Croc

Hi Jack & Jen - Sunday was perfect driving weather. Lots of bike groups and car clubs out having fun. I spent a happy hour at the top of Bear Mountain chatting with a bunch of car and bike guys. There was an Aptera there too with a jaw dropping paint job. Here is to more great weather for everyone to enjoy their cars with. Cheers mike

Here is the link to the downloads for the owners manual and some recent assembly manuals. http://www.caterham.co.uk/assets/html/technical/download.html I also have a K-series assembly manual which is entertaining at points for its less than clear direction plus does not match my engine choice (did anyone ever install a Rover engine in a US car???) I can scan it to a PDF if someone desparately wants it.

Hi Brad - I was sort of surprised there are not more SVT cars registered on this site. RMSCI said there were close to 100 applications out there in the USA but there seem to be very few of us on this site. It is a sweet engine for these cars. Hi KiwiBirkin - I get plenty of VB from a few places in Manhattan. An Aussie runs TuckShop on Lower East Side which sells the good old meat pie, sausage rolls, tim tams, vegemite and other essentials. Only you would realize how desparate I would be without them. Fortunately I came from Sydney in the south - so no cane toads for me - I just had poisonous snakes and spiders, blue tongue lizards, and the odd wallaby/kangaroo to deal with!

After being a member on this board for 4 or so months it is time I introduce myself and my ride. My car is a 2004 Caterham SV first registered 2005 with a 2.0l Zetec SVT with the 5sp T-9. I bought in second hand out of Florida where the previous owner had managed to run only 1800 miles in 3 years. I have doubled that in 3 months. This is my second Seven. I grew up in Sydney Australia and used to have in a 64 Series II with a 1300 Ford Cortina engine and a 4 speed box. Spectacularly unreliable there was not a straight panel on it as I used to have some "steering issues" during the vintage class racing I enjoyed. My father nicknamed it "Elvis" because it had so many hits. I had to sell it when I left Australia in 1994 but I promised I would buy another again someday. 15 years later and after living in 12 countries I finally settled down in the New York City area and I made good on my promise with this car. I still have my historic Australian Group A Holden Commodore touring car in storage in Sydney which I plan to ship to the US when the 25 year anniversary comes up in 2 years time. I am yet to work out what vintage racing class will accept some unique beast like that. With the perfect spring weather in NYC area today I took a run with a buddy up Rt9 to Bear Mountain State Park, had a blat around the nice twisties in this area, lunch in West Point and then a fast run back with 2 Porsches along the Palisades Parkway. http://i15.photobucket.com/albums/a354/mjohnson555/seats/DSC05477.jpg http://i15.photobucket.com/albums/a354/mjohnson555/seats/DSC05480.jpg In case you are wondering the ugly extra exhaust shielding was required by NJ regs. Unlike some on this board, mine has not managed to fall off yet on the way home from inspection.

Looks great. I have always liked the polished ali look on these cars despite the pain it must be to keep it looking shiny.

I have some spare seats which came with the car and are surplus to my needs. I am offering them here first before I put on ebay. I have not yet taken pics but plan to shortly and can post them: 1) 1 x GRP composite and carpet Caterham "Blackbird" seat (part no. 73467). Looks to be hardly used - in very good condition. Some light scratching from race harness on lower outer tub near lower belt holes but this is completely hidden when installed. No hits, cracks or other damage. RMSCI parts list shows new one prices out at $630. Asking $200 plus delivery. http://www.rmsci.com/partspics/73467.jpg 2) 2 x S-type SV leather seats with matching headrests in tan brown leather. (good color for when your passengers get really scared by your driving and lose control ). Good condition - consistent with about 1500 miles in the car. Come with the sliders attached for mounting to floor. No stains, marks, water damage, rips or tears. New ones at RMSCI price out at $1075 plus $151 for the headrest. Asking $200 each plus delivery. All seats are currently in NJ - I can arrange for delivery with USPS, UPS, etc at buyers choice. If you have questions - send me a PM here. Cheers mike

I mounted an EzPass electronic toll tag on my car for the first time last weekend and went out for a drive. So here I am coming up to the toll barrier gate and at the last second realize that its not going to open for me. After throwing out all anchors and stopping I proved 2 things: 1) My rollbar does not quite fit under the auto toll barriers on the NJ Turnpike (but the windscreen and driver do!) 2) My new Ezpass does not work on the Seven (but it does work in other cars and yes my account is up to date.). If I took it away from the windscreen and waved it around well away from the car the e-tag would work. Has anyone had similar issues? Is the car too low compared to the toll sensors? I am thinking it is something to do with the heated windscreen that I have but cannot rationalize why? Any thoughts gratefully appreciated. mike

ok....now its time for a dumb newbie question - what is a USA7s datasheet?

Here is the link if anyone is interested - asking $11900 http://www.fredbakeraudibedford.com/used-inventory/vehicle-details.htm?vehicleId=7e10cac77f000001005f209c543bb782&useHistory=true

I drove one last year in the UK at Dunsfold when I was dreaming of which mid-life crisis I wanted to buy. I loved the engine and handling but reluctantly put it aside in favor of a LSIS because of NJ registration fears plus concerns over how usable it would be on the road. As a track weapon it is stunning with the Honda S2000 engine installed (does that little thing rev!). They are beautifully made and I love the open frame construction where you can happily drool for hours over all the engineering work that has gone into them. Its expensive in the US though mike

Is it the initial registration in Canada that is most difficult - once you are through that then it is an easy renewal process? I guess it is not as easy as buying a cheap US car and sending it over the border to some poor LSIS deprived soul....and I thought NJ was bad.

That nudge bar looks an interesting solution for those few states that requires bumpers in order to get registration. But a starting bid of $30k seems like he wants a pretty high sale price.....

Dan Sorry to hear about your NJ titling troubles and the hoops they are making you jump through. Unfortunately there is no simple way around this in NJ short of moving to a nice car-friendly state. If I was going through this again with a new car I would probably title in another state first and then transfer across. Its expensive due to the extra state sales tax you pay but it seems to be more certain that you can get it registered. I just do not understand why some states are anti-kit cars? Have they not got something better to do? mike

Count me and my Seven in for attending. Mike

Vin - Thanks for the write up link. It was an interesting read on how they made it work.

Interesting - curious to see it is supercharged. Was this standard from the factory or a later owner addition? I assume he has it sorted and it is reliable? mike

The yellow clams is the one that was on the for sale pages of this site from FL. While I had looked at it last year and passed on it, Jack ended buying it recently when the owner decided to negotiate price. So the side picture Bruce put up is the same car. My car has the cycle wings and green nose Cheers mike

Nice dent - it was lucky no major harm was done. Jack (jlbtrans1) and myself also got out this weekend for a blat. Jack just got his car through registration this week so was keen to hit the road. We just went touring around the backroads of north west NJ and over the border into NY ending up at Warwick for lunch. Jack's daughter came along for the ride and loved it! Naturally the cars got a lot of attention helped by Jack deciding to park outside the main street Girl Guide Cookie stand! Just doing our bit for the community! As we parted I, Jack's daughter was eyeing her chances to get behind the wheel and drive the Seven herself - what spirit!

Interesting idea but would a Subie engine fit? I always assummed it was too wide for the chassis?

You could also try Dick Brink at Birkin America for what he calls his "Birkini" top.

I am not sure if it is an option but my OBD plug was accidentally "lost" by me behind the dash to prevent that type of scenario. That fled the MVC to running their checks manually e.g. emissions tailpipe sensor, tank cap sealing, etc. As chance would have it, before I lost the plug I did run the checks myself to see what was missing. I never did sort out every error code which was why I went for the plan B option. Mike

Just so I understand, what if you temporarily swapped the fuel tank cap for a non-venting one and installed a one way valve to prevent the vacuum? I guess your inspection test that identified this was the cap pressure test for venting... Are there alternative venting options other than the cap?

And dont forget the beer is cold and tasty in NZ!!!! As an aside I had my car out for a drive this afternoon and less than a block out from home a guy in a really beat up Suzuki Swift pulls up at the red light and yells across "Nice Lotus Seven". Turns out it was Bruce from Dunedin NZ visiting NYC while driving across the USA. What a small world! mike

Dan From tracking the fuel system around the car today I can confirm I still have the fuel tank venting into the manifold. i have a metal canister (carbon filter?) mounted in the engine bay and it links to valving which goes into the manifold - so this is the purge valve you describe. Whats your plan of attack from here? Can you restore the original plumbing without much hassle? mike

Hi Kiwi, This brings back great memories of my time in NZ. The scenery has not changed in 15 years. Your post made me dig out a photo of me next to my rental car (Holden Commodore) on what looks to be a very similar vantage point overlooking Christchurch and the ocean to where you have photographed your Birkin. Slightly different angle but same elevation and outlook. I don't recall the road name but I do recall it was deserted, winding and narrow with stunning views. I spent 6 weeks that trip roaming the south island exploring places and tramping at every opportunity and could have done another 6 weeks. Much nicer down there than the north island - probably because of the smaller population. Are the Keas still the lovable little pests I remember? The little devils took out my windscreen wipers that trip. Cheers mike