Help needed from the community to review a future BaT listing

[Pokey]

I know some on this forum are familiar with a car I'm preparing to list on BaT as it was owned and tracked by @Kitcat, so I'm hoping to enlist help in making sure what I've written for BaT is accurate and complete.  Any comments or suggestions would be greatly appreciated!

 

 Here we go:

 

This 2003 Caterham Super 7 race car was imported as an SCCA E-Production model as part of a SCCA homologation program.  This program was created in the early 2000’s by Jon Nelson with Caterham USA and Jez Coates with Caterham UK.  The number of cars imported under the program is unknown, but several dealers participated, including George Alderman (Delaware), Chip Lamb (Virginia) and Jeff Sloan (Texas).  This car is thought to have been imported by Alderman’s Delaware dealership.

 

Homologated models were configured with an imperial S3 chassis, 147bhp Zetec, Watts linkage supporting the De Deon rear suspension, 250# front and 215# rear springs with nonadjustable Bilstein dampers, 10-inch AP Racing rear discs, clamshell front wings, and cantilevered slick tires.

 

After racing in SCCA the car was acquired by Beachman-McClure Racing and modified for NASA racing.  During this period several changes were made:

 

·       The homologated Zetec motor was swapped with a Zetec SVT

·       The homologated roll cage was replaced with the current tall cage with side intrusion NASCAR style bars

·       The homologated fuel cell was replaced with a 21-gallon fuel cell for endurance racing

·       A jack point was brazed to the rear suspension for use with a quick-jack style jack

·       A brake bias (proportioning) valve was added

·       The clamshells front wings were replaced with cycle wings

·       PIAA night race lights were added (since removed but wiring remains)

·       The OEM SVT oil pan was replaced with a Raceline wet sump

·       And an Accusump was added for extra oiling protection

 

The car is best known for placing third overall in the 25 Hours of Thunderhill in 2009 (https://beachman-mcclureracing.blogspot.com).

 

Beachman-McClure Racing sold the car in 2013 to the prior owner before the current owner purchased in 2022.  Under the prior owner the fuel bladder and hoses were replaced in 2017, and a short block Zetec SVT engine swap was performed in 2019 (see attached dyno report).  The original Zetec SVT engine is included in the sale.

 

In preparation for the 2022 sale the prior owner had Rocky Mountain Caterham go through the car replacing worn and damaged parts:

 

·       The 22% “fast” steering rack was replaced with a new 8% rack and rod ends

·       The A-frame was replaced as the existing A-frame was binding

·       The front dampers and springs were replaced with new Bilstein dampers and new 250# springs

·       The rear dampers were replaced with new Bilstein dampers and 215# springs reused

·       The brake rotors, pads and fluid were replaced

·       The radiator was replaced as were the coolant hoses

·       The nosecone, front wings and wing stays, and rear wings were replaced

·       The Momo containment seat seen in historical pictures was replaced with a Caterham GRP seat (same as used for Caterham Academy racing)

·       And a new Sabelt six-point harness good until 2028 was installed

 

Rocky Mountain Caterham also set up the suspension, using 2-2-2 for the A-arms and corner weighting (see attached suspension setup sheet). 

 

Under current ownership the following noteworthy changes and maintenance were done:

 

·       The Accusump valve was replaced with an electric valve and cutoff switch

·       The front upper ball joints were replaced with Jack Webb Motorsports heim joints for easy camber adjustment and wing stay removal

·       A Quickcar Racing Products ignition panel was added

·       The transmission and differential fluid were replaced

·       The clutch slave cylinder was replaced, and a Caterham clutch pedal stop added

·       And connection points were added for an AiM data logger

 

 

 

[S1Steve]

The history sounds correct. Having been out on track with the previous owner( Mad Man Mike), it’s a very fast Seven in his hands. Good Luck with its Sale.

[Pokey]

Thanks Steve, appreciate the review and response.

 

13 minutes ago, S1Steve said:

The history sounds correct. Having been out on track with the previous owner( Mad Man Mike), it’s a very fast Seven in his hands. Good Luck with its Sale.

 

[Kitcat]

GLWA, as they say on BAT!

 

The description you have given seems complete to me. It might be worth adding that it has a fire suppression system? The removable steering wheel is a minor but vital part of the car’s set up. It has an uprated brake system with (hard to source) larger rear rotors. We switched from a “returnless” fuel system to a return system, at no small cost. 

 

I think the biggest question will be what it would cost to make it street legal? I don’t know but have to assume it is possible. I’m pretty sure all of the wiring is there for turn signals, etc?

[Croc]

10 minutes ago, Kitcat said:

 It might be worth adding that it has a fire suppression system? 

 

Is is still in date and charged?  They lose effectiveness over time.

[FE07]

Looks good.  I remember Kitcats car from the 7's events.  Only thing I see is the name of the dealer in Virginia was Chip Bond (not Lamb).

 

Jim

[Outbound]

Also don’t forget, a proper video of it being driven in anger, with a mic that is picking up the exhaust and intake noise (and not just rushing wind) is worth at least several thousand dollars, if not more.

 

Remember that on BaT you are selling an experience. It’s wild to me when people post these caterhams up, and it’s just pictures of the car into the grass in the backyard. And then a video of it puttering around town with the mic getting wind whipped.

 

 Do a great fairly short video of the car attacking a fun back road, ripping up through the gears, hearing the intake and exhaust, maybe a few laughs and giggles along the way, and it’ll go a long way in selling the experience that a Caterham brings, whether race ready or not.

 

 But yea, if you can make it road legal you’ll easily get another $10k probably.

[joe7]

Good idea is to read comments from previous sales to get an idea of questions the peanut gallery will ask. Usual, tires, fuel cell, belts dates etc. Before going live, check the write up from the BaT editor as occasionally they make mistakes. Also lots of pics.

[Pokey]

Thanks @Kitcat.  I'll add the MOMO quick release steering wheel and fire suppression.  The fuel pump has a separate switch too rather than operate using the ignition, and there is also a transponder.

 

While it may be possible to license for street use, that would require a title which this car does not have.  If I had the Manufacturer Statement of Origin like what Caterham provides now with the kits we import then it could be done in Washington State, but I've no idea what the rules are for other states.  In either case, I'm selling as a track/race car only as I really don't like dealing with bureaucracy.

Edited June 12 by Pokey
Linked to Mike's username

[Pokey]

20 hours ago, Croc said:

 

Is is still in date and charged?  They lose effectiveness over time.

 

Thanks @Croc, I'll take a picture of the gauge on the fire extinguisher and get one of the Accusump's gauge too.  I should probably mention in the ad that I raced the car sporadically so it has gone through the annual technical inspection process.

 

[Pokey]

15 hours ago, FE07 said:

Looks good.  I remember Kitcats car from the 7's events.  Only thing I see is the name of the dealer in Virginia was Chip Bond (not Lamb).

 

Jim

 

Nice catch @FE07, thanks!

Edited June 12 by Pokey
Linked to Jim's username

[Pokey]

15 hours ago, Outbound said:

Also don’t forget, a proper video of it being driven in anger, with a mic that is picking up the exhaust and intake noise (and not just rushing wind) is worth at least several thousand dollars, if not more.

 

Remember that on BaT you are selling an experience. It’s wild to me when people post these caterhams up, and it’s just pictures of the car into the grass in the backyard. And then a video of it puttering around town with the mic getting wind whipped.

 

 Do a great fairly short video of the car attacking a fun back road, ripping up through the gears, hearing the intake and exhaust, maybe a few laughs and giggles along the way, and it’ll go a long way in selling the experience that a Caterham brings, whether race ready or not.

 

 But yea, if you can make it road legal you’ll easily get another $10k probably.

 

I'm already guilty of taking a video with not so great sound, so good point @Outbound.  Classic though, I jabbed the throttle on a hill up to our house and my hat flew off.  The video is great but the sound is, well, disappointing.

[Pokey]

4 hours ago, joe7 said:

Good idea is to read comments from previous sales to get an idea of questions the peanut gallery will ask. Usual, tires, fuel cell, belts dates etc. Before going live, check the write up from the BaT editor as occasionally they make mistakes. Also lots of pics.

 

Really good point @joe7, I should get ahead of the questions as sometimes the BaT peanut gallery gets carried away with speculations.  I'll get a picture of the dates stamped on the tires and on the fuel cell.

[Kitcat]

I may have missed it, but this car also has the Caterham 6 sp transmission and LSD.
 

Also, FWIW,  the 2 cars that placed ahead of it at the ThunderHill endurance race were Porsche Cup race cars. Hardly an even match!

 

One of the most common questions on a Caterham BAT sale is: Will I fit? So a rough estimate of driver size limits, including shoes, might be helpful?

 

Total vehicle mileage is also a standard question. Given its race history and absent odometer it’s impossible to know. I’d guestimate that I put approximately 2,000-3,000 miles on it during my ownership, including 500( illegal) street miles.

[wdb]

I got some cheap stick-on fuzzy thingies to put over the mics on my GoPro. They work remarkably well to muffle wind noise while letting throaty sounds come through.

[toldfield]

There is an excellent thread on audio recording here, thanks to Croc and some others...

 

 

[Pokey]

On 6/12/2025 at 5:00 PM, Kitcat said:

I may have missed it, but this car also has the Caterham 6 sp transmission and LSD.
 

Also, FWIW,  the 2 cars that placed ahead of it at the ThunderHill endurance race were Porsche Cup race cars. Hardly an even match!

 

One of the most common questions on a Caterham BAT sale is: Will I fit? So a rough estimate of driver size limits, including shoes, might be helpful?

 

Total vehicle mileage is also a standard question. Given its race history and absent odometer it’s impossible to know. I’d guestimate that I put approximately 2,000-3,000 miles on it during my ownership, including 500( illegal) street miles.

 

Thanks Mike, I've added the bit about the transmission, differential and the Cup cars.  No idea how to address the fit though.  I'm 5'10" and 165# and fit fine, and other than elbow room don't notice a difference between the S3 and SV presumably because the seats are the same size.  I guess my size 11 feet notice too.