R500 k purchase - help needed pls!

[Ducati07]

Chaps,

Advice needed please to help me make a decision so i can actually get some sleep... Thinking about pressing the button on this car - anyone know the car? Hopefully the link below will work - its the mango yellow r500 at sevenandclasics, i think its chassis 005.

http://www.sevensandclassics.com/showroom/caterham...

Have had a few caterhams before over the years but never an R. Have obviously done a ton of reading around the engine refrsh / rebuild issues and of course its on my mind as i dont want to buy a car and then it spend more time in the garage than on the road / track (its even going through my mind to consider an r400d instead) but my love of classic cars means heart is set on the legendary k series)!

Many thanks in advance!

[Ducati07]

Chaps thanks for the encouragement - I've put down a deposit!! And thanks for the correction on the chassis number, it is number 006 as you correctly pointed out.

What a beauty! Its going to be a long 2 weeks!!

[Ducati07]

I'm not obsessed with the value going up, although it would be a bonus if it didnt depreciate! As people have rightly pointed out, there are plenty of better investments out there. However, appreciation or not, there's just something about having the provenance of a numbered car, albeit rather intangible!

Out of interest, anyone know how may k series r500's were made? I really wouldnt know where to start guessing.

[Ducati07]

What the significance of 'to 2001'? Surely they continued building exactly the same spec right up until they changed to the duratec (8?) years later? Or did they only number the first years cars?

[Ducati07]

Thats a good point! I remember having a decat lancer evo a few years ago and it was a nightmare trying to find a friendly mot place every year! I'll ask the Q, thanks for the reminder.

[Ducati07]

Car belonged to david Ingham - just clocked a photo posted on the lancashire and district sevens club! Not sure whether that's good or bad - anyone know david Ingram / the car?