Andy69 Posted May 29, 2019 Share Posted May 29, 2019 I just bought a 1992 Caterham 7. RHD, with 1.4 Rover fuel injected K-series. It's my first Caterham but not my first British sports car. I have a BJ8 Healey in the back of the garage that's next in line for restoration when I finish my 69 Chevelle convertible. I've always been primarily a muscle car guy, but in the last 10 years I've gotten into other stuff. In addition to the Healey and Chevy, I've got an 80s Honda that I race locally. I was supposed to pick the up this week but I only have an open trailer and the weather is not cooperating. Rrrg. Anyway, I'll have pictures and probably a lot of questions once I get it home. Cheers Andy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kitcat Posted May 29, 2019 Share Posted May 29, 2019 Welcome Andy. Many of us here have been following the auction. Great looking car and a nice price! Sounds like you are handy with a wrench-that is a big plus as these cars need a certain amount of TLC. Obviously do a nut/bolt check fairly soon. And dont take any long trips until you shake it down locally and make sure everything is working properly. Ear protection and eye protection are musts. Don't recall status of your car's tires, but since these are so light they typically have lots of tread, often long after the rubber has fossilized and grip is marginal. Enjoy!You will soon be the center of attention wherever you go:)! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xcarguy Posted May 29, 2019 Share Posted May 29, 2019 Andy, Congrats on the purchase and welcome to the forum. :cheers: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Croc Posted May 30, 2019 Share Posted May 30, 2019 Congratulations Andy. Given you now have a K series engined seven you will probably want to access the technical resources of Blatchat website with the Lotus 7 Club of UK. The only other K series engined Caterham around on this forum is owned by Tom (Yellowss7) so he will be a huge engine resource too. Otherwise everything else is within reach in the USA. Good luck trailering it home - the weather has been atrocious all over the country this last couple of weeks. How far do you have to drive? Kitcat - I think you are thinking of the wrong car Mike. This was not the Bringatrailer auction car. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kitcat Posted May 30, 2019 Share Posted May 30, 2019 Whoops, you are right Croc! I like the K series engine for its uniqueness. I suspect similar spec (weight & power) as 1.6 X-Flow? We need pix! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andy69 Posted May 30, 2019 Author Share Posted May 30, 2019 Congratulations Andy. Given you now have a K series engined seven you will probably want to access the technical resources of Blatchat website with the Lotus 7 Club of UK. The only other K series engined Caterham around on this forum is owned by Tom (Yellowss7) so he will be a huge engine resource too. Otherwise everything else is within reach in the USA. Good luck trailering it home - the weather has been atrocious all over the country this last couple of weeks. How far do you have to drive? Kitcat - I think you are thinking of the wrong car Mike. This was not the Bringatrailer auction car. Thanks guys. Thanks for the resources Croc. I'll check those out. You're correct, it wasn't the BaT car. I was looking at it but decided I liked this one better even though it's RHD and has an engine that will make the guy at Autozone stare into space. I ended up spending a bit more but I'm happy with it. I've got a 1000 mile round trip and unfortunately all I have available is an open trailer, so I have to wait for the weather. Looks good for next week though. Hopefully I'll get it here in time for Track Night in America on the 11th. I've been trying to con my 8 year old into going with me on the trip. Maybe I can bribe him with Subway and pizza Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
panamericano Posted May 30, 2019 Share Posted May 30, 2019 Andy69, Congratulations and welcome to the virtual asylum. Do try to get your kid to go. A Seven is just his size. At stops, I get every kid I can into the driver's seat and they love it. Don't fret about the RHD. It's not a problem. More authentic looking too. Funny when a passenger tries to get it and discovers they are on the wrong side. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andy69 Posted May 30, 2019 Author Share Posted May 30, 2019 Andy69, Congratulations and welcome to the virtual asylum. Do try to get your kid to go. A Seven is just his size. At stops, I get every kid I can into the driver's seat and they love it. Don't fret about the RHD. It's not a problem. More authentic looking too. Funny when a passenger tries to get it and discovers they are on the wrong side. Funny bit of totally useless information: My only experience driving on the left hand side of the road was in Jamaica, Turks and Caicos, and St. Thomas. Cars there are mostly LHD. So, a mirror image of what I'll be doing with this car, so the island adage of "ahm in de bush" still applies Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yellowss7 Posted May 30, 2019 Share Posted May 30, 2019 The K series was the go to engine in the Uk for a good while. It's very light weight and very tunable. The original R500 was a 1.8L K Series pushed up to 242 HP with a ridiculous 9200 rpm red line. Most didn't last at that level and they detuned them to 232 hp with an 8600 rpm redline. Mine was built to the VHPD spec, Very High Power Derivative and dynode at 196BHP. Very reliable engine if you let the oil warm up before you thrash it. Head gaskets were an early problem due to plastic dowels used to locate the head. Metal ones and an improved head gasket usually solves the issue. Cateham, Redline and QED in the UK support them parts wise. I'm putting a new starter in mine right now. Good luck the purchase. Your face will hurt for days after you drive it from smiling so much. Tom Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Canadian 7 Posted May 31, 2019 Share Posted May 31, 2019 Congrats on the purchase, post pics when you have it! Great engine - I have a car coming in 2-3 weeks with a Rover K series VHPD built to 233 hp and 8000 redline. I’ll create a separate post soon with the details. Ron. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andy69 Posted June 4, 2019 Author Share Posted June 4, 2019 I just loaded it on the trailer to bring it homr Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andy69 Posted June 5, 2019 Author Share Posted June 5, 2019 More pics. Off the trailer, waiting for insurance and title. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andy69 Posted June 9, 2019 Author Share Posted June 9, 2019 Took Mrs69 for a spin and she burned her leg on the exhaust getting in :-/ She says she likes it but she hasn't asked to go for another ride. Girl69 loved it. She's usually upset by loud noises but not car noises this time so there's hope for this one yet We were also the first ones to drive on the new road in a local housing development Boy69 started screaming as soon as we hit 30 mph - this car is insane! you're insane! it's so loud!! ahhhhhhh take me home take me home take me home! But then when I got him home he said he didn't mean take him home he was just singing a song. lol. I'm taking this to the MS SCCA autocross in Columbus next weekend, should be a blast. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kitcat Posted June 9, 2019 Share Posted June 9, 2019 Mind your rear fenders: they may not survive a cone strike. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
panamericano Posted June 9, 2019 Share Posted June 9, 2019 "Took Mrs69 for a spin and she burned her leg on the exhaust getting Reassure the Mrs. that people only burn the leg ONCE. Won't do that again. Mind your rear fenders: they may not survive a cone strike. I can witness that one (twice), then got a cone catcher made for the off side rear fender. Fortunately, a cheap body man will repair the crack (stresses at the top) and paint for only $200 - 250. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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