very smoothly - the hours of researching other blogs and planning paid off. From my friend arriving with his hoist to wrenches down was 4 hours including coffee and lunch breaks! And despite him thinking we would be installing and removing 3 times, we never had to raise the hoist more than a few mill. The only unexpected thing to work around was the gearbox mount holes simply would not align enough for the 4 mount to chassis bolts to seat, so that requires a tiny bit of filing. So all in all, I think it was very good. Big thanks to Josh at RMC for alleviating any and all of my worries about, well everything. You can read about the extremely tight fit of the gearbox over and over, but man, experiencing it is another thing. We managed to only scrape 2 small portions of the reflective insulation, which was an easy, and anticipated, patch job for some aluminum tape I bought ahead of time for just the task. Last night I got the starter and alternator back on, so next up is front suspension! I wish the kit was delivered a few months ago when I was on a planned sabbatical, as my new job started up and thus takes some priority, but I'm still making time to keep the wrenches turning!

Any follow-up on these lights after a few years of use? I'm very interested in upgrading headlights for improved safety. As discussed, the Caterham ones are really expensive because of UK certifications which are pointless in the US. But I'm also leery of Chinese electeonics when it comes to safety equipment.

Nearly two years have passed and it's finally here! Very much looking forward to the build process. Josh at RMC is amazing! Options added to the base 420R: 4-piston calipers Battery cutoff Trackday rollbar Sidescreen armrests Carbon seats Sequential shift lights Lowered floor 620 nosecone 620 carbon dash (I love those toggles!)

I'm the guy from 'a little up north'! 😆 Congratulations! Thanks for doing the crate unboxing and removal first, the driver knew exactly what needed to happen and we were offloaded in 30 minutes!

It's always a good time hanging out with you all. Thank you EVERYONE for continuing to share your experiences and wisdoms. I look forward to finally being able to join on track next year. It's time to build!! -Legaré