My Caterham ownership (it's not pleasent)

[bigdog]

Just got a call from my Mechanic. He did a compression and leak down test on my engine. Seems I need a valve job. He said every valve was leaking. Some more than others. He also did an endoscope inspection of the cylinder walls. They look fine. I just wonder if the prior owner didn't do the hardened valve seats mod as stated for the switch to unleaded.

 

All in all. It could have been much worse news.

[Klasik-69]

I'm glad for you that it turned out to be relatively minor. A valve job isn't cheap but a whole lot cheaper than replacing the entire engine. I know what you must have been going thru in anticipation of finding out what is wrong. We always seem to expect the worse case scenario and it usually is much less.

[bigdog]

I looked at Burton power today. They sell a ready to install stage 2 head at 560quid=$930 exchange. May go down that road.

[slomove]

I looked at Burton power today. They sell a ready to install stage 2 head at 560quid=$930 exchange. May go down that road.

 

I have no ideas how much a valve job for that engine is in Germany nowadays, but just for comparison (and to let you know other people have same issues): I took my my 16 valve Zetec head to an engine shop yesterday for a valve job here in Los Angeles for $385. It had pretty ugly pitted exhaust valves, most likely due to bad air filter and/or running lean.

 

The engine shop was also working on a BMW V12 engine. Think what a valve job or new head might cost for that one and you won't feel bad anymore....

[s2k7]

Just got a call from my Mechanic. He did a compression and leak down test on my engine. Seems I need a valve job. He said every valve was leaking. Some more than others. He also did an endoscope inspection of the cylinder walls. They look fine. I just wonder if the prior owner didn't do the hardened valve seats mod as stated for the switch to unleaded.

 

All in all. It could have been much worse news.

 

You have 8 valves right?

Do you know the reading of each cylinder?

If its mine, I will hone the cylinder and put a new ring too.

[bigdog]

You have 8 valves right?

Do you know the reading of each cylinder?

If its mine, I will hone the cylinder and put a new ring too.

 

X-flows are 8 valves.

 

The cylinder walls are fine. The engine doesn't smoke, Which indicates that the rings, valve stems, valve guides are good.

 

Throwing money at a problem that isn't there is not something I'm likely to do. It's very expensive in Europe. The leak down test & having him look at the carbs. (one venturi was loose) But he didn't rebuild them. That set me back $500 then add in 19% tax. (The Socialist nanny state is a mighty expensive way to run a country) Of course if you would like to send me a couple thousand Euro's. I'd gladly have it fully rebuilt.

 

I suspect that the original owner (who stated to the second owner whom I bought the car from) that the cylinder head had been modified with hardened valve seats to facilitate using unleaded fuel. Had lied. And thus the valve seats have been pounded out of shape over time and no longer seal.

[DavidL]

X-flows are prone to breaking piston rings, according to Chris Tchorznicki, a long long-time Caterham dealer in Massachussetts. So good news that the leak-down test didn't show that.

[bigdog]

I got lucky. The local X-flow specialist will start work on my car on Monday next week. He is the shops owner. And only works on the cool cars. He was working on a Ferrari F430 when I went to talk to him today.:drool:

[TheDingo8MyBaby]

Probably doesn't hurt to learn how to lap your own valves and set clearances for the next time this happens. Formula Ford guys lap their valves every 10 hours or so.

[bigdog]

Just stopped by the shop to check on the Cat's status. Fortunately the cylinders & valves were fine. The valve seats were rubbish & needed refreshing & new guides. He also rebuilt the carbs after doing an ultrasonic clean. Also new HT leads, Iridium plugs. 1200 Euro total cost. Pretty reasonable by European standards.

 

The most disappointing thing about the whole deal was the fact that the special classics dealer that sold me the Caterham. Answered me in a very clear YES When asked if the head had a hardened unleaded valve seat conversion. Well, seems he was fibbing. The seats are of the machined right on the cast iron variety.

 

Car dealers.:cuss: They are almost as bad as politicians.

[anthonyseven]

Car dealers.:cuss: They are almost as bad as politicians.

 

 

 

Q: What's the difference between a Car Salesman and a Politician?

 

A: At least the Car Salesman usually knows when he is lying to you! :smilielol5:

[raceral]

Gee whiz guys, Politicians :dupe: are usually ex car salesman.

 

Al

[coffee break]

1200 Euro total cost. Pretty reasonable by European standards.

Are higher cost mainly due to VAT?

[bigdog]

Are higher cost mainly due to VAT?

 

That's a big portion of it. 19% here in Continental Europe. 20% in Blighty (UK)

 

Here's an example

NGK BPR7EIX from autozone= $6.99

 

In the UK it's 8.76 quid which is $14.75. That's a fair bit more costly than the 20% tax could have added to the price. That's over 100% more costly.

 

But hey! folks get things for free from the Govmint here. Well the average European THINKS they are getting free stuff.

 

Buy a car, build a new house. That will be 20% added on. one even pays $25 a month in TV tax for every TV in the house. Gotta love socialism.

[slomove]

Hey, at least you can get quality beer in Germany for half the price compared to the US (incl. the tax). Just don't buy soft drinks which are the other way round. Last time I was there I bought good California wine cheaper than the same label here in California. Not to mention my surgery in Germany for a broken ankle including a week in the hospital was half the price of the 2-hour rushed outpatient screw removal here in the US.

 

I think most of the price difference other than tax and exchange rate fluctuation is just the established price level or because the supplier can make another buck. For that matter, the company I work for sells our products (industrial instrumentation) in Germany about 30% higher than in the US or China. Why? Because they can. I bet that is the same reason why Levi's sell for at least twice of the US price over there.

[bigdog]

Hey, at least you can get quality beer in Germany for half the price compared to the US (incl. the tax). Just don't buy soft drinks which are the other way round. Last time I was there I bought good California wine cheaper than the same label here in California. Not to mention my surgery in Germany for a broken ankle including a week in the hospital was half the price of the 2-hour rushed outpatient screw removal here in the US.

 

I think most of the price difference other than tax and exchange rate fluctuation is just the established price level or because the supplier can make another buck. For that matter, the company I work for sells our products (industrial instrumentation) in Germany about 30% higher than in the US or China. Why? Because they can. I bet that is the same reason why Levi's sell for at least twice of the US price over there.

 

The soda vs beer is still valid. A pint of beer is cheaper than a pint of soda.

 

Funny thing is, Prior to moving to Germany. I was a big fan of the specialty brews. (I still am) But I haven't drank much beer since moving here. If I did I'd weigh a million pounds by now. However, When it's hot out. The wife & I like to drink a radler beer. Which is a Pilsner with citrus soda added. Very light and tasty. Sometimes we will have a cola-weisen when it's cooler. My landlord (who is American) left his stock of alcohol behind. (most older German homes like ours have a bar in the keller) One of the bottles he left was a lowlands single malt scotch whiskey. I'd never tasted a single malt before. That's now what I prefer to sip.

 

A further note on my car. Looks like the shop decided to use the old valve cover gasket instead of spending a couple of Euro on a new one.:toetap05: You can guess what it is doing. Freaking oil every where. It does run much better though. No hunting at just off idle when cruising at constant speed. But as the engine is healthy now. I can get to work on final jetting adjustments without the leaky valves throwing me off.

[Nevinear]

Hey bigdog sounds like we have a very similar situation! I'm also an American living in Germany and am considering at 25+ year old 7 variant so I can later take it back. Got any tips besides not trusting car dealers? Did you trailer or drive it back or?

 

I've been looking at late 80's Westfields but really still just a n00b so any advice is appreciated. I'm coming from owning a Lotus Exige I bought in the UK and really want to get that driving-a-laser-guided-missile feel it had but without breaking the bank. I'm sure the older cars will need some upgrading to get to that point but hey projects can be fun

 

Good luck with the oil leak and don't worry I'm sure it will all be worth it when you're flying up flugplatz on the 'Ring. :auto:

[bigdog]

Hey bigdog sounds like we have a very similar situation! I'm also an American living in Germany and am considering at 25+ year old 7 variant so I can later take it back. Got any tips besides not trusting car dealers? Did you trailer or drive it back or?

 

I've been looking at late 80's Westfields but really still just a n00b so any advice is appreciated. I'm coming from owning a Lotus Exige I bought in the UK and really want to get that driving-a-laser-guided-missile feel it had but without breaking the bank. I'm sure the older cars will need some upgrading to get to that point but hey projects can be fun

 

Good luck with the oil leak and don't worry I'm sure it will all be worth it when you're flying up flugplatz on the 'Ring. :auto:

 

Well the dealership came through and is doing the right thing. I will post about it following this one.

 

My car was delivered to my house and was included in the cost of the car.

 

If you are near the ring you must be at Spang. where are you at?

 

I would take the Ronald Reagen approach. Trust but verify. Which I didn't do. I got caught up in the wow factor and lost my objectiveness. I still would have bought my Caterham, But I could have used the unleaded head issue as a bargaining chip. Take along a spark plug socket and a compression tester. If the car is in good nick other than a bad compression test. One could use that as a bargaining tool. The engine while expensive to fix (esp in Europe) are the least of the worries when buying a seven. A bent or rusted chassis is a much bigger spanner in the works to deal with.

 

If you are stationed at Spang. There is a nice fella that deals in Westfields & DAX in a town (Plein) near Wittlich on the west side of the Mossel river & the A1. His English is great as well. All his cars are right hand drive UK versions. I've been to his house twice. Between his home garage and a separate garage facility he showed me 12 seven variants= Westfields, DAX Rush's, Tigers. He also had one 356 Porsche replica, A DAX Cobra. He usually has something on Ebay.de Accept for right now. (figures)

 

I found that the Older westfield SE are rather narrower than the equivalent Caterham S3. As the westfield has a very wide center tunnel whereas the Caterham has a narrow tunnel. As I'm older (Read fatter) and the SE was tight, The SEiW and the S3 were fine with the flat seats. My S3 long cockpit fits great and is very comfortable.

[Nevinear]

Good to hear man! I've always been pretty impressed with UK customer service when dealing with parts suppliers (the Germans could learn from that bit haha). I used to be closer to the 'Ring but now live in a town called Coburg in the middle of nowhere. I work for a German automotive supplier so my next stop is probably Detroit, still not sure if/when I'm going back to the US but doing what I can to be prepared.

 

Thanks for the advice, my buddy has a compression tester so will borrow that for sure. What else did you test drive or consider before settling on a 7 variant? I really need to try some different cars to see if anything else would fit the bill but I'm pretty hooked on these already since I always had my eye on them on 'Ring visits as they passed me in the Exige :driving:

 

That's cool there is a specialist in Germany, I will keep an eye out for cars for sale more locally too! I love UK car buying trips though, this will be my 3rd UK-DE import if I do it

[bigdog]

Good to hear man! I've always been pretty impressed with UK customer service when dealing with parts suppliers (the Germans could learn from that bit haha). I used to be closer to the 'Ring but now live in a town called Coburg in the middle of nowhere. I work for a German automotive supplier so my next stop is probably Detroit, still not sure if/when I'm going back to the US but doing what I can to be prepared.

 

Thanks for the advice, my buddy has a compression tester so will borrow that for sure. What else did you test drive or consider before settling on a 7 variant? I really need to try some different cars to see if anything else would fit the bill but I'm pretty hooked on these already since I always had my eye on them on 'Ring visits as they passed me in the Exige :driving:

 

That's cool there is a specialist in Germany, I will keep an eye out for cars for sale more locally too! I love UK car buying trips though, this will be my 3rd UK-DE import if I do it

 

I was looking at anything that was unusual. Triumph TR's, Bug eye Sprite. I even thought about a 2cv Citroen.

 

I imagine that if a 7 passed your Lotus on the Ring It wasn't an old 7. An old seven will normally have a ford X-flow or pinto SOHC. If you really push the engine to race levels one can get 150-160 HP. and a bit more from the 2ltr pinto engine. My 1.6 90-100HP x-flow might see 110MPH if you wring it's neck. You would have to get a monster 7 in the r500, 620r, V8 arena to easily hit 155MPH remember that Sevens are less aerodynamic than the average Hollywood 30 room mansion. My BMW Zed 4 (the car I sold for the 7) could do 155 with ease. And to be honest, After driving the Zed in unrestricted Germany for nearly 4 years. I hit 155 in it once. All 155 will do for you in America is net you jail time and confiscation of your car.

 

For me the seven is all about corners & the uniqueness & just cruising around (except in the USA) where it's about how big an engine one can stuff in a seven. Which is always a hot debate when that subject comes up.:leaving:

 

You could join the lotus seven club. They have an internet forum (Blat Chat) and a monthly magazine. It's a bit spendy at 49 quid or $60 per year. But there is a lot of info.