SCCA Zetec Caterham for Sale

[Croc]

No affiliation or connection to me - just reposting in case anyone is looking. Contact seller not me.

 

 

Nicely priced SCCA spec zetec caterham race car from Entropy Racing is for sale through Sports & Specialist Cars in Hopewell NJ.

 

http://www.hemmings.com/classifieds/dealer/caterham/super_7/1481192.html

 

Asking NOW $15500 (was $18500)

 

Has a VIN but no title...interesting....

 

For those who do not know Entropy Racing, these guys support race teams and rent race cars for use in races, SCCA license school or track days. Was being rented at about $1200 per day supported.

 

http://assets.hemmings.com/uimage/12187677-425-0.jpg?rev=1

Edited February 10, 2013 by Croc
Updated price

[blubarisax]

I've seen this car do some very fast lap times at Lime Rock!

[yellowss7]

Great color and with Clams!! This is definately how all Caterhams should Look! :jester: Tom

[Kitcat]

For someone looking for a trackday car, this is perfect. And, at the price, someone w/modest mechanical skills cld probably get is street legal (horn, turn signals, brake lights).

[MichaelD]

The car may have started out with GT Classics and was driven by Minor Wilcox about 12 years ago.

[JBH]

Mary's car?

 

I have a lot more questions than that, probably more than the seller wants to answer.

 

Also, I need a place to store it...wish they would build the garages at NJMP

Edited October 8, 2012 by JBH

[Kitcat]

I rent an open space in a storage lot for $300 a year. I park my se7en there in the enclosed trailer I use to haul it to it track days. Lot is 5' from my house. Since the se7en is so small, I could also fit it into an enclosed storage space there, but dont need to.

[yellowss7]

Mary's car?

 

 

Also, I need a place to store it...wish they would build the garages at NJMP

 

Sounds like a plan. I'm sure Croc has PLENTY of room in his garage, as long as you promise not to ding his doors. :leaving::rofl:

 

It was very lonely and COLD out there on the track today. No other sevens to play with. Dom and Ash were asking for you guys.

 

I'm sure mary will look good in YELLOW.

 

Tom

[MichaelD]

Who is Mary?

[yellowss7]

Mary is Jeff's (blue SuperlightR, njmp member) significant other who like to drive Jeff's car. Croc and I are pushing jeff to get her one of her own.

 

Tom

[Croc]

Croc and I are pushing jeff to get her one of her own.

Tom

 

Well actually I have been suggesting Jeff deserves a new R500 and Mary inherits Jeff's rapid Zetec. I think Jeff might like that better.

[JBH]

Wow...and Mary is getting good. She was turning 1:18s at Lightning with an instructor in the car. I need another car - that's just too much punishment for the SLR.

[Croc]

Seller dropped his price to $15500 which I bet could be beaten a little lower in negotiations.

[Pe7e]

So I'm being tempted by thoughts of immediate track day gratification followed by many cheerful blats (post street conversion) promised by this vehicle. It's located in my home state of NJ. Do you guys and gals have any wisdom to offer on any of the following questions?

 

1. What should I look for and ask about when looking at the car?

2. Is an old racecar a series of problems held together with hidden cracks and I should walk away?

3. Ballpark ideas on the cost of streeting it, if I do all the work. What would it need beyond

headlights,

turn signals and actuator, -are those rear lamps "factory"?

marker lamps,

seats (perhaps the most costly item?)

windscreen,

wipers system (a big deal?) (has anyone registered a car with brooklands in NJ?)

safety harnesses.

It's starting to look as if this is going to add up; I'll put "heater" on the future upgade list.

4. Is it worth it (vs. other 7s) as a street conversion? I know, it's sort of like asking, "what is the best car?" -But I already know the answer to that one. :-)

 

Let me know if you want my phone number or email. -And if this should be a new post.

 

Pete

[Kitcat]

Maybe do a "search" for "registration" and "NJ" first on this site. Or wait for Croc, et al, to comment . That might be the single biggest obstacle. And, does it have a title? My Caterham race car does not, just a bill of sale. I am not sure how much of a hassle getting a title will be.

 

As to the questions you actually asked, I think making it streetable is pretty simple, the car lilkely was streetable and then de-contented when made track ready. So wiring, fuses etc shd be in place (tho getting access to things may be a PITA). Hopefully, there will be people with the parts you want sitting in their basements and you won't have to go to Caterham for what you need which is signif $.

 

Reliability. Properly maintained Caterhams are pretty stout. Tne occasional nightmare seems to be electrical/ECU, not mechanical. Understand tho, that they are much less reliable than, say, a Miata, or any other modern car. So the expression:"It's always something" seems relevant. Usually that something is minor and, if you have some mechanical skills and time, easily fiixed.

 

Seats and harnesses, do a search here as well, many discussions in the past.

 

Brooklands, I dont know but suspect a windshield is mandatory.

 

It seems like a whole lotta Caterham for this price (cheapest I have EVER seen, incl old broken down, short cockpit, solid axle, 4sp, Kent engined cars). It is ideal for someone with a need for a pure track car, but at this price, I agree that it is tempting for a street conversion.

[TheDingo8MyBaby]

I did inquire about this car a few months ago. I had several questions that went unanswered, but they did answer this one:

 

me: "Has the car been in any accidents?"

seller: "yes, front subframe was replaced after track accident. All measurements are good and no alignment problems"

 

Just a FYI for any potential buyers

[Croc]

Not sure where you are in NJ but Hopewell is only an hour away from me. I know Steelwings and Ed Sanson - Ed is a really nice guy. I could meet you there Saturday to jointly check the car over (assuming it is at their main street shop and not the back up site shown in the photos). I have seen the car before when it was a rental with Entropy but I did not inspect it closely.

 

1. What should I look for and ask about when looking at the car?

 

My list of items:

- definitely pull off the nose cone for any inspection

- rust of any kind in the usual spots

- sound/feel of engine

- chassis/steering/suspension cracks or alignment issues

- steering feel

- Clutch or gearbox feel (if t-9 5spd I am looking at 2-3 area)

- Dingo has kindly provided a really useful insight - need to run that to ground

- general condition of hoses/fuel tank

- oil, fuel, diff, brake leaks

 

 

2. Is an old racecar a series of problems held together with hidden cracks and I should walk away?

 

Not necessarily. I have rented Caterham race cars from Bookatrack and they are some of the best mechanically maintained and reliable sevens I have ever seen (not necessarily the best show cars though!). From what I recall this is not a show car to look at. Inspection will show if it was well maintained mechanically by Entropy.

 

3. Ballpark ideas on the cost of streeting it, if I do all the work. What would it need beyond headlights, turn signals and actuator, -are those rear lamps "factory" marker lamps, seats (perhaps the most costly item?)

windscreen, wipers system (a big deal?) (has anyone registered a car with brooklands in NJ?), safety harnesses.

 

Ooooh.....the pain of a NJ seven registration. Assuming this is not going to be a faked 1965 Lotus registration then you need to expect worst case that NJ MVC will apply the full DOT/CAFE rules and regs.

 

 

The legally correct NJ registration process for a kit car is to treat it as a reconstruct/salvage as its engine did not come factory standard from a Caterham. If so then the process is:

 

 

1) go to MVC and apply for title pay tax and registration

2) MVC takes new registration and plates and sends them to specialty inspection

3) You take the car (on a trailer) to specialty inspection and they check the compliance with NJ inspection regs and NJ emissions. This means:

• A 2000 year chassis car with a post 1996 engine requires full OBDII with no faults showing in order to be emissions tested. This car does not have that as I recall it having an after market ECU (happy to be corrected on this). In theory the NJ DOE law allows for waivers to be tail pipe tested, in practice you have no hope - wait for Blubarisax to chime in on this one.
  
• You can cost out the various modifications by going to Caterham UK and looking at their parts inventory pages with prices marked. To street ready from the perspective of a NJ Specialty Inpsection you need:
  
  • lights
    
  • front indicators
    
  • rear brake lights and rear indicators
    
  • reversing light
    
  • high mount brake light
    
  • shielding over the entire exposed exhaust length to protect kiddies, kittens, etc
    
  • a steering wheel 12 inches or greater in diameter - non-removable.
    
  • DOT marked 3 point belts or race harnesses.
    
  • wipers
    
  • no rule on windscreen from memory but an inspector could be a pain and insist on it. There is a car in NJ with Brooklands but it never went through specialty inspection.
    
  • I was forced to install honeycomb panels around the fuel tank on my previous seven
    
  • gear stick has to have marked H pattern gears (cheap - buy a sticker)
    
  • I was also noise tested even though there is no law on this. Inspectors like to make up rules.
    

Assuming you pass this then you get your plates and registration and then you need to go and get tested for emissions again before you get your emissions test pass sticker (at least I had to!).

 

 

Now this is the legally correct way for a post 1996 engined seven to be registered in NJ. Someone will come on line to dispute me but I have the legal bills, written attorney opinions and MVC/DOE/inspection correspondence to prove it and I am the only one to have ever had a post 2000 seven NJ emissions tested.

 

 

However....you may be lucky at the MVC upfront when you apply for a brand new title to argue that the car fits precisely within the legal definition of an "historic" or "collector" car category for registration. No title does give you a clean sheet of paper to work with I suppose.

 

However this is your choice to make this case. If you fail at this then you now proudly own a car on which you paid sales tax that you will never be able to legally drive in NJ. There was a forum member who ended up in this exact situation (lives within 100 yards of where this car is for sale rather coincidentally).

 

 

So in reality as a NJ resident I look at this as a pure track car. If you want a road car then you really need to look at a pre-1995 chassis with a pre-OBD engine. Then you can sail through the process in a straightforward manner like other NJ owners.

 

 

4. Is it worth it (vs. other 7s) as a street conversion? I know, it's sort of like asking, "what is the best car?" -But I already know the answer to that one. :-)

 

 

As a track day car I think it is great value. To get it as a road car in NJ - I would walk away and look for a pre-1996 cross flow.

 

 

 

I will PM my cell phone so you can call me if you want me to join you on an inspection.

 

Cheers

mike

 

 

 

By the way - where do you run? There are a group of seveners who run track days at NJMP regularly. If you want to see a broader cross section of cars in order to learn more about them then we can arrange sometime fairly easily as we are all over north/south NJ or PA (Philly area).

[Kitcat]

Croc has done his usual thorough job here. I wld add that my first Caterham was a '98 w/X-flow engine that was registed in NJ. I bought it there from the original owner who convinced DMV that it had a 1960's Ford Pinto engine, thereby avoiding some of the the crazy stuff.

[The Stig]

$15,500 is a great price for this and I am also tempted for track only use. Having got my Crossflow up to scratch now and probably too nice to thrash on a track, this really makes sense! Hmmm...

 

How about getting together and purchasing a 'USA7's club' car, keep it at NJMP and thrash the **** out of it on the tracks!

[Kitcat]

Ooooh, the equalizer:). Sure wld settle some arguments. Like others tho, I like having my excuses for not catching driver "X".

 

It makes total sense to save your X-Flow for spirited street driving and using this on track. Especially if the already low price is not firm. Virtually the same spec as my track-only Cat, for $8K less money (currently).