I'm the PH new boy!

[JD PH]

Hi everyone,

Just a quick hello - I'm the PH new boy. I'm not especially in to self promotion but this news story may bring you up to speed a bit http://www.pistonheads.com/news/default.asp?storyI...

Anyway, having spent the last 8 years working at Caterham I'd like to think I can offer some words of wisdom and answer quite a varied selection of questions. As the Marketing Manager of a small brand like Caterham I was heavily involved in a lot of different aspects of the business over and above the usual marketing remit.

So, If I can be of help to anyone don't hesitate to ask!

JD

[JD PH]

thequietone said:

Hello. Not evnious at all. Nope. Not one bit.

Well done on landing what I expect to be a great gig!

Thanks!

Bebee said:

Congrats
First and most important question, other questions will follow depending on your answer.
Can you get me a huge discount?

If I was still wearing my Caterham hat I'd point out that - aside from the world renowned handling, feel and performance - one of the greatest attributes of a Caterham is that it holds its value like almost no other car. On that basis, if you discount one car then the rest of the breed are also devalued. Therefor discounts are basically never given, but the way to look at it is that you get your "discount" when you come to sell the car and you realise it is still worth lots of money.

So in other words, no. No I can't help you get a discount. Sorry.

Edited by JD PH on Friday 25th July 11:53

[JD PH]

scz4 said:

Welcome.

Expect lots of questions that are constantly in my head just now:

Supersport R vs R400
5 Speed vs 6 Speed

Hmm... I'd need more information. Depends on what you're going to use it for and how much money you have. Worth noting though that if you went for an R400 you get a 6 speed as standard... so that's two birds with one stone.

In my eyes there are only 3 reasons to not have a 6 speed:

1) You can't afford it
2) You're going to do a lot of touring / motorway miles (the 4th gear in a 5 speed box is the same ratio as 6th in a 6 speed. This is because 5th in a 5 speed 'box is overdrive - hence great for motorways). In lower powered cars it does slow it down - we used to joke that a 6 speed box is "like adding 20 bhp".
3) You've got so much horsepower that you just don't need the ratios. This is only really the case for Sevens with 300bhp+ - basically they has so much grunt that a 5 speed takes the edge of it and lets you use the power / torque without constant gear-changing. This is probably a rare case though (and I've only driven prototypes / one offs with this sort of set up)

I hope that this helps!

JD

Edited by JD PH on Friday 25th July 12:01

[JD PH]

Crossflow Kid said:

Best. Typo. Ever.

That was deliberate. Maybe.

[JD PH]

ewenm said:

I used to be category 2, now I'm category 1

Happens to the best of us!

[JD PH]

jamiebae said:

Congrats on the new job.

Why is the new Seven 165 so stupidly expensive in Switzerland? VAT is only 8% so to charge over £21k before options seems a lot when it's only £18k in the UK

I can;t say I'm that familiar with the export side of things, but it'll undoubtedly be a combination of exchange rates, local taxes and dealer margins (for warranty) etc.

[JD PH]

LawrenceR said:

This is very interesting to me, I would be keen to know your thoughts on my decision.

http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&a...

I have paid my deposit to secure my built slot but am spec'ing it up tomorrow. Any thoughts welcome.

Thanks in advance

I'd say that unless you can stretch your £30k to more like £35 - £40k then I'd go Supersport R - you'll be able to get more of your wish list, and you could always have a factory power upgrade done at some point.

Just my opinion mind you.

[JD PH]

scz4 said:

Thanks for answering my question above JD. It's something Lawrence is interested too, we've exchanged a few threads and emails debating what's best.

I guess the deciding question could befor me anyway).......

For mostly B road blasts (B for bumpy) with the odd track day thrown in, does De Dion or the Links Wattage rear end suit those needs best?

On a related note and something I've seen mentioned here many times, has the rear ride height design changed in the last 3 or 4 years, they seem to sit very very high now. For example:

No problem! In terms of the Watts linkage it makes near enough no difference at all - I'd be amazed if anyone this side of Fernando Hamilton could genuinely tell it was there.

Regarding ride height - it shouldn't have, but that'd all in the set up. First thing I'd do when buying my own Seven would be to set it up to my preferences - Caterham or any of the official Caterham race teams can help with this. They're extremely sensitive to set up and it is all down to preference, and as such I find it amazing that more people spend so much on a thoroughbred sports car but then don't spend a few hundred quid tailoring it to their preferences.

[JD PH]

LawrenceR said:

JD PH said:

LawrenceR said:

This is very interesting to me, I would be keen to know your thoughts on my decision.

http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&a...

I have paid my deposit to secure my built slot but am spec'ing it up tomorrow. Any thoughts welcome.

Thanks in advance

I'd say that unless you can stretch your £30k to more like £35 - £40k then I'd go Supersport R - you'll be able to get more of your wish list, and you could always have a factory power upgrade done at some point.

Just my opinion mind you.

Thanks for your comments and congratulations on your new role. From this side it is a great community to be part of!

I have stretched the budget about as far as it can and it is a choice between the 220 upgrade and the 6 speed box. Unless I want an un painted R400 with no weather gear.

Edited by LawrenceR on Friday 25th July 14:26

Decisions, decisions! Either way you'll end up with a lovely car... perhaps go with the 6 speed gearbox and then you can get the 220bhp upgrade at a later date?

You pay your money, you make your choices!

[JD PH]

nigelpugh7 said:

James, welcome to PH.

You and I are already well connected, outside of PH, so I will refrain from any comments on your past history.

In the same vein, I can only offer a small piece of advice here on PH members and posts relating to their beloved Caterhams.

I would stay away from general advice on what is good and bad regarding caterham options and preferred set ups.

Whilst we all know you worked for CC for many years, and I also know that your role was more a product marketing manager role, than a pure marketing role, I would like to suggest that a lot of people here have a deeper and broader understanding of caterham technicalities etc.

As such you may find that your opinions might meet with quite a strong resistance from the longer standing members here on PH?

Hey Nigel,

I agree to an extent, but I would temper that by pointing out that not only did I work for Caterham as the marketing manager but my friends and colleagues were / are professional engineers, designers, accountants and technicians who work on Sevens day in and day out. It isn't their hobby, it is their livelihood. You tend to pick up quite a lot of information and I might just surprise you with the depth of my knowledge!

Anyway, I'm here to help if people would like my thoughts - I've got no axe to grind and purely offer an opinion (from my point of view of course) to anyone who might like it - I'm not here to start arguments, only to help and perhaps give an alternative view on some things.

JD

[JD PH]

lawtoma said:

Welcome aboard JD!
I'm another new 7er, picked mine up in June, and I'm already booking in for the 1000 mile service!!
Good luck with the new role!
T

Brilliant, glad you're enjoying it!

[JD PH]

V7SLR said:

V7SLR said:

JD PH said:

2) You're going to do a lot of touring / motorway miles (the 4th gear in a 5 speed box is the same ratio as 6th in a 6 speed. This is because 5th in a 5 speed gear is overdrive - hence great for motorways). In lower powered cars it does slow it down - we used to joke that a 6 speed box is "like adding 20 bhp".

So is the same diff ratio now used with both?

I can't see any details on the Caterham site so someone with "inside" knowledge might be able to help?

Sorry - I didn't see this post. I remember that quite a few years back (pre BMW diffs) we used 3.9:1, 3.6:1 and even 3.3:1 diff ratios, but the 3.6 was used on the VAST majority of cars. Subsequently I think you're right - when the switch to BMW diffs happened all models* switched to using the 3.6 ratio diff.

• excluding the Seven 160 which uses a Suzuki sourced power & drive train

[JD PH]

Dave211 said:

Welcome aboard James.

Great to have someone with such a wealth of knowledge on caterhams, that will no doubt support the advice of other long term owners. Don't hold back.... All advice welcomed

Need to move onto my 3rd caterham for mainly fast country road use. Loved the 140bhp k series , followed by R300K. Tempted by something like a R500D but wonder if I'll spoil the fun / balance of lower powered cars for the use mentioned above. Thoughts ?

Dave

Hi Dave,

I know what you're saying - A K-series R300 is a brilliant car (one of my favourites too) so its impression on you will be hard to top. The R500 can be a bit much for some people, but the Duratec powered one is MUCH friendlier than the K - Series one. That's not to say it is slower (it isn't), it is just not as spiky in how it delivers its power, which makes it easier to drive fast. If you did buy one, I'm not pretending that you wouldn't be continually looking for a chance to "open the taps"... but that's half the fun isn't it?! It still handles and feels just like an R300, but with some serious straight line firepower under your foot - which you don;t always have to use all of!

The bottom line is that you're never going to drive one and not get out smiling and if I had the choice between this and any other Seven I'd have a hard time choosing - they are properly awesome.

An alternative option (that is a bit cheaper) might be to consider a Duratec powered R400? They're still 210bhp, are easier to drive fast and are still properly, genuinely, supercar humbling when fully lit. Also, if you did ever want more power there is a factory power upgrade to 220bhp for a bit more edge if you wanted it.

In my experience these situations are almost always defined by budget though - if money isn't a limiting factor then surely any red blooded petrol head would have a hard time turning their back on 262bhp, 8,500rpm and sub 3 seconds to 60?!?

As I keep saying though, this is just my opinion!

[JD PH]

Dave211 said:

Thanks James.

Well I better just ignore all budgets now then and get the 600bhp Levante here then (in my dreams and probably nightmares too). http://www.pistonheads.com/classifieds/used-cars/c...

Have you ever driven one btw ?

Annoyingly not - the day that Russell (Levante builder) brought one in I was on holiday. My old boss (Andy Noble) drove it and was pretty speechless... which is quite unlike him!

I have driven some pretty bonkers cars in my time though - Obviously all the usual suspects like JPEs, R500s, R500 EVOs, CSR 260s, CSR Superlights, R600 (race car) and the 620R in its various guises. Back in 2007 we also had something called an X330 (which was a CSR based prototype with a supercharged 2.3 duratec / 330bhp) - they're all very fast, especially the 620R... it is genuinely very, very VERY fast. (the X330 was geared like the Millennium Falcon so it was fast but not very aggressive - it did something like 125 leptons in 3rd gear from memory)

Not a seven but I've also driven the SP/300.R a fair bit - that's one hell of an experience too!

[JD PH]

Dave211 said:

JD PH said:

Not a seven but I've also driven the SP/300.R a fair bit - that's one hell of an experience too!

Did caterham consider making it road legal, as got quite excited when it was launched, until I realised it was track only ??

No, it was determined early on that it would be track and race only - the level of demand simply didn't stack up against the work required... And to make it road legal would have lead to so many compromises that it would probably have been a bit rubbish. Besides, we always knew that the Seven was an amazing road car that sold very well!

[JD PH]

BobTurner said:

Hello James,

you probably won't remember me but you and Damian put me into a black K R300 at the end of 2010!

A quick question if I may, seeing as you've done so many miles in 7s, do you have any tips for ensuring that my right leg doesn't go numb when I'm driving? I seem to remember we're a similar size and shape; my car's got the composite seats with pads and lowered floors

Cheers

Hi Bob,

Hope you're enjoying the car! I always fount that the reason only my right leg went numb is because you move your left one so much more in changing gear, so moving it whenever you get a chance helps. Also, you may find that someone has put some spacers under the front of the seat to recline it slightly - that always made the numbness worse for me as it pushed the lip of the seat up into my leg a bit more. Maybe try playing around with that? (although the bolts to get the seats in an out can be somewhat tricky!)

Hope this helps!

JD