Whit Posted November 23, 2021 Share Posted November 23, 2021 Well, I went to check the plugs and apparently it's a 3/4" hex, and I don't have a deep 3/4 or 19mm. Good point on the booster, I haven't bought that stuff in ~30 years. I should probably start a new thread. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr Mark Posted December 12, 2021 Share Posted December 12, 2021 Hi all, Thanks for lettin me in.... I live on the coast of Maine, have been a gearhead all my life thanks to me ol Dad....grew up in the “back seat” of a TR3, family car was a 58 T. Bird. I drove an XK140 in high school (ya, I know, shoulda kept that one, I won't say what I paid for it or sold it for). Over the years I was in the car business, had my own foreign car shop and dealership, owned a few Spitfires, Porsches, Healeys and a pile of motorcycles(still have 7 bikes) Always loved the 7 and 20 years ago I built a book chassis, then a major life event stopped that project although it's still hanging in the shed, waiting fo me....... A couple weeks ago I happened to pass a friend's shop and caught a glimpse of the right rear fender I knew belonged to a 7. A week later I owned it, a 68 series 2 low mileage hotrod motor etc......I have it home now getting ready to get my hands on it....It doesn't need much, but we all know nothing is left alone..... Looking forward to the driving season and, in the meantime, “hanger flying” on the forum... ill get better pictures today Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Croc Posted December 12, 2021 Share Posted December 12, 2021 @Mr Mark Welcome to USA7s! Also congratulations on your new acquisition! Looks really nice. I can see lots of Caterham bits have been added over the years. What engine type? The only frustrating bit for you is that we are headed into winter so your driving is a little curtailed until April although on the coast you really don't get much snow. Where on the Maine coast are you? I used to live in Old Port Portland and had a weekender on Bailey Island. Loved living there. One day I will be able to escape work and get back there. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr Mark Posted December 12, 2021 Share Posted December 12, 2021 Hi Croc I live in Phippsburg, lived on Baileys and Great Island for years a long time ago... The car has an 1800 Lotus Holbay with a close ratio Cortina box, fully built and braced rear end with, I believe, 3.77 gears. All this info is in the history and I am still trying to verify everything. I have history back to ‘85 and I started researching back from there...who built the car and the motor etc.... Not knowing all the details, what do you think are Caterham bits? I'm not familiar enough yet to discern what is what on these.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Croc Posted December 12, 2021 Share Posted December 12, 2021 12 minutes ago, Mr Mark said: H The car has an 1800 Lotus Holbay with a close ratio Cortina box, fully built and braced rear end with, I believe, 3.77 gears. All this info is in the history and I am still trying to verify everything. I have history back to ‘85 and I started researching back from there...who built the car and the motor etc.... Not knowing all the details, what do you think are Caterham bits? I'm not familiar enough yet to discern what is what on these.... The Lotus Twin Cam is a great engine for the car. Cortina box is what I would expect from original and will work very well. Probably not the original engine if you have a 1968 car but I would not swap it - the twin cam is perfect for a seven. The later Caterham bits I can spot are rear wings, windscreen, nose cone, tail lights and spare wheel carrier/license plate light. Front wings are hand done replacements. Headlights and their mounts are from something else - not sure what? Dash (from what I can see) is slightly different shape to original - hard to tell? Front suspension looks to be Series 3 Lotus or early Caterham. This is to be expected - lots of Lotus 7s were restored using the more readily available later bits to refresh them over the years. Its kept them going long enough to find us as custodians for securing their future. You are living in a great part of the world to be enjoying driving this car! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SENC Posted December 12, 2021 Share Posted December 12, 2021 Great looking car, and welcome! 68 was the crossover year for S2 to S3. There were twinks in some 68 S2s (called 2-1/2s), but I'm not sure the Holbays came along until later. The chassis number (should be stamped on the frame by the master cylinder mount) and engine number will help. John Watson, Lotus Seven Registrar is most knowledgeable and has access to many old records. Lots of helpful folks with twin cam, Weber, and gearbox experience/knowledge on lotuselan.net (Elans used the same). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
panamericano Posted December 12, 2021 Share Posted December 12, 2021 C Quote Congratulations. Great looking car. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr Mark Posted December 16, 2021 Share Posted December 16, 2021 Well, its a 1960 engine block but I haven't found the number yet, can't seem to locate the chassis number either. I'll try to get some pictures in a couple days. I have a lot of cleaning up to do and I'll probably rewire at some point, lots of hands in there over the years. Runs great, definitely need to find the right driving shoes.....jumped in quick with my work boots on, that's not happening.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kitcat Posted December 17, 2021 Share Posted December 17, 2021 Welcome, looks like a great se7en! What is the maroon convertible parked next to it in your first garage picture? And how about the red car in a later garage shot? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr Mark Posted December 17, 2021 Share Posted December 17, 2021 40 ford and an MGA, there's a Bugatti in front of the MG, a TR4 and MG Saloon, out back there’s an Elan(full race car)and honestly don't remember what the other 4 or 5 cars were...wish I could say they were mine...The shop belongs to a friend, Coastal Classics and Sportscars. I never know what I'm going to see in there....he's doing it right.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SENC Posted December 18, 2021 Share Posted December 18, 2021 Looks awesome, can't wait to see more pictures. The engine number should be on the block just over the RHS mount. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Birkinboy Posted January 30, 2022 Share Posted January 30, 2022 I'm a Lotus junkie since 1979 when I got my first '72 Europa TC. It was a real fixer-upper. A year later it was my daily driver. Only broke twice, #1 broken fan belt, #2 unknown. Great car otherwise. Had it for 10 yrs. Since then I've had 2 more Europa TC's, 66 elan Sprint, Built a '01 Birkin CS3 that I foolishly sold in '04, Got my first new Lotus, '07 Elise Once warranty up installed Shinoo's 265 SC, and lot's of other stuff. After 30K sold it to buy an Alfa 4C, ride home from dealership I hated it. Gave it to the wife. Got an '07 Exige S w/17k. Installed BOE's Torque 300 pkg. great now. Run out of stuff to do. Work done by SynergyAutolab in NH. Great place. Been searching for my CS3, had some leads but not yet. Got chassis from Kim Bakker took a year to build. Black w/ CF nose, dash, fenders, tunnel. Quite a process to register it. I gave it a chassis #B4045 and got a Mass. title. It's gotta be out there, somewhere..... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MoBoost Posted January 30, 2022 Share Posted January 30, 2022 Hi and welcome! Hope you find it or an acceptable substitute! I brought my car back home after seven years away and even though there’s a lot to do, glad that I did. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
panamericano Posted January 30, 2022 Share Posted January 30, 2022 Welcome to another Birkin fan. Just a thought about your old car, from one who has done some such sleuthing. For a nominal fee and a form, you might look for it through the Mass. DMV. Worth a try. If that title was transferred to another state, they may show "title surrendered to (state)", in which case you can try there. Anyhow, putting on the table here is a very good first step. Do you have any old photos? Color, unique construction details, etc. I've had some race cars identified by electric boxes, roll bar gussets, etc. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Austin David Posted January 31, 2022 Share Posted January 31, 2022 Hi! I'm Austin out of the Charleston, SC area. I took delivery of a new Caterham 360S kit on Friday. I uncrated today, which I consider the first actual day of my build. Back already hurts. I plan to run this "daily" eventually, when the weather is reasonably fair. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr Mark Posted February 15, 2022 Share Posted February 15, 2022 Dug up my Ron Champion book today and found a photo inside from 20 years ago. I did a bit more to it before life threw us into a twelve year spiral.......I still have the chassis, "I'm gonna finish it someday”...lol.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
UglyFast Posted February 16, 2022 Share Posted February 16, 2022 AMAZING Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JB455 Posted February 16, 2022 Share Posted February 16, 2022 Hello! New guy here. My name is Jeremy. I'm a self employed building contractor and I live in western, CT. Been playing with cars most of my life. When I was young my father was into European cars and I started reading Road&Track from the time I could read. My brother got me into Pontiacs, though, and that's where most of my efforts have been spent for the last 30 years. Currently have a '66 GTO, '79 Trans Am and a '69 Lemans that I drag race in FAST. (FAST is a neat class where the cars need to appear totally stock.) For some reason, last spring, I decided I was going to buy one of my childhood dream cars- a Lotus Esprit. Short version- after looking around a bit and bidding on a few on BAT, I accidentally bought a 1985 Lotus Excel. It's kind of like an Esprit, but in a more practical shape. I put a ton of miles on it last year and enjoyed every single one! I joined up with the Litchfield Lotus Group and went on a few drives with them. The Lotus has become my favorite for backroads blasts. The Trans Am is fast and handles well, but you can just feel the mass when driving it hard. Anyhow, I had continued looking for an Esprit, but lately I find myself shifting to wanting a Seven, another of my childhood dream cars. Not really "looking" for one right now- last kid just finishing college and we just bought property to build our "retirement home" on so the funds have been taking a beating! If the right car comes along at the right price, well... Being a bigger guy- 6'1" and 230lbs. it's going to be a variant that I can fit in. Ideally, something very traditional/vintage looking. Low tech- carbureted, analog gauges, mninlites, etc. Not opposed to Right Hand Drive, may even prefer it- I've gotten pretty good at it in the Excel and it adds to the "exotic" factor and fun. Jeremy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vovchandr Posted February 16, 2022 Share Posted February 16, 2022 Welcome! Good to see another NE member. That green Caterham might be a member? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JB455 Posted February 16, 2022 Share Posted February 16, 2022 41 minutes ago, Vovchandr said: Welcome! Good to see another NE member. That green Caterham might be a member? Yes, I believe that is "Black Hole" from this site. It was about 30 degrees when that shot was taken... and Jay had a 1.5 hour drive up from the coast to get there! Brrr! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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