New 2020 420R SV kit factory complete and ready to ship!

[BruceBe]

This stock order is now ready for pickup at the factory. It can come to us, or, you can build it yourself and save on some shipping.

 

All the details are on our inventory page, HERE. It's a nicely optioned 420R SV with additional touring features. For a self-build, there's plenty of time to have it on the road next spring.

 

We dynamically price, based on transacted exchange rates, on all ordered kits, to provide the best value to our clients. Thanks to the latest Brexit confusion this week, the exchange rate has drifted favorably for us, putting the kit in the $48K (+shipping) range.

 

Best contact is info@beachmanracing.com

 

Cheers,

-Bruce

[Kitcat]

Beautiful high spec Caterham Bruce! What transmission (5sp, 6sp?). And, does this price include the engine, ECU etc? After years of astronomically high prices for Caterham kits, without engine/drivetrain, I still have trouble grasping the new, lower prices. How much is added to the price if your company builds this?

[BruceBe]

Thanks - gearbox is the new Caterham 5-speed. The only 6-speed option is the sequential Sadev at this point, as the bespoke Caterham 6-speed is discontinued. While the car looks attractive in black, we chose the color based on input from our local body-shop. For those wishing to change the color, black is a good starting point.

 

For dry-sumped kits, we offer professional assembly services at $7K.

 

We will be settling with the factory over the next couple of days, so pricing will be fixed at that point. Then we'll have a few days before locking-in on delivery to our facility in Washington.

 

Cheers,

-Bruce

[Croc]

Black is a great color for adding stripes to!

[BruceBe]

Price on this kit is now set, at under $49K + shipping. The kit is still in the UK, so a drop-ship can be arranged.

 

Cheers,

-Bruce

[pickles]

Hi

 

Anybody even tempted by this IMHO should pull the trigger…thisis a great price…these go together like Lego so even for the technically challenged you will have a ball building it (I did!!) Hey if you live anywhere near CT I will come and help.

I bought a 360 from Bruce a couple of years ago and it was ajoy to put together…I would do it again but “her in doors” has put the brakes on until I sell a few other toys.

 

Long and short of it…if a little voice in the back of your brain is saying “Should I do this?” Just go for it!!

 

And for the record … I am not associated with Beachman Racing other than a satisfied customer J

 

Pickles

[Anaximander]

Hi fellow se7en lovers. I had a very lengthy conversation with Bruce Beachman of Beachman Racing concerning the Caterham 420r that is ready to be crated and shipped to the USA. As some of you know, I had a 2008 Caterham 300r Superlight with 400 engine specs and found it to be the most intuitive responding car I had ever driven. My wife however has never ridden in any of the 5 se7enesque cars I have owned over the past 6 years. I was frankly excited to get the kit, take an inordinate amount of time building it in my garage which would have necessitated the sale of my 2019 Corvette for space and secondarily money reasons. My wife can tolerate riding in the Vette but she has never been a fan of my low-slung, open cockpit, frenetic sevenesque cars. So, after considerable talking and thinking, I sadly had to email Bruce and advise that I would not be able to take advantage of this terrific offer.

 

As some of you may or may not know, for the under $49k price inclusive of the 2.0L 210hp Duratec and transmission, Bruce and his team take care of all of the documentation and shipping arrangements. Bruce advised that he does not charge the customer add-on fees for performing these activities and the customer is only responsible for the actual freight cost either to their home on the East Coast or to his facility in Seattle, WA. If someone wants to build their own car, Bruce advised that they are not quite like Lego's but are fabbed up such that there are no fitment worries, wiring harness worries, windscreen installation worries, etc., because these issues are taken care of at the factory. The car ships in three crates with all of the necessary components to complete the car in a relatively short period of time. Bruce also insures, as an official Caterham parts house, that should anything be missing from the kit, that he personally takes care to get expedited shipment of any missing part to complete the build.

 

In addition to the above-mentioned services, Bruce stated that he supports all of his builder's throughout the build via email, text or phone calls as necessary as part of his responsibilities that are built into the modest money he gets for the sale of the car.

 

If someone wants to save the $7k build fee, and have reduced shipping costs if they accepted the kit on the East Coast, the car is available through the early part of next week (end of September) to be re-routed to another destination here in the Country to facilitate a build for some lucky individual.

 

Bruce advised that the specs are: 420r includes the following: 5-speed gearbox; Limited slip differential; Lightweight flywheel; Sport suspension pack; Uprated brake master cylinder; Carbon fiber dash; Composite race seats; Momo steering wheel; 4-point race harness; Black pack (black windscreen frame, Carbon fiber door sills, carbon fiber rear wing protectors, and black headlight bowls). R-pack instrumentation; key and gear knob; Shift light; and Polished exhaust.

 

Bruce advised that it takes about a week for the kit to be crated for shipment and us folks on the East Coast could have the 3 crates delivered about 2-3 weeks later and about a week to clear customs and get the car to your doorstep.

 

Bruce advised that people that are organized and methodical, seem to have a much easier time with the build and the hard things like wiring harnesses are plug and play. I hope that in the next day or two, someone will be able to jump on this terrific opportunity and keep this black beauty on the East Coast. He also said that his local custom painter said that a black car is the best starting point for someone to have the "tins" repainted in some custom color(s) of their choice. Bob Schilling

Edited September 26, 2020 by Astro Bob

[BruceBe]

Wow Bob - I should put you on the marketing team :-)

 

I've been slow-rolling the pickup on this kit at the factory, but I'm guessing my excuses will be exhausted sometime this week. If you live closer to England than Seattle, and are thinking about a self-build, I believe there will be time and money savings.

 

Cheers,

-Bruce

[Croc]

I'm guessing my excuses will be exhausted sometime this week.

 

I'd stall for another week if I were you - I know you have to procrastinate past your Thunderhill circuit expedition 2 weekends from now! At least thats what another customer is hearing! :jester:

[Croc]

I'll jump in and say the 420R is one of the best in the range for power/balance. Its at a sweet spot - plenty of power, but not too much to reduce its nimbleness. It is a remarkably quick car on track. If you have never been on track and would like to try then Bruce also does instruction.

 

I have the exact same model (albeit RHD) that I keep in the UK for country drives and various track explorations to Europe and I love it.

 

 

 

 

Just think, in your 420R, you can do this to your passengers - the gent on the right with the big eyes looks a little perturbed...

 

[yogi]

Although it's not the exact spec I was thinking (S3/Leather seats/13" wheels/Riviera Blue). I'm strongly considering going in on this, but am looking for advice on a few things:

 

1. I'm only 5'8" and have a somewhat shorter torso. Will the combination of my heigh, SV chassis, lowered floors, and composite seats pose an issue? Feels like I'm already making a bit of a concession going with the SV, so I'd hate for the visibility to be bad on top of that.

 

2. Comfort of the tillet seats. Though I plan on doing some HPDE here and there, it's mostly going to be a tourer. The leather seats seem much more comfortable, and look better than the cloth + fiberglass IMO. Would some padding like this https://caterhamparts.co.uk/race-seats/4399-padded-seat-liner-pair.html suffice to make the seat bearable?

 

Thanks for your input. I'm really happy to see activity from in the Seattle area owners. Excited to be part of the group!

 

EDIT: Bruce just reached out offering to let me check out a few cars he's got in the shop!

Edited September 27, 2020 by yogi

[Anaximander]

Yogi,

 

In my exploration of buying this car, I had the same question about the seats because I have shrunk to 5'7". In talking with Bruce Beachman, he said that the seats are on sliders and that all I would have to have done was mock up the seat with it in the full forward position to determine if I needed to drill a few holes for the rails a bit forward from where the holes have already been drilled. So, no problems whatsoever with seating position. I too asked about leather seats as opposed to the composite seats and Bruce mentioned that one of his customers who had spec'd a car with leather seats had traded them out for the composite seats and would likely like to sell his leather seats.

 

I had a 300r Superlight with the composite seats and in terms of them being useful for HPDE's and other spirited activities, composite seats are much more preferable because the excess padding of leather seats disconnects you from the car. I have had several Brunton Stalkers, 3 with aluminum seats and minimal padding and 1 with more padded seats and for any kind of really spirited driving, the composite seats are the way to go. You can always add a bit of padding or some cushions when just driving around on leisurely drives. I used to be known as "flat butt Bob" which suggests that I have not had a significant amount of padding on my backside. I found my Kirkey race seats with minimal padding to be quite comfortable. Unfortunately, I did not own the Caterham long enough to really understand how long I would be comfortable but I did appreciate being "one with the car". The first picture is of my former Caterham with 208hp and the second is a partial shot of the Brunton Stalker XL with 495hp with Kirkey seats and thin padding. Hope that helps.

 

If you are in the Seattle area, you are going to be sooooooooooo fortunate because at this time, essentially Bruce and one other company in the country down in California are the leading selling experts on Caterhams. You would also be able to get high-performance driving training from Bruce as well as be close enough to have any questions concerning the build answered first hand.

 

Much good luck in your decision process. I only wish that my wife and lifestyle would have supported enjoying the car beyond the build. If it did, this car would not be up for sale . Bob Schilling

Edited September 27, 2020 by Astro Bob

[JohnCh]

Seat comfort is a personal thing. When you visit Bruce's shop, spend a fair amount of time sitting in the car to determine if they work for you. My car has Mog seats which are carbon fiber shells similar to Tillets, and although they look painful, they are very comfortable for my back. Over the years I've covered more that 12,000 miles on tours, with the longest day a little over 630 miles, and would never consider swapping them out for a more conventional seat. YMMV.

 

-John

[BruceBe]

Yogi had a good collection of seats to check out today:

310S SV with leather seats

620R S3 with carbon Tillets

G7 SV race car with the FIA Tillet "Big boy" XL seat

CSR race car ("Catzilla") with standard FIA Tillets

 

Cheers,

-Bruce

[Kitcat]

AstroBob.

 

I'd add Rocky Mountain Caterham to the mix of top Caterham dealers in the U.S.A. Per their website they have sold 8 new Caterhams thus far in 2020 with more on the way. Given that something like 19 Caterhams, total, were sold in the U.S in '19 (per the ongoing R&T article abt their Caterham build), no dealer can make much of a volume claim.

 

Rather, it seems that Caterham expertise, parts inventory, repair and upgrade services are what separates Beachman and RMC from the rest. I have had significant experience with both and their attention to detail and excellent customer service have allowed Caterham to a visible brand in the USA.

 

And, I'd add Tom Carlin's Birkin USA into the top 3 se7en resources in the States.

[Anaximander]

Kitcat, That is great information for myself and others to know about. I am not sure how many Caterhams Kampena Motors is selling in the Sonoma, CA region but as you and others know, they too have extensive experience with Caterhams and racing. Like you mentioned, I have also heard great things about Tom Carlin's operation and I suspect that he works hard to insure the reliability of the Birkins he is selling and like Bruce, tries to keep an inventory of spares so that his customers can get certain parts in a timely manner based on the hearsay I have paid attention to.

Edited September 28, 2020 by Astro Bob

[yogi]

Thank you Bob, Croc, John, and Kitcat! Quick thoughts on each, in the order I tried them:

 

620R S3 with carbon Tillets: this was the first seven I've ever sat in. Fitting like a glove is exactly the right analogy (5'8"/170lbs). The carbon tillets were super comfortable. Definitely understand what a small toe box is now!

310S SV with leather seats: felt…sloppy? Granted this is quite the contrast after the previous S3/carbon, but I was surprised at how little they hold you in place. By comparison my S2000's seats feel much more secure.

G7 SV race car with the FIA Tillet "Big boy" XL seat: basically went for a swim in a race car.

CSR race car ("Catzilla") with standard FIA Tillets: solid. Gave me the best comparison to the kit in question as it's the same configuration (including lowered floors). Visibility was okay, but I'd definitely prefer to be higher up. Easy enough to remedy later.

 

Thanks again to Bruce for allowing me to test fit all these combinations. Prior to yesterday I was driving myself a bit crazy trying to choose from all the options available in Caterham's configurator. After having sat in a few I'm realizing most of that stuff doesn't really matter — it's going to be fun no matter what I end up with. Which, by the way, is this kit

[JohnCh]

Congratulations! Good see the car is staying local. I'm looking forward to reading your upcoming build thread (yes, that's a hint )

 

-John

[Croc]

Well done Yogi! Smarter than the average bear! You have bought a great package. As John generously threw you under the bus for a build thread, can I please just add that we like lots of photos. Looking forward to see you have fun doing the build!

 

I had a great chuckle at your seat description. What is snug for me, you are having a swim in. :jester:

[BruceBe]

Craters/shippers have been notified - this one's coming up to Seattle. Many thanks to everyone who expressed interest and support.

 

And I dare say, Seattle is starting to become a decent locus of Seven ownership. This year, we've got new representation in Seattle x 2, Woodinville, Redmond x 2, and Kirkland.

 

Vroom, vroom!

-Bruce