solder_guy Posted July 14, 2007 Share Posted July 14, 2007 Have owned my SII Lotus 7A since 1965 competed in autocrosses Welcome Pat: Show us some pics when you get a chance. Rob Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kitcat Posted July 14, 2007 Share Posted July 14, 2007 I subscribed to Pat's publication, North American Pylon, at the peak of my auto-x period. She and her family are great supporters of the sport. As I recall, she has a daughter who was (is?) quite competitive in a Miata on the national auto-x level, competing in the "open" class (against the guys). Also, has anyone on the Forum owned a Seven longer, continuously, than Pat? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mondo Posted July 14, 2007 Share Posted July 14, 2007 Hi, Well lets see... I used to have a Lotus Europa in the early 80s and knew of the 7s. After looking at the performance of these current models I decided on a WCM Ultralite S2K and hope to have it in December. I end my career with the Fire Department here in Bakersfield, California at the end of the year and this will hopefully keep the adrenaline flowing. Actually, as I enter my 50s, I'm stepping off a sportbike since my speeds keep increasing and I anticipate an unhappy ending. I live near Willowsprings and Buttonwillow raceways (both a little over an hour away). Having done some track days on a bike, my goal is to drive to these type events (and drive home..). Maybe do a little autox and a lot of Sunday morning drives in the foothills. It gets very hot here but from the advice I hear on this board an A/C (which they offer) is really futile. Looks like early morning drives... which is pretty much what I do now with the bike. Well, glad I found this site and any advice on the build would be appreciated. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
solder_guy Posted July 14, 2007 Share Posted July 14, 2007 Welcome Kirk! It gets very hot here but from the advice I hear on this board an A/C (which they offer) is really futile. Looks like early morning drives... which is pretty much what I do now with the bike. They do?? I thought that was a joke .. when someone posted about A/C in a Seven a while back! That kinda luxury seems contrary to the experience of a Seven. Rob Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
slomove Posted July 14, 2007 Share Posted July 14, 2007 Hey Kirk, good to have another Seveneer in the neighborhood soon. Don't forget to check in with www.californiacaterhamclub.com (in spite of the name mostly brand neutral) where the conspiration for most of the local drives and track events takes place. Another place for more race oriented activities is the http://sports.groups.yahoo.com/group/nasa-sevens-challenge/ mailing list, certainly with a focus on NorCal. I would agree with A/C being borderline silly but in Bakersfield you still have a choice to drive up higher and cooler in short distance (see Stan's thread) Hope to meet you soon! Gert Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
locostv8 Posted July 14, 2007 Share Posted July 14, 2007 Put-put is intended to be much more street friendly with probably a Targa style top and possibly A/C, with the top and doors driving in FL will get realy toasty. A good start would be one from a Jeep YJ. http://wrangler.rutgers.edu/gallery/d/43847-1/CJ7+ac.JPG Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SR27.Seth Posted July 16, 2007 Share Posted July 16, 2007 But it is completely impractical-very small, hard to get in/out of, loud, invisible to other cars, little crash protection, little carrying space, and hot-hot-hot-like sitting right in the engine bay. Air conditioning? Won't you need a roof? Try getting in a 7 with the top on. If there are no 7's around , sit in a small folding chair and lift your left leg over your head to approximate the experience:). What in God's name are you driving?! A 1958 Lotus with a plywood bench seat?! Granted, our 7 or to be more precise, our 27 is not as comfortable as my Volvo, but it's a lot more comfortable than 90% of the classic british sports cars I work on and test drive every day (and that other 10% belongs to the Jag MKII and MKX) And - If you drive with your lights on (which you should) the Seven is 4x more visible than a Bike- plus being loud and blatty is a safety bonus! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kitcat Posted July 18, 2007 Share Posted July 18, 2007 I have a '97 Caterham classic, with standard cloth seats (not adjustable for rake) wh/I drive with the lights on and in a lower gear than necessary around town to make sure everyone knows where I am. I have the air horn option and a 3rd brake light on the upper part of the standard roll-over bar (I have the FIA bar on order). So, I am trying to be safety conscious, especially since the left side-impact bar is my arm! I drive the 7 like I drove my motorcycle: carefully/defensively/avoiding blind spots, etc. I'd say my car is as comfortable (or as uncomfortable:)) as my old A-H Sprite, but hotter and harder to get in and out of. Also tons more fun to drive, which is the whole point of this car, Compared to a modern sport scar like the previous poster's Miata, which I also owned for 10 years, it is much less comfortable and convenient to use. I am not complaining, I love my car! But it would be tough to live with as a daily driver. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Boxologist Posted July 18, 2007 Share Posted July 18, 2007 i was able to get into a local autoXer's new Exige. barely get into. much easier getting in and out of a se7en IMO. with a fixed steering wheel. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kitcat Posted July 18, 2007 Share Posted July 18, 2007 I should add that my comments about putting the left leg over the head etc., referred to getting in and out with the top up. I have been in Exiges and getting in & out is an adventure, not to mention v limited rear view vision. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Donnie Posted July 20, 2007 Share Posted July 20, 2007 OK. Here goes. I started out as a child. Born in Washington DC, raised in nearby Maryland suburbs and moved to Northern Va. in the early 70's. Got my first Brit car in 1965 (a '57 Morris Minor) since then I've had 3 Sprites, an MG Midget, 2 Spitfires, a TR4, a Ford Cortina GT (my first Kent engine) and several other cars not worthy of mention. Participated in SCCA production car racing in the DC Region pit crewing for various people/cars. I found that to be the cheapest way to get see the races up close. Autocrossed my Cortina and a '69 Sprite in the early '70s (I sucked). Married (again) in 1992, retired from the DC Metro (subway) in 2001. Convinced Corky to quit cleaning teeth in '03 and moved everything to Loudon, Tennessee. 45 minutes from Tail Of The Dragon. Have wanted a Lotus 7 ever since I saw my first one race at Marlboro Raceway about 1959. Cheers Don Freeman Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
slngsht Posted July 20, 2007 Author Share Posted July 20, 2007 OK. Here goes. I started out as a child. Born in Washington DC, raised in nearby Maryland suburbs and moved to Northern Va. in the early 70's. Got my first Brit car in 1965 (a '57 Morris Minor) since then I've had 3 Sprites, an MG Midget, 2 Spitfires, a TR4, a Ford Cortina GT (my first Kent engine) and several other cars not worthy of mention. Participated in SCCA production car racing in the DC Region pit crewing for various people/cars. I found that to be the cheapest way to get see the races up close. Autocrossed my Cortina and a '69 Sprite in the early '70s (I sucked). Married (again) in 1992, retired from the DC Metro (subway) in 2001. Convinced Corky to quit cleaning teeth in '03 and moved everything to Loudon, Tennessee. 45 minutes from Tail Of The Dragon. Have wanted a Lotus 7 ever since I saw my first one race at Marlboro Raceway about 1959. Cheers Don Freeman I'll be following in your footsteps as soon as the kids are off to college. Unfortunately, the younger one will be starting K this year :leaving: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Donnie Posted July 21, 2007 Share Posted July 21, 2007 We have schools down here. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
slngsht Posted July 22, 2007 Author Share Posted July 22, 2007 We have schools down here. Wife and I have talked about that. We have a good school system here, and kinda settled into the community with the kids. It would be a big move for sure. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
locostv8 Posted July 23, 2007 Share Posted July 23, 2007 http://wrangler.rutgers.edu/gallery/d/12057-2/DSC01160.jpg Sure do. :rofl: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
solder_guy Posted July 24, 2007 Share Posted July 24, 2007 Wife and I have talked about that. We have a good school system here, and kinda settled into the community with the kids. It would be a big move for sure. You could get a job with the TVA .. they have a huge office in Chattanooga. Excellent private schools there too. Rob Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sporqster Posted July 27, 2007 Share Posted July 27, 2007 Yet another vanity post, all about ME: I'm a 20-something mechanical engineer by training, working in product design for Great Dane Trailers. I have always been a bit of a gearhead, but didn't really start getting my hands dirty much until I decided I wanted to build a Formula SAE car as my senior project in school. That got me hooked up with the local SCCA and autocrossing. About the same time I met my now wife, who too became involved in the SCCA and loves autox. After a few years I got the opportunity to be 'tire warmer' for a friend who had built a CB1000-powered Locost - I was hooked, as this was as close to a Formula SAE car as I had driven since college. I thought about building my own Locost, but given the amount of time and garage space (We moved to Savannah forcing us to go from a 3 car garage + large workshop to a 2 car garage with no workshop) I didn't think I would ever get the chance to build one myself. I had also just parted out my Opel GT race car project to pay for repairs on my wife's '79 Porsche 911 (which caught fire - now has megasquirt EFI, yeah!). That did leave an empty garage space (the sedans got parked in the driveway) and my wife with a hot convertible, and me with none. (She doesn't really let me drive the Porsche either!) I saw an ad for a complete, tagged and titled Locost, and something clicked inside that said I MUST buy this car. It was a great deal, and for the last 5 days I've owned it, I have had more fun than with any car I have ever driven in my life! My better half seems to think that 4 cars for 2 people is a bit excessive, but I can't imagine getting rid of any of them at this point. They're like our children (we have no actual kids... yet.) Winnie: 1979 Porsche 911 Targa: Brown. Her baby. Not a show car, but decent looking, fun and fast, and keeps us in the Porsche Club - they're nice people and we love going to the meetings. She has a very personal attachment to her 'Winnie'. Jackson: 2001 VW Jetta: Blue. Long distance highway cruiser and her daily driver- comfortable and good on gas. Sue: 2002 Subaru WRX: Custom metalic gunmetal grey. Bought new and still plays a dual role as daily driver and weekend racer. My daily driver. No A/C. Odie: 2003 Locost - newest addition - thoroughly impractical, but I LOVE it! My baby. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Donnie Posted July 27, 2007 Share Posted July 27, 2007 School system wise, you are making the proper decision. I atended the Montgomery Co. public school system K thru 12 and, from what I see and read down here, the Md. schools are far superior. Get the kids through school and come on down. Don Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
locostv8 Posted July 28, 2007 Share Posted July 28, 2007 I had to listen to my EX brother in law go on and on and on... about his poor kids having to go to these awful backward WV schools. Then they moved back to Cincinatti and guess what the poor kids were 6 mo ahead of the Cincy classes. :rofl: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
solder_guy Posted July 29, 2007 Share Posted July 29, 2007 They're like our children (we have no actual kids... yet.) Nice family you have there! How do you and your wife like the megasquirt setup? Rob Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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