2020 Mint green Caterham 420R
Discussion
MDifficult said:
Great update as always and the track day looks amazing.
On wind noise, I found the same thing moving from a 'bike' Arai to a 'motorsport' Arai so it's clearly a thing. I'd definitely recommend shopping around and trying different foam plugs. I used to use cheapie ones for bikes, cars and even my power tools, but more recently moved to some really good quality disposables (Howard Leight Laser Lite Ear Plugs) and the difference is night and day, not just the volume (32db) but also the tone. No issues with my ears at all now (in fact, I took the Atom out with googles and plugs rather than helmet and even that was fine).
It also matters how you fit them... roll them up, lick 'em good, and jam them in as far as you can. Wait for them to expand, then let go. You probably knew that but thought it might be worth mentioning.
Looking forward to the next update.
Thanks dude, yea that might be it I suppose motorcycle helmets have to deal with wind noise well no matter how cheap they are! Ah thanks I will give those disposables a go with the helmet. I usually use Ear Peace moto pro -24 ones, which work perfectly with the Aeroscreen and no helmet funnily enough. But obviously not enough cut with the helmet on!On wind noise, I found the same thing moving from a 'bike' Arai to a 'motorsport' Arai so it's clearly a thing. I'd definitely recommend shopping around and trying different foam plugs. I used to use cheapie ones for bikes, cars and even my power tools, but more recently moved to some really good quality disposables (Howard Leight Laser Lite Ear Plugs) and the difference is night and day, not just the volume (32db) but also the tone. No issues with my ears at all now (in fact, I took the Atom out with googles and plugs rather than helmet and even that was fine).
It also matters how you fit them... roll them up, lick 'em good, and jam them in as far as you can. Wait for them to expand, then let go. You probably knew that but thought it might be worth mentioning.
Looking forward to the next update.
Fonzey said:
Good couple of updates. I share your thoughts on Hethel, it's an excellent track but clearly designed to frustrate a car/driver which can be a bit offputting at first.
The esses section is great though, if you come out of that with half a lick of speed it's a very rewarding sensation.
I'm surprised that the Bell has given you so much wind noise. Does it have removable ear cups in it for an intercom? You may be able to swap those out for a bit more foam padding around the ear, and could explain some of it.
Yea it definitely is, I found the first hairpin after the first set of esses really tricky! I only really started to get it figured out slightly on my last couple of sessions. Both the hairpins are almost square arnt they, so you almost have to design your own corner to get round. The esses section is great though, if you come out of that with half a lick of speed it's a very rewarding sensation.
I'm surprised that the Bell has given you so much wind noise. Does it have removable ear cups in it for an intercom? You may be able to swap those out for a bit more foam padding around the ear, and could explain some of it.
Also the big braking section after the last straight where you are pretty much braking from 100+ aimed straight at the end of the pit lane wall was fairly exciting considering my recent braking issues, but I did try to put that out of my mind!
Ah I haven’t checked that actually, I will take a look and see, if there isn’t any there putting some in might do the trick!
Edited by MTW on Monday 24th April 09:27
After looking closely at the Bell GP3 and the Zamp helmet that I originally bought, I'm very suspicious that they were made on the same production line using the exact same tooling, and if that's the case - you should have removable ear sections in the lining. You can either put foam in there, or ear cups, or stash your lunch burger money in there, whatever. There's loads of room!
Mine also has a removable chin cover thing, that made a massive difference to driving an aeroscreen car, as previously the wind would hit your chest and rush up the base of your helmet. Though claustrophobic first time I wore it, I've grown to love it - it's quite cosy in there.
Mine also has a removable chin cover thing, that made a massive difference to driving an aeroscreen car, as previously the wind would hit your chest and rush up the base of your helmet. Though claustrophobic first time I wore it, I've grown to love it - it's quite cosy in there.
I have just checked, no ear pads fitted nor any provision to retro fit them, it’s just a thin bit of padding stuck to the helmet so that a bit of a bummer.
I will try tightening the visor a bit, I actually remember when coming off the motorway I flipped up the visor slightly and the wind noise reduced slightly so maybe I haven’t fitted the visor tight enough
I will try tightening the visor a bit, I actually remember when coming off the motorway I flipped up the visor slightly and the wind noise reduced slightly so maybe I haven’t fitted the visor tight enough
New fan arrived yesterday from rad tech, so I got it all fitted up.
I noticed on the old fan some witness marks where the nose cone had been hitting the front of the fan. This may well have been the cause of the issue. So I took the dremel and made some clearance on the edge of the carbon nose cone that surounds the grill.
One thing I almost noticed was the metal body in the middle of the fan was rubbing on the metal grill slightly. I don’t think this was enough to cause the failure, but it’s something I wanted to address. For now i have removed the 7 emblem which means the grill can sit a few mm further forward which has cured the problem. I will run like this for a while and if I start to miss the 7 emblem there is another version you can buy from Caterham that has the 7 integrated with the grill as one piece, which should give plenty of clearance compared to my currently two piece set up.
I noticed on the old fan some witness marks where the nose cone had been hitting the front of the fan. This may well have been the cause of the issue. So I took the dremel and made some clearance on the edge of the carbon nose cone that surounds the grill.
One thing I almost noticed was the metal body in the middle of the fan was rubbing on the metal grill slightly. I don’t think this was enough to cause the failure, but it’s something I wanted to address. For now i have removed the 7 emblem which means the grill can sit a few mm further forward which has cured the problem. I will run like this for a while and if I start to miss the 7 emblem there is another version you can buy from Caterham that has the 7 integrated with the grill as one piece, which should give plenty of clearance compared to my currently two piece set up.
I popped over to Hethel on Saturday to have a quick look at the track day, I work there and daughters wanted to see where I worked and see some cars too, they loved your Caterham, it was the one they kept waiting to see it come back round!
I tried my Arai GP6 on whilst riding my motorbike once, I couldn't believe the din it made compared to my bike helmet, seriously loud to the point it was nearly disorienting! And I noticed just how little the field of view is! Lesson learnt.
Keep enjoying the car, you're clearly having a lot of fun.
I tried my Arai GP6 on whilst riding my motorbike once, I couldn't believe the din it made compared to my bike helmet, seriously loud to the point it was nearly disorienting! And I noticed just how little the field of view is! Lesson learnt.
Keep enjoying the car, you're clearly having a lot of fun.
Dirknights said:
I popped over to Hethel on Saturday to have a quick look at the track day, I work there and daughters wanted to see where I worked and see some cars too, they loved your Caterham, it was the one they kept waiting to see it come back round!
I tried my Arai GP6 on whilst riding my motorbike once, I couldn't believe the din it made compared to my bike helmet, seriously loud to the point it was nearly disorienting! And I noticed just how little the field of view is! Lesson learnt.
Keep enjoying the car, you're clearly having a lot of fun.
Ah that’s awesome! Glad they enjoyed it!I tried my Arai GP6 on whilst riding my motorbike once, I couldn't believe the din it made compared to my bike helmet, seriously loud to the point it was nearly disorienting! And I noticed just how little the field of view is! Lesson learnt.
Keep enjoying the car, you're clearly having a lot of fun.
Yea makes sense with the motorbike helmet, literally I have the cheapest Deliveroo spec motorbike helmet and I don’t even need to wear earplugs with it, and yea the bell is so loud even with -24 earplugs in! I have tightened up the visor, I’m hoping that might help, but not expecting much!
Fitted 620R front grill and bonnet vents. When looking for the updated grill on the Caterham parts site I noticed the 620R grills are a honeycomb hex pattern rather than the normal chicken wire type grill. The 620R has a different nose cone so I wasn’t sure if it would fit, but thought I would give it a try anyway, and it all fits perfectly! And looks much better imo and is a nice little detail.
Old grill vs new.
And the bonnet vents.
All fitted up.
Old grill vs new.
And the bonnet vents.
All fitted up.
Managed to carve out a couple of hours yesterday to take the car for a rip. Excuse the dirt! I haven’t had a chance to clean the car since the last track day!
while I was out I thought I had better pull over and let the car idle to test that the new fan works ok. I pulled over and immediately saw the brand new fan has already disintegrated! I couldn’t believe it! I hadn’t stopped at any traffic or heard the fan kick on whatsoever while driving, so it was a strange one! Throughly dejected I nursed the car back home to take a look.
Luckily the apprentice was on hand to assist!
So that’s that, another fan scrapped! With all the clearance issues sorted out last time, I was struggling to think what the issue could be. Then I thought that if I didn’t even hear the fan turn on and smash itself to bits, it must have happened while the car is travelling at speed. Something must be causing the fan to turn on when it shouldn’t be.
My first thought was to check the temperature sensor with the Easymap software to check if it’s functioning correctly. But I thought I would locate the sensor first and take a look.
Ah, it’s full of oil! Inside the sealed connector. This is when I had an almighty “DOH” moment. A few months ago when I was changing the gearbox oil I spilt a funnel full of oil down the side of the gearbox, which I thought I had managed to clean up! But this sensor is directly under a blanking plate which by chance I had removed a few days ago to remake in carbon, so now the sensor is on show. Oil must have seeped into the connector and must have been shorting under certain conditions, turning the fan on at high speed.
What a ridiculous and entirely self inflicted problem! And an expensive mistake, but there we go. I have cleaned out both ends of the connector with contact cleaner.
Hopefully the sensor still functions correctly! I have left it open to fully dry out over night. Then I will plug into Easymap and make sure it is functioning correctly before I fit the 2nd fan!
while I was out I thought I had better pull over and let the car idle to test that the new fan works ok. I pulled over and immediately saw the brand new fan has already disintegrated! I couldn’t believe it! I hadn’t stopped at any traffic or heard the fan kick on whatsoever while driving, so it was a strange one! Throughly dejected I nursed the car back home to take a look.
Luckily the apprentice was on hand to assist!
So that’s that, another fan scrapped! With all the clearance issues sorted out last time, I was struggling to think what the issue could be. Then I thought that if I didn’t even hear the fan turn on and smash itself to bits, it must have happened while the car is travelling at speed. Something must be causing the fan to turn on when it shouldn’t be.
My first thought was to check the temperature sensor with the Easymap software to check if it’s functioning correctly. But I thought I would locate the sensor first and take a look.
Ah, it’s full of oil! Inside the sealed connector. This is when I had an almighty “DOH” moment. A few months ago when I was changing the gearbox oil I spilt a funnel full of oil down the side of the gearbox, which I thought I had managed to clean up! But this sensor is directly under a blanking plate which by chance I had removed a few days ago to remake in carbon, so now the sensor is on show. Oil must have seeped into the connector and must have been shorting under certain conditions, turning the fan on at high speed.
What a ridiculous and entirely self inflicted problem! And an expensive mistake, but there we go. I have cleaned out both ends of the connector with contact cleaner.
Hopefully the sensor still functions correctly! I have left it open to fully dry out over night. Then I will plug into Easymap and make sure it is functioning correctly before I fit the 2nd fan!
Hopefully the fan issue is now sorted! I fitted the new fan today and took the car for a rip and it’s still intact! So touch wood the problem is solved!
I think the cause of the self destructing fans were a few little things all mixed together.
1. Oil cooler was not tightened fully to the bottom of the rad, which may have caused the bottom half of the fan to not be supported by the face of the oil cooler. See pic bellow.
2. I had a metal blanking plate fitted on the oil cooler for winter. I fitted this under the fan when I installed the new rad. The fact that there was enough of a gap to slide a the blanking plate inbetween the fan and the oil cooler proves problem 1 is correct. And with no support from the oil cooler the bottom half of the fan is free to flex. The first fan broke pretty much the same time as I removed the oil cooler blank plate.
3. The nose cone was hitting the Center and bottom shroud of the fan. Pushing it back and warping it once the nosecone was installed.
Now I have adjusted the oil cooler to its correct position, mounted the rad a few millimetres back and trimmed the inside of the nosecone the fan sits flush to the rad and the oil cooler and is unable to flex, so problem seems to be solved touch wood. I really hope so anyway! These are not cheap!
Also I had a special delivery from Wastermann Motorsport in the way of half doors! I had to have the Westermann ones as they seem to be the only ones that tuck inside the scuttle at the front and look very neat. They won’t be staying black of course, they are off to the painters on Tuesday to go body colour. I’m hoping it will look as good as I am imagining in my mind!
Next up is EVO track evening at Bedford on the 19th! Which I am very much looking forward to, I have heard great things about the EVO Evenings. Also Bedford is somewhat surprisingly climbing up the ranks of tracks I enjoy the most! So I’ll looking forward to getting back there for a nice sunny (hopefully!) evening session.
I think the cause of the self destructing fans were a few little things all mixed together.
1. Oil cooler was not tightened fully to the bottom of the rad, which may have caused the bottom half of the fan to not be supported by the face of the oil cooler. See pic bellow.
2. I had a metal blanking plate fitted on the oil cooler for winter. I fitted this under the fan when I installed the new rad. The fact that there was enough of a gap to slide a the blanking plate inbetween the fan and the oil cooler proves problem 1 is correct. And with no support from the oil cooler the bottom half of the fan is free to flex. The first fan broke pretty much the same time as I removed the oil cooler blank plate.
3. The nose cone was hitting the Center and bottom shroud of the fan. Pushing it back and warping it once the nosecone was installed.
Now I have adjusted the oil cooler to its correct position, mounted the rad a few millimetres back and trimmed the inside of the nosecone the fan sits flush to the rad and the oil cooler and is unable to flex, so problem seems to be solved touch wood. I really hope so anyway! These are not cheap!
Also I had a special delivery from Wastermann Motorsport in the way of half doors! I had to have the Westermann ones as they seem to be the only ones that tuck inside the scuttle at the front and look very neat. They won’t be staying black of course, they are off to the painters on Tuesday to go body colour. I’m hoping it will look as good as I am imagining in my mind!
Next up is EVO track evening at Bedford on the 19th! Which I am very much looking forward to, I have heard great things about the EVO Evenings. Also Bedford is somewhat surprisingly climbing up the ranks of tracks I enjoy the most! So I’ll looking forward to getting back there for a nice sunny (hopefully!) evening session.
Edited by MTW on Monday 8th May 06:34
It might be worth trying one of these if it will fit, it worked (to an extent) on my Arai where the screen was directing dirty air into the chin area.
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/303971453244?chn=ps&...
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/303971453244?chn=ps&...
gareth h said:
It might be worth trying one of these if it will fit, it worked (to an extent) on my Arai where the screen was directing dirty air into the chin area.
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/303971453244?chn=ps&...
Yes worth a shot! Thanks for the tip https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/303971453244?chn=ps&...
Got a couple of nice shots yesterday and from Bedford, I will do a little write up with some footage once the track day photos are up!
Couple of shots of first time out of the garage with the colour coded half doors, really happy with the look!
And a few nice shots from Bedford at the end of the day just before heading home.
Couple of shots of first time out of the garage with the colour coded half doors, really happy with the look!
And a few nice shots from Bedford at the end of the day just before heading home.
A few nice shots from the aero track evening last week at Bedford. Not much to report! The car ran faultlessly and was great fun. It was nice to be out on the shorter SW circuit for a change, all in all a very well run evening with some nice cars hanging around the pits!
The half doors feel great, much calmer in the cockpit with them fitted, it feels even more like you are in a single
Seater when out on track with the Aeroscreen. Also a big plus is it makes me look like I actually fit inside the car! Rather than looking like desperate Dan sat on top
Of it! So I’m pleased with that!
The half doors feel great, much calmer in the cockpit with them fitted, it feels even more like you are in a single
Seater when out on track with the Aeroscreen. Also a big plus is it makes me look like I actually fit inside the car! Rather than looking like desperate Dan sat on top
Of it! So I’m pleased with that!
Managed to get the car out this morning for an early rip before the masses hit the roads, had great fun. Didn’t get a chance to take the track wheels off, the ZZR extremes are incredible on the road!
Got a little video of the A507, a particularly nice road if the traffic is in your side!
And a few nice shots on the way home.
Got a little video of the A507, a particularly nice road if the traffic is in your side!
And a few nice shots on the way home.
Good collection of updates, love the half doors - never ever seen those before, are they a new invention?!
Got my first ever drive of a Caterham last week, at Bedford too as part of a Palmersport day (best day of my life).
Thoroughly enjoyed the Caterhams, only relatively low speed/gymkhana type stuff but was steering the rear axle from about 10 seconds in. They are so intuitive, and wasn't as claustrophobic as I feared in the cabin.
Got my first ever drive of a Caterham last week, at Bedford too as part of a Palmersport day (best day of my life).
Thoroughly enjoyed the Caterhams, only relatively low speed/gymkhana type stuff but was steering the rear axle from about 10 seconds in. They are so intuitive, and wasn't as claustrophobic as I feared in the cabin.
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