Caterham 7 rebuild
Discussion
Not much achieved. The wiring was attacked again, takes a while but seemingly not much gets done. I wired in and plumbed in the low oil pressure warning light and sensor. The cabin heater switch has become a radiator fan overide, hopefully with switch lights that illuminate the switch once activated only via a relay which is housed next to the current ones, should blend in.
Boxed in the inertia seat belt cubby hole bit thing! Never been used, but they're there for the reels.
Started working out a way to tie the battery down. I had some 4" bolts, but upon looking at it on site, I'm going to have to rivnut it and use some studding instead. Not the end of the world. I planned to place it where the heater originally way and to lay it down. The clamp it down to stop it moving. Simples.
The coolant missing hoses were installed, the radiator mounted. the fan switch connected.
Air filter attached.
High level brake light finished off.
The bonnet tie downs front and rear were riveted on. The scuttle and bonnet placed in, seems to be going well.
The old steering tube bushes were removed due to sleeves missing, new ones now installed.
The handbrakes in position and the wheels are back from a much needed refurb.
Not much ticked off, more better than nothing!
Boxed in the inertia seat belt cubby hole bit thing! Never been used, but they're there for the reels.
Started working out a way to tie the battery down. I had some 4" bolts, but upon looking at it on site, I'm going to have to rivnut it and use some studding instead. Not the end of the world. I planned to place it where the heater originally way and to lay it down. The clamp it down to stop it moving. Simples.
The coolant missing hoses were installed, the radiator mounted. the fan switch connected.
Air filter attached.
High level brake light finished off.
The bonnet tie downs front and rear were riveted on. The scuttle and bonnet placed in, seems to be going well.
The old steering tube bushes were removed due to sleeves missing, new ones now installed.
The handbrakes in position and the wheels are back from a much needed refurb.
Not much ticked off, more better than nothing!
It's been a while as I've been busy. I'd hope to have been in Europe right now but not chance of that!
A wedding and a stag do saw a few weekends off. Although my friend and his step Father did do a little bit for me while I was getting drunk on a stag do! The corners were all assembled and the exhaust mounted.
I was there last Sunday and have taken Thursday and Friday off this week to get some more work in. It's got to be more fun that work anyhow.
Right then.
The steering column and wheel have been squared up with the wheels and all put into place. The dash has then been glued/ siliconed into place as I think/ hope I've finished under there for a while, although the scuttle will always be removable for future access. Might save the head in the footwell, feet over the roll bar moments that all Caterham owners know and love.
The battery is in. I've moved it from the end of the passengers footwell to the centre of the car now that the heater has gone. I rivnutted two lengths of studding in either side of the battery. The battery is sat on a section of that anti slip material that looks similar to mesh in appearance. The weight of the battery does a good job to stop it moving, but the clamp bar and wing nuts will see it sitting in one place and allow easy removal if ever needed. I'm just going to finish it off by heat shrinking the studding either side of the battery where the threads are on show but never required, just in case there was contact and it'll look all pretty like...
As I said, the exhaust is in place. The chassis people performed the cut out for it. I did provide them with a template of my original cut out. Not sure if they used this or a stock template.
The headlights are sat in place. Still need the connectors putting back on after removal to thread the wires through the stays. Line them up and tighten it all up. The front corners just await the wheels then.
After faffing about with many fuel filler methods trying to save money to get the same thing, I finally have a black aero filler cap. I still need a neck (like mine shown) with the flap still present. I removed mine and then found that it's needed down under.
I also ended up with the rear numberplate in my hand at one point, I think as I was playing with velcro (I velcroed the fuse box to the bulkhead). The two seemed like a good idea as in November I'll be swapping plates anyhow. So the rear numberplate was fitted, and then promptly removed, ready to be stuck again.
The diff breath got a pipe of curly tube to hopefully slow the spurting of oil over the back end. The diff is also now full of oil.
Awaiting a wheel
A wedding and a stag do saw a few weekends off. Although my friend and his step Father did do a little bit for me while I was getting drunk on a stag do! The corners were all assembled and the exhaust mounted.
I was there last Sunday and have taken Thursday and Friday off this week to get some more work in. It's got to be more fun that work anyhow.
Right then.
The steering column and wheel have been squared up with the wheels and all put into place. The dash has then been glued/ siliconed into place as I think/ hope I've finished under there for a while, although the scuttle will always be removable for future access. Might save the head in the footwell, feet over the roll bar moments that all Caterham owners know and love.
The battery is in. I've moved it from the end of the passengers footwell to the centre of the car now that the heater has gone. I rivnutted two lengths of studding in either side of the battery. The battery is sat on a section of that anti slip material that looks similar to mesh in appearance. The weight of the battery does a good job to stop it moving, but the clamp bar and wing nuts will see it sitting in one place and allow easy removal if ever needed. I'm just going to finish it off by heat shrinking the studding either side of the battery where the threads are on show but never required, just in case there was contact and it'll look all pretty like...
As I said, the exhaust is in place. The chassis people performed the cut out for it. I did provide them with a template of my original cut out. Not sure if they used this or a stock template.
The headlights are sat in place. Still need the connectors putting back on after removal to thread the wires through the stays. Line them up and tighten it all up. The front corners just await the wheels then.
After faffing about with many fuel filler methods trying to save money to get the same thing, I finally have a black aero filler cap. I still need a neck (like mine shown) with the flap still present. I removed mine and then found that it's needed down under.
I also ended up with the rear numberplate in my hand at one point, I think as I was playing with velcro (I velcroed the fuse box to the bulkhead). The two seemed like a good idea as in November I'll be swapping plates anyhow. So the rear numberplate was fitted, and then promptly removed, ready to be stuck again.
The diff breath got a pipe of curly tube to hopefully slow the spurting of oil over the back end. The diff is also now full of oil.
Awaiting a wheel
Hoonigan said:
Excellent stuff loving the colour coordinated battery 
Is the battery the same as the Odyssey batteries?
I used to have the original 40Ah (?) Banner which was chunky and heavy. Having no real auxiliarys to the car, many have downsized battery and also therefore weight. Is the battery the same as the Odyssey batteries?I think I went to 18Ah, but this new one is 22Ah. I bought a new one as I thought this was a good time to do it and it was the biggest Ah for the footprint. But it does weight slightly more. Sacralidge.
Its a gell battery but I'm not sure if it's the same. Either way it's not far different. This one cost ~£30.
You'd need bigger for a V8 though!
£30.00, Bargain! The Odyssey I need will be £160.00, Doh! Am I right in thinking you're off to OZ? It will be the perfect car and not too many out there I guess? It will be a shame not to se it hacking down the A27 any more in its new livery though...
I think I went to 18Ah, but this new one is 22Ah. I bought a new one as I thought this was a good time to do it and it was the biggest Ah for the footprint. But it does weight slightly more. Sacralidge.
Its a gell battery but I'm not sure if it's the same. Either way it's not far different. This one cost ~£30.
You'd need bigger for a V8 though!
Gingerbread Man said:
Hoonigan said:
Excellent stuff loving the colour coordinated battery Is the battery the same as the Odyssey batteries?
I used to have the original 40Ah (?) Banner which was chunky and heavy. Having no real auxiliarys to the car, many have downsized battery and also therefore weight. Is the battery the same as the Odyssey batteries?I think I went to 18Ah, but this new one is 22Ah. I bought a new one as I thought this was a good time to do it and it was the biggest Ah for the footprint. But it does weight slightly more. Sacralidge.
Its a gell battery but I'm not sure if it's the same. Either way it's not far different. This one cost ~£30.
You'd need bigger for a V8 though!
I took Thursday and Friday off work to get some hours in hoping to still get a (somewhat postponed) Europe road trip in. Probably a very wet one will be on the cards as I think Summer would have passed. If the road trip had gone to plan, we were meant to be coming back this weekend after the Belgium F1 at Spa as a last stop off, alas it has not happened and the Spa tickets were sold.
Originally it was planned for July and the 24 hours of Spa was planned, but that got moved on also!
I'll have to see what else I can scrape together to see Spa.
Anyhow, there has been some progress.
I started on the battery. It's all wired up now. The original battery master switch back in place. I have added a new fuse to the fuse box for a better OEM (is much of a Caterham OEM!?) look rather than an inline fuse for the 12v socket. I have wired up the old and now redundant heater switch to become a radiator fan override. when running, the switch lights come on, all is well on that. I have taken this straight off the battery so it can be run after a long blat or similar. Will be easy however to put inline with the master switch if I do end up suffering from a flat battery.
I also moved the battery as previously see from above the end of the passenger footwell to the middle of the bulkhead, originally where the heater assembly was.
I have made up and run new earth leads all round and shortened the necessary positive leads as these were only as old as the battery master switch install I did.
Due to the battery terminals being small m4 threads which came with small screws, I used some of the leftover studding I had from bolting the battery down to extend and make useable the battery terminals.
I managed to figure out where all the fuel lines went. Something that had seemingly gone un-noted during dismantle! Feed, return and two to the charcoal canister. The latter two I'd had hoped to remove due to removing and binning the charcoal canister. But an Australian contact informed me of the need for it, initially anyhow, I guess just like it's needed on the car when first registered here. After that it can disappear. I had removed and binned the cradle holding it in place. I'm pretty sure I also told the chassis people to grind off the tab as it was no longer needed. Obviously, like other mentioned things, that went undone, so luckily it happened to be there, but without the correct bracket. Queue a big jubilee clip....
The gearbox was filled, after modifying a 10mm allen key. This has to be grinded down to 15mm so that it can squeeze into the space left between the chassis/ transmission tunnel and the gear box. As guessed, not the roomiest. I thought about drilling a hole in the footwell and grommeting it later on, but it roughly lines up with a diagonal piece of bracing, so the idea went by the by.
The coolant was added, I think the clear nature of the water would spell the need for some more antifreeze which I run out of. Hopefully freezing periods will be a thing of the past...
The new modified cooling system layout seemed to self bleed just fine. The K series can be a right pig which often means people jacking the front right up in the air to get a bleed point to become the highest part and a lot of fannying. I think every owner has been there thinking they must have a broken water pump or similar as they have done everything they can to get it to work but alas it still won't bleed through!
The car runs! Broom broom. Although it didn't for a while as upon trying, the engine turned over but no fuel. My friend was on the case checking the spark and power to certain points while I played around with wiring the headlights back up after threading the cabled through the wing stays.
It turns out that I may have grabbed the nearest (and assumed only) fitting plug and plugged it in to the fuel pump feed. It turns out that the fog light feed wasn't cutting it and the uomp wasn't running. Now If I had started the car with the fog light on, then maybe it might have started! That's an anti theft bit of wiring for you! It took a few hours of our time thinking it was the immobiliser which was a pain but after printing off a wiring diagram over several sheets of paper to make a poster sized wiring diagram, I could work my way backwards. I did say I wasn't a mechanic!
The car was run and the gearbox checked. All seems good. Will be interesting to see what a difference the lightweight flywheel makes.
The boot floor has gone in. I velcroed instead of screwed it down. I ordered quite a bit of velcro to stick the carpets down and numberplates instead of double sided tape. Having ordered a bulk load twice due to forgetting I already had some in the bit amassing pile of car items, I now have several 10's of meters to work with. Maybe I just have a fetish?
I have also trimmed down the honeycomb rear boot floor slightly due to being a right pain to get out and in if every needing access to the boot floor, fuel tank etc. Always seem to manage to scrape the paint or similar, probably still will. I have notched the rear section around the fuel pipes to allow removal without dismantling that aspect.
I started putting the harness shoulder strap in, which also meant the boot cover and the rear carpet set (to be velcroed!). I need new two new harness', I'm a little unsure as Australian regs are funny a only allow a harness a 4 point harness for use on the road. They also require a press button release over the typical twist to release. All press button ones seem to be manufactured from horrid seat belt material, so I'm still pondering this somewhat expensive purchase.
The old redundant hood sticks have gone back in. Excess weight and all that but the boot cover is designed with them being there. As I also use the car for weekends away, they provide a slightly higher boot and when packing things into a 7, space is at a premium. Saves me a new cover anyway.
Now that the engine is running and the electrics are all sound, the scuttle has now been bolted down and on. The rivets replaced by m4 rivnuts were tightened up, I also came across and old rivet each side at the bottom of the scuttle which was duly replaced by a rivnut. I need to move the items on the bulkhead out slightly and silicone the carbon to metal joint to prevent water ingress.
The dash has siliconed in nicely. The bulbs changed from blue to now green. Originally that started years ago after the original Caterham gauge bulbs were pitiful. Leds were the order of the day and blue ones to match ones paint work were sourced. I have had to upgrade the 'look' as it were! I'll take a snap when I remember to turn the lights off to make it dark enough.
I have fitted the aeroscreen for now. I've never run with an aeroscreen. I have been a passenger around a track day once with a helmet, but that removes some of the shock from just wearing sunnies and the open road. I'm quite looking forward to the experience!!
I have quick changing captive nuts behind the scuttle for ease of swapping from screen to aero. As long as nobody presses the windscreen sprayer button, I'll be fine. Although it's backwards for a few of these shots!
The carbon nose was fitted. It took a bit of fettling, and some of the lines could be closer but nothing a dremel won't sort. On the whole it was spot on, I just trimmed certain areas to allow a little room around the extruding anti roll bar beams and headlight brackets. I've fitted new dzus fasteners for the top, still to decide on if I fit the bottom two as they don't seem to come fitted/ used with the newer sevens. I also had mine fall out and ran for a year or so without them. I had planned to have this painted before going to Oz, I'll book it in after my Europe trip.
I then shimmied my titanium grill into the opening at the front and Da Dah, it's looking good.
Just waiting on the front and rear wings now.
I believe I'm one of the first to be receiving these carbon items off the production line and as such have to go with delivery times around the mould being designed and produced before the wings can even think of being made! I'm informed that my wings will be here next week or so, over to you Neil!
I started wiring up the rear Led lights before noticing quite how late it had got and quickly packed up and left for home. The front lights are now tightened up and roughly facing forward. I also rewired into the connector plugs wired and have ordered some '120% brighter bulbs' have been ordered to hopefully make some use of the front lights. They aren't renowned for their night driving clarity.
Hopefully have her on the wheels, (oh yeah I added them too!) and setup on Sunday. Whatch this space.
Originally it was planned for July and the 24 hours of Spa was planned, but that got moved on also!
I'll have to see what else I can scrape together to see Spa.
Anyhow, there has been some progress.
I started on the battery. It's all wired up now. The original battery master switch back in place. I have added a new fuse to the fuse box for a better OEM (is much of a Caterham OEM!?) look rather than an inline fuse for the 12v socket. I have wired up the old and now redundant heater switch to become a radiator fan override. when running, the switch lights come on, all is well on that. I have taken this straight off the battery so it can be run after a long blat or similar. Will be easy however to put inline with the master switch if I do end up suffering from a flat battery.
I also moved the battery as previously see from above the end of the passenger footwell to the middle of the bulkhead, originally where the heater assembly was.
I have made up and run new earth leads all round and shortened the necessary positive leads as these were only as old as the battery master switch install I did.
Due to the battery terminals being small m4 threads which came with small screws, I used some of the leftover studding I had from bolting the battery down to extend and make useable the battery terminals.
I managed to figure out where all the fuel lines went. Something that had seemingly gone un-noted during dismantle! Feed, return and two to the charcoal canister. The latter two I'd had hoped to remove due to removing and binning the charcoal canister. But an Australian contact informed me of the need for it, initially anyhow, I guess just like it's needed on the car when first registered here. After that it can disappear. I had removed and binned the cradle holding it in place. I'm pretty sure I also told the chassis people to grind off the tab as it was no longer needed. Obviously, like other mentioned things, that went undone, so luckily it happened to be there, but without the correct bracket. Queue a big jubilee clip....
The gearbox was filled, after modifying a 10mm allen key. This has to be grinded down to 15mm so that it can squeeze into the space left between the chassis/ transmission tunnel and the gear box. As guessed, not the roomiest. I thought about drilling a hole in the footwell and grommeting it later on, but it roughly lines up with a diagonal piece of bracing, so the idea went by the by.
The coolant was added, I think the clear nature of the water would spell the need for some more antifreeze which I run out of. Hopefully freezing periods will be a thing of the past...
The new modified cooling system layout seemed to self bleed just fine. The K series can be a right pig which often means people jacking the front right up in the air to get a bleed point to become the highest part and a lot of fannying. I think every owner has been there thinking they must have a broken water pump or similar as they have done everything they can to get it to work but alas it still won't bleed through!
The car runs! Broom broom. Although it didn't for a while as upon trying, the engine turned over but no fuel. My friend was on the case checking the spark and power to certain points while I played around with wiring the headlights back up after threading the cabled through the wing stays.
It turns out that I may have grabbed the nearest (and assumed only) fitting plug and plugged it in to the fuel pump feed. It turns out that the fog light feed wasn't cutting it and the uomp wasn't running. Now If I had started the car with the fog light on, then maybe it might have started! That's an anti theft bit of wiring for you! It took a few hours of our time thinking it was the immobiliser which was a pain but after printing off a wiring diagram over several sheets of paper to make a poster sized wiring diagram, I could work my way backwards. I did say I wasn't a mechanic!
The car was run and the gearbox checked. All seems good. Will be interesting to see what a difference the lightweight flywheel makes.
The boot floor has gone in. I velcroed instead of screwed it down. I ordered quite a bit of velcro to stick the carpets down and numberplates instead of double sided tape. Having ordered a bulk load twice due to forgetting I already had some in the bit amassing pile of car items, I now have several 10's of meters to work with. Maybe I just have a fetish?
I have also trimmed down the honeycomb rear boot floor slightly due to being a right pain to get out and in if every needing access to the boot floor, fuel tank etc. Always seem to manage to scrape the paint or similar, probably still will. I have notched the rear section around the fuel pipes to allow removal without dismantling that aspect.
I started putting the harness shoulder strap in, which also meant the boot cover and the rear carpet set (to be velcroed!). I need new two new harness', I'm a little unsure as Australian regs are funny a only allow a harness a 4 point harness for use on the road. They also require a press button release over the typical twist to release. All press button ones seem to be manufactured from horrid seat belt material, so I'm still pondering this somewhat expensive purchase.
The old redundant hood sticks have gone back in. Excess weight and all that but the boot cover is designed with them being there. As I also use the car for weekends away, they provide a slightly higher boot and when packing things into a 7, space is at a premium. Saves me a new cover anyway.
Now that the engine is running and the electrics are all sound, the scuttle has now been bolted down and on. The rivets replaced by m4 rivnuts were tightened up, I also came across and old rivet each side at the bottom of the scuttle which was duly replaced by a rivnut. I need to move the items on the bulkhead out slightly and silicone the carbon to metal joint to prevent water ingress.
The dash has siliconed in nicely. The bulbs changed from blue to now green. Originally that started years ago after the original Caterham gauge bulbs were pitiful. Leds were the order of the day and blue ones to match ones paint work were sourced. I have had to upgrade the 'look' as it were! I'll take a snap when I remember to turn the lights off to make it dark enough.
I have fitted the aeroscreen for now. I've never run with an aeroscreen. I have been a passenger around a track day once with a helmet, but that removes some of the shock from just wearing sunnies and the open road. I'm quite looking forward to the experience!!
I have quick changing captive nuts behind the scuttle for ease of swapping from screen to aero. As long as nobody presses the windscreen sprayer button, I'll be fine. Although it's backwards for a few of these shots!
The carbon nose was fitted. It took a bit of fettling, and some of the lines could be closer but nothing a dremel won't sort. On the whole it was spot on, I just trimmed certain areas to allow a little room around the extruding anti roll bar beams and headlight brackets. I've fitted new dzus fasteners for the top, still to decide on if I fit the bottom two as they don't seem to come fitted/ used with the newer sevens. I also had mine fall out and ran for a year or so without them. I had planned to have this painted before going to Oz, I'll book it in after my Europe trip.
I then shimmied my titanium grill into the opening at the front and Da Dah, it's looking good.
Just waiting on the front and rear wings now.
I believe I'm one of the first to be receiving these carbon items off the production line and as such have to go with delivery times around the mould being designed and produced before the wings can even think of being made! I'm informed that my wings will be here next week or so, over to you Neil!
I started wiring up the rear Led lights before noticing quite how late it had got and quickly packed up and left for home. The front lights are now tightened up and roughly facing forward. I also rewired into the connector plugs wired and have ordered some '120% brighter bulbs' have been ordered to hopefully make some use of the front lights. They aren't renowned for their night driving clarity.
Hopefully have her on the wheels, (oh yeah I added them too!) and setup on Sunday. Whatch this space.
Hoonigan, and any others! Your next installment!
It's looking a bit odd at the moment. My rear wings and front wings aren't yet off the mould, so I've added my old ones on. I'm not quite sure on the colour scheme....
I couldn't find the screws to attach the light blocks, so annoyingly they haven't been put on, but the wings are attached. No doubt when I get my wings through, the rivnuts won't line up and it'll be a disaster, but I want to put it in for MOT. My hand was forced.
I put some new mesh into the nosecone as the old grill wasn't too nice a fit, a bit gappy.
Hopefully an MOT a road test next weekend.
It's looking a bit odd at the moment. My rear wings and front wings aren't yet off the mould, so I've added my old ones on. I'm not quite sure on the colour scheme....
I couldn't find the screws to attach the light blocks, so annoyingly they haven't been put on, but the wings are attached. No doubt when I get my wings through, the rivnuts won't line up and it'll be a disaster, but I want to put it in for MOT. My hand was forced.
I put some new mesh into the nosecone as the old grill wasn't too nice a fit, a bit gappy.
Hopefully an MOT a road test next weekend.
Hoonigan said:
Sorry Ive been slacking and took me 2 days to notice your update... Looking good though and certainly gives an idea of the finished thing, good luck with the MOT.
Oh and what is it they say "Blue and green should never be seen!"
You'll also notice the wings are two different blues as one was fitted not too long ago as a replacement after some bint reversed into me. Completely different colours though!Oh and what is it they say "Blue and green should never be seen!"
Failed!
Mot failed on a few things;
I fitted new clear lenses. The red stop/ tail bulb shows signs of white, it's not an 100% red being produced! I'm guessing light is produced white as it were, the bulb is coloured red, but the light is so bright it's showing through the red colouring a bit much!? Who knows, but I've just ended my old coloured rear light lenses from eBay early to refit for the MOT!
Secondly, the drivers harness is looking a bit slack on one of the lap belts. A bit worn on the fixings. I have two in the post hopefully arriving next week, so no biggy.
They did ring and say that the MOT was stopped though just before emissions as the car spurted out a load of water from the expansion cap. So it was called off. Apparently at ~60 degrees, so quite cool still. I topped it up and ran it up outside and the fan cut in just fine etc. So I can only think that it was an air lock letting go and pressuring. It had been fine on previous run ups in the garage. Fan cutting in as it should.
On the pre MOT run, after pulling over, I noticed this though....
So the paints shagged. Epic.
Mot failed on a few things;
I fitted new clear lenses. The red stop/ tail bulb shows signs of white, it's not an 100% red being produced! I'm guessing light is produced white as it were, the bulb is coloured red, but the light is so bright it's showing through the red colouring a bit much!? Who knows, but I've just ended my old coloured rear light lenses from eBay early to refit for the MOT!
Secondly, the drivers harness is looking a bit slack on one of the lap belts. A bit worn on the fixings. I have two in the post hopefully arriving next week, so no biggy.
They did ring and say that the MOT was stopped though just before emissions as the car spurted out a load of water from the expansion cap. So it was called off. Apparently at ~60 degrees, so quite cool still. I topped it up and ran it up outside and the fan cut in just fine etc. So I can only think that it was an air lock letting go and pressuring. It had been fine on previous run ups in the garage. Fan cutting in as it should.
On the pre MOT run, after pulling over, I noticed this though....
So the paints shagged. Epic.
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