I have decided to part with my Seven, though no fault of the car's. A long-term romance finally turned to wedded bliss, and we need something a bit less crazed.
The history of the car is fairly straightforward. The 2000 model year kit was purchased and assembled by a Boeing engineer (and friend of the owner of Caterham USA) with the intent to set up an agency in Seattle. However, he had to give up the plan when his wife took a job in Arizona, requiring his relocation as well. In 2004 He placed the car -- unregistered, untitled, and with only 400 miles on the odo -- on the market, where I found it and made the deal. I then flew out and put 3,000 more miles on it driving back to New York.
Following winter storage (which has been indoors each subsequent season), I set about registering and titling the car, a daunting process and not for the impatient. It is classed in NY as a "Custom," the DMV not recognizing the factory chassis plate #. In addition, they gave it a model year 2005 designation, owing to when they granted it status. I have it underwritten by Hagerty Insurance as a "2005 Custom Caterham," the difference provided so as to assure of its proper identity in case of any major claim.
Maintenance has been simple, and, except for an early-on too-tight throttle cable (long since adjusted), the car has been trouble-free. I did choose to switch over to Royal Purple synthetic oil at the first change, and later needed to install an Odyssey battery, replacing a dead original.
A couple items of note. First, the builder padded the roll bar. He also undercoated beneath both front and rear wings, a great idea for protecting against stone impacts. Lastly, a short time after I put the car on the road I contacted my friend "Voodoo" Bob Kruger (http://www.thompson-automotive.com/voodoo.html) and had him create a krinkle-finish, aluminum shift know to replace the god-awful rubber cube that came on the car. Makes a big difference.
The only wear issues are cosmetic, owing to regular use. The curved aluminum ridge under the driver's left tricep area has a few nicks (the nature of aluminum, I'm sure you know. And the steel stone guards on the front face of the rear wings are nicked and scratched due to their performing their purpose. They are pop-riveted on and replacements (including a carbon fiber version) are a phone order away.
The roof is in top shape, as are the doors. That is except for the driver's side, where one of the two snaps that hold the door closed is not there. An easy fix, though I never have as one snap is enough to do the trick.
Tires are original to the car. There is some slight uneven wear on the inside edge of the fronts, letting me know it's time for an alignment.
I'm embarrassed to say that, due to a very busy schedule, the car has never been autocrossed, much less raced. Also, the reasons I've offered it for sale have nothing to do with the car. And should it sell I'll be a little wistful to see it go.
