caterham 160 - anyone got one?

[sawman]

I just wondered if anyone had actually bought one of these and what their feelings about it might be, now that they may have had it for a while.

I like the concept, and having spent 4 years behind the wheel of a cvh powered morgan, this seems like a car born out of a similar spirit - darting around at close to full chat,feeling the car moving about under you but not achieving massive speed.

[downsman]

I'd be interested to know how owners are getting on too.
Maybe the 160 is so much fun they can't get out of the car to post on here

[Grubbster]

CC have a used one for sale so you might be able to get a test drive.

[700newtons]

Mine has arrived and I have just started the build. I'm enjoying putting it together, no problems yet.

I have started a blog here: http://www.lotus7.club/blogs/member/11742

[sawman]

Awesome, I'll follow your build. I would have ordered orange too!

[Tonythesalesman]

Mine has been bought and paid for, built and waiting just for DVLA to register the car, approx 2 weeks since they've had the documents, I'll post a pic on here and let you know how I get on with the car as I use it, but the demo was great.

[scubadude]

700newtons said:

Mine has arrived and I have just started the build. I'm enjoying putting it together, no problems yet.

I have started a blog here: http://www.lotus7.club/blogs/member/11742

Interesting thanks- that engine is slightly dwarfed by the gearbox, does it look like being as tight a fit as the more usual engine/gearbox combos?

Good to see Caterham has left a handful of bits out of the kit as usual to make sure you check all the boxes :-)

[700newtons]

scubadude said:

Interesting thanks- that engine is slightly dwarfed by the gearbox, does it look like being as tight a fit as the more usual engine/gearbox combos?

I should have more space; I'll blog tomorrow about getting the engine in... and how easy/hard it was.

I'm still waiting for a few bits. However, so far everything fits pretty well.

[AHB]

I'm driving a 165 since September -almost 4.000 kilometers in total. I absolutely love it! It is my first Caterham, so I can't compare to other Caterhams (but I would think that is not the point of this Caterham). It feels very direct and fast, although it isn't actually that fast unless you take the engine to the red line every time. Comfort is better then what I was expecting. Quite a lot of vibrations from the engine, but that adds to character. My fuel consumption in normal driving conditions (with almost no motorways) is between 4,7 and 5,5 l/100 km - no idea how much that is in mpg and for reference, I don't drive it like lunatic, I bought it because I wanted a classic car I could use as a daily). Only drawback about the 165 is the strange gearbox spread, which is far from ideal, but it hasn't annoyed me yet, so it can't be that bad...
Let me know if you have any specific questions.

[BryanC]

[quote=My fuel consumption in normal driving conditions (with almost no motorways) is between 4,7 and 5,5 l/100 km - no idea how much that is in mpg.
[/quote]

Thats 51 - 60 mpg.
I got 49.8 mpg o/a touring France in my 1.4 Classic including some Motorway.

[Orange Blackbird]

All this talk of mpg on a Caterham thread is disgusting. Maybe you need to get an EV. Thread for you here:- https://speakev.com/

[NedK]

AHB said:

I'm driving a 165 since September -almost 4.000 kilometers in total. I absolutely love it! It is my first Caterham, so I can't compare to other Caterhams (but I would think that is not the point of this Caterham). It feels very direct and fast, although it isn't actually that fast unless you take the engine to the red line every time. Comfort is better then what I was expecting. Quite a lot of vibrations from the engine, but that adds to character. My fuel consumption in normal driving conditions (with almost no motorways) is between 4,7 and 5,5 l/100 km - no idea how much that is in mpg and for reference, I don't drive it like lunatic, I bought it because I wanted a classic car I could use as a daily). Only drawback about the 165 is the strange gearbox spread, which is far from ideal, but it hasn't annoyed me yet, so it can't be that bad...
Let me know if you have any specific questions.

That's good to hear! Mine is on order, a few weeks more to wait. There's a very good long-term test in Car magazine here http://www.carmagazine.co.uk/Drives/Search-Results...

I know what you mean about the gear ratios.

Cheers
Ned

[scubadude]

700newtons said:

I'm still waiting for a few bits. However, so far everything fits pretty well.

Its looking good, just caught up with your progress. It looks like the engine has alot of "plumbing" despite its size, due to the turbo I guess?

[700newtons]

Thank you I'm really enjoying the build. Yes, the turbo does mean a bit it is a bit more complex, and this is the first car I have had with a turbo. I am yet to try to start the engine; there is a bit more to do first. Fingers crossed though.

[700newtons]

I would be grateful if anyone that owns a working 160 could post a picture of the engine bay. I'm going to get to the stage of starting it up fairy soon but I'd be keen to double check my connections first. The picture in the build manual isn't bad but doesn't have quite the resolution to see the fine detail.

[scubadude]

700newtons said:

Good luck!

BTW- I find it amusing that the battery and engine block look about the same size in this overhead shot :-)