RE: Caterham Readying 'Entirely New' Car

[RobM77]

havoc said:

Seven Smiles said:

Where on earth do you see a connection between the Caterham/Lotus 7 ethos and a bloody great lardy TVR????

This would be a 'lardy' TVR that weighs maybe a tonne all-in, right? Lighter than all but the smallest hatchbacks nowadays...

Yes, but still double the weight of the average Caterham, and entirely different in feel and handling. I'd struggle to call a TVR lardy, but they're certainly not in the same genre of cars as something like a Caterham.

[DJC]

CSR chassis, coupe body.

Windows that open, a boot thats opens.

Its not bloody rocket science!

[surrey7er]

DJC said:

CSR chassis, coupe body.

Windows that open, a boot thats opens.

Its not bloody rocket science!

Doors that open do appear to be pretty tricky though (for a little manufacturer): the story goes that the hardest part of the Elise was the doors; also, TVR was famous for having the 'slash' on the the front of its doors, to enable the shut lines to be lined up at the back and 'sod the front'...

Someone earlier mentioned the Zolfe project. There was definitely an Ex Caterham man involved there at some stage, and they were looking at Duratec power and were using the same Avon tyres that Caterham use (iirc!). They claimed a 700kg ish weight for their car, so with a meaty engine, the pwr wouldnt be far off, but in a much more usable and, dare I say it, safer package, with integral cage et al. I think it's a very pretty car too, much nicer than the Caterham 21...

http://www.zolfe.com/Design.htm

[k-ink]

DJC said:

CSR chassis, coupe body.

Windows that open, a boot thats opens.

Its not bloody rocket science!

Plus a roof instead of a tent. Job done

[Negative Creep]

What I'd like to see is something like an Aygo with their grille on it

[RobM77]

surrey7er said:

also, TVR was famous for having the 'slash' on the the front of its doors, to enable the shut lines to be lined up at the back and 'sod the front'

That's really interesting I didn't know that!

[surrey7er]

RobM77 said:

That's really interesting I didn't know that!

Ok ok you sarcastic bugger

[grahamw48]

RobM77 said:

surrey7er said:

also, TVR was famous for having the 'slash' on the the front of its doors, to enable the shut lines to be lined up at the back and 'sod the front'

That's really interesting I didn't know that!

Yes, and personally I think they look awful, and that's what's stopped me buying a model later than the TVR Wedges that I've had, and will probably be buying again, or maybe a V8S.

[CDP]

Well, there's definitely a Chimera/Griffith shaped gap in the market. Nobody has replaced the TVR, the Wiesmann is closest but without the adventurous styling.

I certainly hope Caterham don't decide to follow TVR with their own engines, we all know where that led. Fortunately I think Caterham management seem to have their heads screwed on; which is rare in the UK car industry.

[DJC]

k-ink said:

DJC said:

CSR chassis, coupe body.

Windows that open, a boot thats opens.

Its not bloody rocket science!

Plus a roof instead of a tent. Job done

Coupe...

[havoc]

RobM77 said:

havoc said:

Seven Smiles said:

Where on earth do you see a connection between the Caterham/Lotus 7 ethos and a bloody great lardy TVR????

This would be a 'lardy' TVR that weighs maybe a tonne all-in, right? Lighter than all but the smallest hatchbacks nowadays...

Yes, but still double the weight of the average Caterham, and entirely different in feel and handling. I'd struggle to call a TVR lardy, but they're certainly not in the same genre of cars as something like a Caterham.

No, the Griff certainly isn't, but half of that is down to set-up. An Exige S2 weighs ~90% what a Griff does, and most people would line that up against a Caterham in a "what car" thread.

So - take one Griff design, use ally for the subframe, use a smaller/lighter engine and ~800kg later you've got an all-weather Caterham...

[CDP]

havoc said:

RobM77 said:

havoc said:

Seven Smiles said:

Where on earth do you see a connection between the Caterham/Lotus 7 ethos and a bloody great lardy TVR????

This would be a 'lardy' TVR that weighs maybe a tonne all-in, right? Lighter than all but the smallest hatchbacks nowadays...

Yes, but still double the weight of the average Caterham, and entirely different in feel and handling. I'd struggle to call a TVR lardy, but they're certainly not in the same genre of cars as something like a Caterham.

No, the Griff certainly isn't, but half of that is down to set-up. An Exige S2 weighs ~90% what a Griff does, and most people would line that up against a Caterham in a "what car" thread.

So - take one Griff design, use ally for the subframe, use a smaller/lighter engine and ~800kg later you've got an all-weather Caterham...

How much does all that leather, wood and (damp) carpet weigh in a Chimera? The weight of a V8 powertrain verses that of a four? Caterham could probably get it down around 3/4 of a ton at the entry level.

A modern interpretation of the Elan with space for bigger engines certainly sounds their most feasible option.

[nutcase]

Martin Keene said:

MarJay said:

What is the betting that their 'entirely new car' will have the same silhouette as a 7?

This...

Yep, exactly- just like I said a little earlier.

[The Black Flash]

RobM77 said:

oo.. you can't criticise Westfield plastic replicas on here! Sam_68 will be along in a minute!

Fixed that for you

[hewlett]

Didn't Caterham buy up the Aspid IFR concept car a while back, seems like a logical move, already fully developed and an outstanding car by all accounts.

[IforB]

hewlett said:

Didn't Caterham buy up the Aspid IFR concept car a while back, seems like a logical move, already fully developed and an outstanding car by all accounts.

Hmmmm.

Edited by IforB on Tuesday 14th December 20:34

[dandarez]

hewlett said:

Didn't Caterham buy up the Aspid IFR concept car a while back, seems like a logical move, already fully developed and an outstanding car by all accounts.

Where on earth did you hear that? A left-hand drive Spanish fugly sevenesque. Why would they? Or have I missed something? As far as I know this company is still in business... In the 'looks' stakes it might work for some but not me.

[hewlett]

dandarez said:

hewlett said:

Didn't Caterham buy up the Aspid IFR concept car a while back, seems like a logical move, already fully developed and an outstanding car by all accounts.

Where on earth did you hear that? A left-hand drive Spanish fugly sevenesque. Why would they? Or have I missed something? As far as I know this company is still in business... In the 'looks' stakes it might work for some but not me.

I'll try to remember where I read it. I think the company created this to promote the tech they sell to major car co's and they still thrive in this line of business, maybe decided not to become a car manufacturer after all. It's bugging me now that I can't recall where I saw it. Sorry Caterham (if) I've spoiled the surprise.

[hewlett]

http://www.autoexpress.co.uk/news/autoexpressnews/...

Just speculation.

[Fetchez la vache]

Must say my guess is something along the coupe'd 7 route, but not so much aspid but more like the Donkervoort..



I always thought getting in & out must be tricky

Edited by Fetchez la vache on Tuesday 14th December 01:18