Kess Posted April 16, 2011 Share Posted April 16, 2011 I have found another car I am interested in. It is a right-hand drive car. I had passed on another car as it was right-hand drive and I was not sure if I would like it. I like this car and thus I am thinking hard about purchasing it. I am curious to hear from other right-hand drive owners what it is like driving in the US. How hard is it to get used to shifting with your left hand? I am not too worried about tolls since the car is small but curious about this as well. Thanks again for the help. This is a great board and I plan join once I find my 7. Gary Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scannon Posted April 16, 2011 Share Posted April 16, 2011 Toll booths are no problem. I watched a woman in a RHD original Mini approach a toll booth, pull a hand brake turn, back up to the toll taker, pay her toll, accelerate out backwards and do another 180 turn and drive off. All very smooth and controlled. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MoBoost Posted April 16, 2011 Share Posted April 16, 2011 For me, driving on the right has never been a problem. I don't frequent drive-in windows. The occasional toll booth requires unbelting. Shifting - no problem! The car is narrow and fast enough that passing is also not a worry. Go for it! Jon Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
catslidefarm Posted April 16, 2011 Share Posted April 16, 2011 My Seven is RHD and hasn't been a problem at all. My wife was a little concerned being on the left with the traffic and had to keep "reminding" me to "get over." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kess Posted April 16, 2011 Author Share Posted April 16, 2011 I have found two cars I am considering. One the aforementioned RHD car. It is a Caterham with deDion rear and 1700 crossflow engine (webbers). The other is LHD Birkin with 2 liter Zetec (FI) and solid rear axle. Both have about the same miles. The asking price on the Birkin is $18,650 and the Caterham $23,500. Both are 2500 of miles away from me. With the Caterham I could drive to vist Flyin Miata and my sister in Denver (I would still be thousands of miles from home from there) and I guess I could ship the car or drive some more. Both cars look nice and come with extras. Is it harder to re-sell a RHD car? Would the Caterham hold value better? Sounds like I could get past the RHD without too much trouble. Thanks for the continuing help in my search for the right car. Gary Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
twobone Posted April 16, 2011 Share Posted April 16, 2011 Another plus with a RHD is the exhaust is not on the driver side. It also adds to the uniqueness Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MoBoost Posted April 16, 2011 Share Posted April 16, 2011 Yeah, with the exhaust on the left, it's the passenger with the hot feet! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alaskossie Posted April 16, 2011 Share Posted April 16, 2011 The exhaust will only be on the non-driver side on a RHD Seven if you have one of the earlier-generation engines. The Latest Duratec/Caterhams have the exhaust on the right side -- which is one reason I got mine in LHD. I have spent a number of Colorado mountain miles in the passenger seat of a well-driven RHD Caterham, and I still got nervous about passing maneuvers. I gained the impression that the driver was, in part, looking underneath, and/or down the right side, of the vehicle ahead of the Caterham to see if the road ahead was clear. Of course, some of the analysis of the safety of a proposed passing maneuver will fall into the lap of the passenger (if there is one), who may have variable or unreliable judgment as to what is either safe or possible. The justification for ordering a RHD Caterham or Birkin or Westfield is usually that it will have an advantage on a road-racing track, where right-hand turns predominate (I think that is the excuse). Anyway, if that is your sole focus, go for it. But for primarily street use, I see overtaking/passing safety as the real strike against a RHD Seven. Being quick and narrow is no cure for a potential head-on. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
escondidoron Posted April 16, 2011 Share Posted April 16, 2011 My '62 Seven is RHD. The physical part of driving a RHD car isn't very difficult to get used to. Shifting with your left hand only takes a few miles to get confortable with. With my car's old Anglia gearbox, reverse is a lift, over to the left and back affair. That was a little bit harder to get used to. The main issue is safety. I don't do too much passing on two lane roads unless the terrain allows me to get a good look ahead. That usually isn't a problem around here in SoCal as the kind of roads that are fun to drive with the Seven also have enough turns and elevation changes that allow you to see around cars without having to peek into the left hand lane to see ahead. It's pretty weird to get used to vehicles, especially big trucks, right next to you on your right side in traffic. It gets very interesting to be along side an 18 wheeler in rush ohour traffic on the freeway. Those lug nuts on their wheels are just about at eye level. In general, for myself, I'm less concerned with the RHD aspect of safety in my Seven than I am about somebody crashing into me because they don't see me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
trough doctor Posted April 17, 2011 Share Posted April 17, 2011 (edited) I too struggled with the rhd vs lhd question. I had a chance a little over a year ago to purchase my dream machine. It was a rhd Deman Motorsports sr7 with dedion rear and Hayabusa power. Shifted nice and smooth and seemed to have a clutch, unlike other bec's that was street friendly. Ultimately I decided against it mainly for the fact of reduced visability at an intersection when turning left. Most of my driving takes place in town and wanted as clear a view as possible. However, i did make a lowball offer, and if accepted would be in my garage now. I would have just taken the long way every where, avoiding the left turn. Another factor was my gimpy left shoulder being used for gear changes. This could have been overcome with the purchase of a paddle shifter kit. I would take the more powerful bumpier riding lhd Birkin and spend the difference on gas. If you want lhd and the exhaust on the passenger side you could buy my rotary powered seven replica. Edited April 17, 2011 by trough doctor Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
danilo Posted April 17, 2011 Share Posted April 17, 2011 I had an RHD 7,for many years. Not to put too fine a point on it: It was a genuine PITA in traffic. Happily.. it soon became a track only car. Seriously Not recommended ... just too much of an ongoing problem, in ...Urban.. traffic. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MoBoost Posted April 17, 2011 Share Posted April 17, 2011 My decision for RHD 26 years ago was based on engine choice (Lotus TwinCam) and desire to not have to fuss with the steering and alternator mounting modifications to make it a LHD car. Okay, it's not like a LHD car and it takes some patience while driving (I work in Detroit) but I've covered a lot of road miles with no issues. Bottom line, buy the car that you like! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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