2016 LHD Caterham 480 SV for Sale (1,253 miles) - $58,500 reduced from $62,500

[PipeNslippers]

Description

This Caterham Seven 480 SV was built by Superformance in California in 2016 and was purchased from the original owner in 2020, and it is powered by a 2.0-liter Duratec inline-four linked with a six-speed manual transmission and a limited-slip differential. Finished in Black with Orange stripes, the car features a carbon-fiber dashboard and front fenders as well as a wider cabin with lowered floors. Equipment includes a Caterham roller-barrel intake assembly, a dry-sump lubrication system, a removable soft top and doors, carbon-fiber-patterned upholstery, a MOMO steering wheel, a heater, 15” alloy wheels, Bilstein coilovers, and four-wheel disc brakes. This Caterham is now offered by the seller with a clean Massachusetts title listing and only 1253 miles .
The aluminum body features a louvered hood with a NACA duct on the left side. Exterior details include carbon-fiber front fenders and stone guards as well as a heated windshield, a side exhaust pipe, a roll bar, a billet fuel filler cap, a half hood, a full roof, and removable doors with integrated armrests.
The SV body provides a 15% wider cabin, which houses bucket seats trimmed in carbon-fiber-patterned upholstery that also covers the transmission tunnel.
The MOMO steering wheel is mounted to a quick-release hub and fronts Caterham-branded instrumentation consisting of a 260-KM/H speedometer, a tachometer, and gauges for oil pressure, coolant temperature, and fuel level. The digital odometer reportedly indicates 2018 kilometers (1253 miles)
DRIVETRAIN
The 2.0-liter Ford Duratec inline-four was originally equipped by Caterham with a Cosworth roller-barrel intake assembly, forged conrods and pistons, CNC ported head, uprated camshafts and valve springs, as well as a dry-sump lubrication system and a stainless-steel four-into-one exhaust header.
The drivetrain is as simple as the rest of the car. The 480 employs a 2.0-liter, Duratec four-cylinder supplied by Ford that makes 237 horsepower and 151 pound-feet of torque. With its super-low curb weight of just 525 kg (1,157 pounds), that 237 horsepower really packs a punch. Sixty mph in just 3.4 seconds. The real beauty of this engine is that it revs to 8,500 rpm.
STATISTICS

Caterham Seven 480 – Drivetrain Details
Engine 2.0 liter Ford Duratec
Max Power 237 HP @ 8,500 RPM
Max Torque 151 LB-FT @ 6,300 RPM
Weight 525 kg (1,157 Pounds)
0-62 mph 3.4 seconds
Power-to-weight 457 ps-per-tonne
Top speed 140 mph
First Registered 8/18/2016

Spends Winters in storage on blocks & with tires off until late Spring. It has never seen rain. 

 

Mansfield, MA

Now $58,500. (reduced from $62,500)

 

 

Edited Tuesday at 05:00 PM by PipeNslippers

[Lancefitzgiben]

Nice one! Same spec as mine albeit I've got a brighter color. I hope someone buys this and piles on the miles. 10k miles on my car with just as many smiles and exhilarating moments.

[Tall Steve]

Nice indeed.  Standard or lowered floors? I will be about 30 minutes away tomorrow.  Available for viewing/test fitting?  

[Tall Steve]

I just noticed on the spec that it has lowered floors, much preferred!

[Anaximander]

Is the car still for sale after Tall Steve tried his fitment?

[Yavuz]

I'm interested as well - just shot you a private message!

[MarkR]

I'm very interested.  Please contact me if it's still for sale.

Mark 

[MarkR]

I see that it's license plate is Mass.  Does this mean that I can simply register it directly, without having to buy and junk an older car -- as is apparently the rule when you register a Caterham in Mass. for the first time?  That would be a huge plus.

 

[PipeNslippers]

I have just bought a car for scrappage.

Edited September 25 by PipeNslippers

[TrePedali]

@PipeNslippers  Any chance this would have gone through California's SB-100 process and been registered in California when new or under prior ownership?  Would make it much simpler to bring back into the state and register.

[PipeNslippers]

14 minutes ago, TrePedali said:

@PipeNslippers  Any chance this would have gone through California's SB-100 process and been registered in California when new or under prior ownership?  Would make it much simpler to bring back into the state and register.

Unfortunately not. The car was built in California, but I believe it was first registered in South Carolina by its first owner.

It may be worth giving Superformance a call as they built it (their number is on the bottom of the build sheet) 

[TrePedali]

You'd know; there'd be a CA SB-100 sticker prominently displayed on the firewall or nearby.  With original owner/registration in SC, they wouldn't have bothered with the difficult CA process.  Can be done retroactively, but an even bigger PITA than if done at build.

 

Really want to build my own; talking with Hillbank/Superformance now RE spec/pricing.  But current Caterham prices, shipping, tariffs/taxes.....ouch!  Makes this beauty mighty attractive.  Given the CA origins I thought it was worth asking.  Super clean, perfect spec (love the roller barrels); someone will get a great car.  GLWS !!!

[PipeNslippers]

Thanks TrePedali. The 480/485's are extremely rare in the USA, These are full race spec engines for the road,,the true R500 successors, but pussycats at lower revs thanks to modern electronics.

[PipeNslippers]

I have just bought a car for scrappage

Edited September 25 by PipeNslippers

[MarkR]

I should come by and take a look and talk with you.  How do we get in contact with each other.  I thought there was a telephone number in an earlier post, but I don't see it.  I'm in Lexington.

 

[PipeNslippers]

Mark, 

I will send my details through your USA7's mailbox.

Thanks

Martin

[MarkR]

        I went out to see this, and ride in it on Sunday.  The bottom line:  the family politics are such that I can't buy a Caterham.  It just can't happen.  

 

[MarkR]

That two-lines wasn't supposed to post.  It was supposed to continue ...

  

But if your family politics are such that a Caterham is in the cards, this is truly a to-die-for car.  This car is absolutely gorgeous.  It is virtually brand new.  The beautiful carbon fibre is all over.  The dash board, the fenders, the engine cover, the air-intake scoops -- all of this is impeccably done in carbon.  The extra seating space, the lowered floor -- this makes it considerably more comfortable.  

 

It sounds like the problem of getting it registered is nicely nailed up with a 1966 Falcon to trash and get the smog exemption (in fact, this engine is emissions compliant anyway with a catalytic converter, etc.).

 

$60,000 is an absolute steal.  During Covid, I wanted a project to do with my son, and priced out a Caterham kit.  I went for a much more down-market version, and I think I was looking at $80,000 or so (plus almost a year wait-list).  What you've got here is a nearly brand new, beautiful high-end version with all the carbon options, the higher powered engine -- and for $60,000.  You really can't go wrong.

 

 

[MarkR]

That $80,000 or so price was of course before the recent tariffs.  Whatever new Caterhams are selling for now, it'll be considerably over what I was quoted in 2021.