Croc

And there is also a good chance the SV/CSR driver will have a muffin top in the S3!

I know I have not had my coffee but I had to re-read this post 3 times! Must be the inner Democrat coming out Tom? :seeya: However, I think your assertion is that an R500 cannot be an R500 unless it has 500hp per tonne and Mr Fatso SV weighs sooooo much that it will never have 500hp per tonne with a standard R500 engine spec but needs another 100hp+ to balance the R500 equation? But that cannot be true because the car will have a nice little plastic plaque from Caterham to glue to the dash saying it must be an R500? Personally, a dashboard plaque does not get me horny - my numbered CSR Superlight plaque is sitting in a box somewhere and is not on my car. Driving the the car is far more fun. So Terry's R500 will have 265hp area. Should be enough to get the average person speaking gibberish incoherently and rapidly pass a K series superlight. Mind you, the extra horsepower option to really be an R500 also sounds pretty good to me. And for the record, Karl's R400 on steroids would whup an R500 ass and send it home crying to mommy. Us boys are just so competitive! :jester: PS - Terry - Just to get back on topic, did you spec an H-pattern gearbox or sequential? Both are 6 speed I think?

Being serious for all of 5 seconds, I think TVR is dead as a dodo but your idea would work if you looked towards Ginetta. For example, their little G40R uses a duratec so you could source similar drivetrain to that of the seven. G40 is still using a zetec but why not substitute for a sigma? Done carefully there could be significant efficiencies from parts overlapping. The extended model range allows a customer to go up the price range over time and extends into high horsepower models with a bit more comfort for those needing to protect their hair styles. Not sure there is much money in making Formula Fords?

Come on Jon - surely it is more primitive than that. I think Caterham use a trireme retired from the Greek Navy: http://www.stolaf.edu/depts/classics/media/147_trireme7.jpg The extra crew costs explains why the shipping charges are so astronomically high and the mode of travel explains why it is so slow. They really need to put the whip on to them more! :seeya:

I would not worry too much about the profits being down. Losing a CEO carries a high penalty for leaving payouts which will have been a "biggish" cost pushing down the reported profits. Remove that and things look fine.

Great write up and pics Skip! I guess the road is sealed all the way to the very top except the top is still dirt as seen in the photos? One of these days I will get around to doing that drive - but I want to do it in a seven. Need to work through that problem....

You are coming from a Zetec car perspective. They never had a standard UK Caterham wiring harness like the Rover K's or the Duratec/Sigma. My SVT Zetec car was far more messy with the wiring than my current Duratec which had a modified wiring harness shipped in from the UK. My previous SVT Zetec installation was literally out of a Ford focus and then chopped up. That had wires to nowhere...

I have heard about Ken's ability with Miata's. Here is a blurb about him here: http://www.flyinmiata.com/oracle/main.htm Then again, you could always just ship Skip out east to work on your car - it would work properly and there would be plenty of beers and laughs - which is sort of what you need right now. Keep faith Roman - we want you back out on the roads.

thats good news - crank sensors are cheaper than ECUs

Ah this helps clarify. So the starter is cranking over by the sounds of it as you can see oil pressure. If you remove a spark plug can you see if it is sparking when you try to crank it over? My guess is no based on your symptoms unless the ECU goofed the timing. So then you back track down the coils/leads back to the ECU to narrow the problem down. Also if you do this you can check if the fuel is getting into the piston on cranking. This should eliminate fuel as a cause of the problem.

Sorry to hear of your bad luck. Wiring diagram on a Zetec? :willy_nilly: I made no headway on this when I was fettling my then new yellow SV zetec after purchase. From discussions with Ben at Caterham USA (at the time) there was not one. So in the attempt to be vaguely helpful for someone (if not you) here are the wiring diagrams I am aware of around the place for Caterhams: Wiring diagram for Rover K series 2001 onwards http://www.hoymotorsport.pwp.blueyonder.co.uk/files/Caterham%20main%20loom%20Diagram.pdf Wiring diagram for a Sigma engine - start at p156 http://www.caterham.co.uk/assets/html/technical/Caterham-Assembly-Guide-July-2010.pdf Wiring diagram for a CSR260/200 http://www.sjmmarsh.f2s.com/7documents.htm Wiring diagram for a R500. It is the Caterham Italian website but the European sites seem to get more technical information released than the UK and a ton more than we get in the US. Anyway Italian and wiring diagrams seem to go together to my way of thinking. http://www.caterhamcars.it/tecnologia/manu.html Do you get a click when key is turned or just silence? Is the fuel pump running or engine cranking? Any alternator lights on dials? If silence and no lights on dials then I would start with the usual suspects: - check inertia switch and reset - I assume battery has charge and is connected? - you have not done my trick and forgotten to switch on the FIA cutout switch :blush: - no obvious disconnections just from scanning wires to battery, fuel, starter, alternator, chassis earth, ECU? If you have done this already then sorry for stating the obvious - just trying to help you think through things.

Hi Al! Its ok - you can still come down to NJMP with Bessie and join us for the fun and social side of things even if you do not drive her wild on track. Anyway if you like polishing then my car is quite ready to volunteer for your treatment! :rofl: BTW - I suspect I will regret asking this....but.....how is Bessie coming along?

I replaced the fluid in my diff by sucking it out (well not personally.... but you know what I mean!)

Burton Power or Dave Bean are the first places to try that come to mind.

Congratulations on getting through registration! Following the line of "my state is worse than yours" I would still go for NM or CA over my NJ any day. Ever installed a fully compliant no faults showing OBDII wiring harness and OEM gas/PCV system on a seven?

I was sent this link and I have to say the garage is "droolworthy" :drool: I would love a garage like this - so much better than my current home garaging situation. http://automotorplex.com/caterham-garage/ So, does anyone on here own it?

Careful Martin - Tom is married so it needs to be G-rated! :jester:

Ok....I have rendered all the various video pieces with data/rear view cams etc. I also have Michael's video. Total video is 145gb of data from all cars! It is currently being backed up offsite to an FTP site so I can edit while travelling starting Sunday. To keep you all occupied in the meantime, I was tempted to post a video of Tom circulating Thunderbolt with data. However, watching it I realized you would be bored to death by the 5 min mark when he gets overtaken by a Porsche 924. So to keep you all "excited," here is one of me circulating in cruise mode on my last session of Lightning on June 25. You can watch in HD and there is decent engine sound and lots of diff lift off rattles as I deal with slower cars. This session is 5-6 seconds off my best pace as I am circulating 1.23 or slower. This should allow Kitcat to happily savage my driving abilities :jester:

Err....mine does not better my old zetec. The Duratec is down to low 20s on road and low teens on track. The Zetec was mid to high 30mpg on road. The duratec has a nice sooty exhaust too! Must be my heavy right foot? :devil:

There is a "third way" - JohnCh has the Birkin SV wide body which has all the advantages of both plus the ability to "float" through the wet weather of the Pacific Northwest. :jester:

I have not had quite the same experience as Mike with the crossflow but my first seven was the BMC 1200cc donk which I used to vintage race in Oz. Made lots of lovely noise and sometimes even provided some forward movement. Actually that is unfair - it was slow to get mobile but as long as you kept the momentum up, kept off the brakes then the little car could beat up the more powerful heavier cars. My later SVT Zetec was a brilliant engine - cheap, reliable, economical. Plenty of power for a seven type vehicle. The only issue I felt was wrong with it was it felt constrained as you went close to the redline. The power band was narrower - 3800rpm to 6000rpm. It did not seem to like it as much. My installation was the standard SVT zetec with the factory intake so I am guessing it was a breathing issue that seems to correct itself on throttle bodies. At least it does on some other zetecs that I have had the privilege of checking out at close quarters (MichaelD's). This is clearly fixed in the duratec which comes as a 2.0 and 2.3. The standard 2.0 can run to 8500 on a standard crank with some throttle bodies and other light modifications. Even the 2.3 long stroke is good for 7500 on the standard crank. A range of power outputs from 175hp to 300hp and it is 40 pounds lighter than a zetec. My 2.3 truck engine (Ford Ranger) loves to rev and would be happy to keep going past its limit of 7800. The torque is always present and the power band is nicely wide - starts at 4000rpm and keeps going to 7500rom. While the noise is not as aurally satisfying as a xflow, it is an improvement over a zetec which always sounded a little flat to my ears. My style of driving has evolved with the changes in engine. With the duratec on road I tend to hang on to a gear and rely on the torque to push me out of a corner whereas before on my earlier cars I would have to punt it down some gears to lift the revs to punch more out of a corner. Certainly I can do both now with the Duratec - for touring I can be lazy and on a track the option still exists to lift the revs and be more punchy using the power of the engine. More flexibility for you as a driver. The newer engines may not have the character of a xflow but they are worthy successors and well suited to sevens. Now of course you could always try to find a Vauxhall boat anchor or a Rover cheese block K series (plastic head dowels anyone?). There is another debate to have!

It did not take you long to get bored of family and seek some suitable distraction and alcohol on here! Just like my visits to family! :jester:

I was told by Jon Nelson it was from a 1 series Bimmer. Not otherwise verified this myself.

Sorry James I think I may have unintentionally confused you. These are not the class lap records but the fastest lap by a Caterham on that circuit within class EP. I think on many of these circuits the lap records are probably now held by the Mazda guys within that class exactly for the reasons you point out.