Croc

Welcome @jzleach You are in a great location for the se7ening community - lots of people with se7ens around where you are.

At the risk of being Captain Obvious, your gauge is full of fuel. See the level towards the top.... Next observation - why is that fuel so dark? Grease/dirt from the gauge/internals? Lack of in-line filter? Mixed with oil? Dude...what are you doing to that poor car of yours?

Its different in the grille to my 1965 which is how I determined it was 1966 - not much else can pick them apart!

Looks like a 1966 Mustang to me!

Some Caterham ones found for sale here on FB Marketplace Marketplace - Race bucket with rails | Facebook Nothing to do with me, just reposting to assist others who may be wanting to buy.

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@Kitcat This is the wisest statement so far on this thread.

Hi Daniel - I will send you a PM with the info you need for sizing on what I use. Not convinced a 205/50 will fit - you need to check width and rolling diameter, it feels awfully tight.

I love it! Build thread please. Tempted to buy one myself....

Its not a Lotus 7 S2 but thats how someone got it through original US state title and registration in its distant past. Its very common on all USA-built se7ens and not worth changing now. Purists may disagree but thats the legacy of different US state governments having individual titling and registration processes for decades. An owner should not suffer the consequences today of past government ineptitude. For transparency, it would be good for you if you can narrow down its original manufacturer and year. There may still be an original chassis number stamped on a chassis tube somewhere in the engine bay/firewall/pedal box area? If it is a Caterham it is potentially worth more than you are asking To me it looks like an older imperial chassis Caterham S3 in very clean condition or one of the mid-90s classic models 1) Does it have a live axle or de dion rear end? 2) Pedal box design suggests imperial chassis S3 3) Overall condition suggests more recent but it could have been restored at some point I suppose? 4) Fiberglass bits are relatively new Caterham ones. 5) Is there an Arch Motors stamp on the upper rear shock mount passenger side? 6) Roll bar does not look Caterham but that could be the angle. 7) Front suspension is Caterham 8) What very little I can see of the dashboard suggests Caterham. Notwithstanding the confusion over its origin, it is a very nice looking se7en.

Not mine. Thats the BMW Motorsport "black" livery. Looks like a car I know that was restored in Colorado and then sold to a purchaser in Europe. Its been a long time since my Bimmer was last in Europe. I have driven Monza in a Caterham. Bit of a "watch paint dry" experience in a Caterham - the straights are so long.

Yes Vlad but don't you want it opening before it boils? At what temp does it open and does that correspond to the temp you need? I thought zetecs needed an 80-something deg F tStat

You are not silly to walk away from Avons. They are a good tire but there are alternatives - definitely explore them. I have over the years but usually gravitate back to Avons as I think they are better all round for road performance. If you need more grip than the ZZS then go to the ZZR - there are two compounds to choose from. The really soft one is quite fun. Hoosiers on the rear on the road? I could see a nice policeman giving you grief. You do live in CA after all. If you are autocrossing or tracking then Hoosiers are enormous fun as an alternative. Don't know anything about the Hankooks - never heard of them to be honest. TRying to find tires for the CSR is a bit of a pain because of the lack of clearance under the front wings. Measure your rolling diameter or use an online calculator and compare on that basis. The Hoosiers I use on the front for track days only have a bee's dick of clearance.

Weber carbs - I would go in assuming that a rebuild on the carbs is quite possibly needed. I have 12 of them lurking in various vehicles. They are a great carburettor but not everyone looks after then properly and if the car has sit for any length of time then they can get gummed up. Fortunately there are plenty of good rebuild specialists out there, parts are plentiful and its not that expensive to get a rebuild done. The upside is they produce a great intake sound.

Yes the brakes fade on a road circuit. Top speed is not particularly high so overall lap time is not brilliant. I did particularly enjoy watching the poor owner stuck in the pits trying get enough charge from a regular power socket to make a 40 mile drive home. It took quite a while!

6'1" is not particularly tall for a Caterham. But if you feel the need to sit lower then changing from the vinyl upholstered seats to a Tillett race seat gives about 0.5-1 inch. Removing sliders and bolting to floor directly creates about 0.5 inch. Lowered floors would give another 1 inch of clearance. However, I doubt you could buy a lowered floor on a 1988 Imperial chassis but you could get someone local to fabricate them for you - it should not be particularly difficult. The YB Cosworth in its normally aspirated tune was no more than 200 hp - more likely 180hp on webers. You need to advise if it is more. Engine is fine and reliable as long as it does not overheat. The head gasket is the weakest point in turbo tune and that carries into NA cars although the heat load on those is drastically lower. Otherwise a great torquey engine. The live axle can withstand that hp, you just have to be careful applying the right foot. A live axle car will dance around more on a bumpy road making it more of a challenge to get the power down onto the road. I would be wary of a live axle car over 200hp as you will find it is such a challenge to drive.

Not lately, fortunately....

Isn't that called a Stalker?

Wish I could have joined you at VIR - love the track but have never driven it in the dry! The in-tank pumps rely on gasoline around them to cool them. They can overheat in a dry tank but they are supposed to self cut out if not pumping to prevent damage. I suspect you did nothing wrong and the pump decided to expire on its own. Enjoy the beer!

I think this is encouraging. Given you had so much sediment the other day in the video, I suspect you have corrosion elsewhere - block and water pump. That fact you got the liquid clear is an achievement. Lets see what happens after some running as to whether it stays clear. If not then more work to come. You may have overfilled it. It could also still have air in the system needing bleeding. More testing to know.

Weird vibrations over 95 usually are tire out of balance. However, you have matched them with engine revs/power output. Dropping a cylinder is usually fairly mild vibration. Check if the coils on plugs are firmly seated - they can pop out. Fuel pump usually has a priming whine before you click to ignition and turn the engine over - its noticeable even after start up - can you hear it? May need a friend to stick his head in the boot to listen while you operate key. If your boot floor can be removed easily then check a connection has not come off the fuel pump - easiest to come in from top of boot once floor is removed. Fuel pump is a crappy in-tank one from Rover - quality was never good.

I read the post and it was check the cap is doing the right pressure/put a good new one on it and then do a proper bleed. @JohnCh made a good suggestion of jacking up the front of the car to elevate the high point for bleeding. You could try one of those fancy dancy pressure kits but I believe the simplest test is the best one to try first.

No. I would follow what @ashyers recommended for step 1. Copied below for ease of reference. Before you go down the head gasket route I'd suggest you get a good bleed on the cooling system and put a known good pressure cap/expansion tank combo on it. Without a pressure cap it doesn't surprise me that you boiled the water doing your test. I suspect the temp in the head managed 212F+ leading to the boil over, even if the Tstat was open and the fan was on. The margin between the fan switching on and 212F is not huge. I have a similar system with a heater and put a T fitting in one of the heater lines that is the highest point in the system. This allows me to fill from there and get the air out. I also replaced the cap and expansion tank when I started seeing inconsistent levels. The cap/tank combo had stopped sealing well and was bleeding coolant occasionally. To get levels on target I fill the system using the T, drive the vehicle and get it up to temp. and then check the level when it has cooled. Not sure about using a pressure washer. My instinctive reaction is no. You want just enough water to dislodge the shit out of its hiding places and then the air to be carried out to be flushed. I'd see what your shop friends have first.

Just for clarity, we are trying to solve two problems in a sequence of 3 tests: 1) Does the cooling system pressurize/operate properly? If yes then maybe the head gasket is good? If not then it could be simply clogged coolant galleys with rust. Go to step 2 to continue evaluation 2) Dirty coolant. Is it rust sediment in the coolant/water or possible emulsified oil in the coolant? Give it a thorough flush once or twice with the de-rust coolant flush and see if it comes clear 3) If not clear of sediment or brown results after two flushes then test for oil in coolant with the test strips. Do a test on coolant in oil at same time. Evaluate results A couple of things. A garden hose will not have the pressure to flush a cooling system thoroughly. The pros use a hose with compressed air attachment like this: It is probably a needed piece since you have something producing sediment - maybe rusty lower coolant galleys inside the block or water pump if it sat with just water there for any length. Wonder if you can rent it? Or have a mobile mechanic with the kit come and do it? Yes you need a rust remover coolant flush, probably two. By the second go it should be clear or close to clear output. If not, it will be an intriguing problem. The test for deposits is the same as the test for oil in coolant. That will give the result whether oil is in coolant or not. If yes then you rebuild and you will be clearing the oil and water galleys inside the block as part of that process plus testing the block for splits/warp/porosity - so any rust will go away in that process. If not then it is almost certainly rust and if it does not clear up with the de-rust flush process then you need to consider three suspects at that point - water pump, radiator or block.

@Vovchandr I have been trying to work out how to make a comment for a few hours now. Much has passed through my mind, mostly four letter words, at least one six letter and another two eight letter words. That video was ugly. So I know you have had a bad day. Priorities: Given you cannot solve the ignition/firing/fueling equation until you have a working cooling system, you have to put those problems aside for now. I would start with @ashyers test for pressurization and bleeding out air. That is a very sensible spot to start checking. Coolant should not look like diarrhea. A rusty water rail does not do that. I have had cars sit in storage for 30 years without running and their coolant is not that bad when I flush the system once as I start the recommissioning. Assuming Ashyers well-suggested test fails and you continue to have cooling system issues, then you have two immediate tasks: 1) Test for oil in your coolant. Visually I think it is there from that video. However, go to NAPA and buy the Acustrip test strips and do a couple of tests off that. Answers on the spot. There are other brands of contamination test strips you can buy that achieve the same purpose. 2) Test for coolant in your oil. Either drop the sump or go in via the cam cover opening. I suggest the sump is best. Again use the specific Acustrip test strips (its a different test though). Assume you get through that, then you are looking at doing separate compression and leak down tests to corroborate the contamination tests. At that point you will know where you are with the head gasket. If it has gone then you will need to test whether the block is still intact or has gone porous/cracked.