Caterham newbie spec - advice

[HardtopManual]

Having previously been part of the PH 310R build/road test team (read: jammy git who had a trip to the factory to turn a spanner on the car and a weekend to play with it), I've finally decided that it's time to properly scratch the 7 itch. The car will be primarily for road use, with the odd track day (perhaps 3 or 4 per year). My budget isn't unlimited, but neither am I trying to pinch pennies here and there. My experience of the PH 310R told me that:

- track suspension is too firm for road use, for me
- the S3 chassis with lowered floors is fine for me at 6'2 and 80kg
- I was glad of the full windscreen and hood
- the heater is next to useless

Given the above, days spent playing with the online configurator have resulted in:

Models - SEVEN 360 £29,990 (I decided on the Duratec rather than the Sigma as it has more headroom for future upgrades)
Body Colour - Hyper Green £500
Standard Chassis £0
R-Pack £1,000
With Painted '7' Grille £75
Floor - Lowered Floor £495
Seats - heated carbon seats with padding £1,200
Sequential shift lights £300
Nosecone - Carbon fibre £495
Front cycle wings - Carbon fibre £355
Rear wings - Carbon fibre £695
Full windscreen, hood and side screens £1,250
With Hood bag £80
Boot cover – carbon vinyl £95
TOTAL: £36,530.00

Does anyone with experience of running a Caterham with a similar use case, i.e. mainly road with a bit of track use, think I've missed anything that I'll wish I'd added, or something that I'm paying for but don't really need? (yes I know I don't need the carbon fripperies, but mmm carbon). FWIW my current toy is a Ferrari 355, which I'm still very happy with and won't ever sell, but the Caterham was a different sort of exciting.

Thanks all

[Steve Evil]

Been playing with the configurator myself quite a bit recently. I'd say smaller wheels are all but essential, especially given they're free to swap out. There's also things on your list that you can get cheaper elsewhere such as the weather gear. Likewise I'm sure you can get hold of some of the carbon bits cheaper from aftermarket suppliers. For track work the 4 pot brakes are generally recommended and whilst the 6 speed box isn't on their site at the moment you might want to consider that although it's not cheap and the newer 5 speed is supposed to be better, although 5th is still geared too high for track use.

[HardtopManual]

Oh and I'm not actually sure on the carbon nosecone - bit vulgar? - if I were to forego it, I'll add stripes (not sold on those either, as they seem to be decals rather than paint)



I'll be building it myself, and am toying with the idea of putting the process on YouTube.

[HardtopManual]

Thanks for your thoughts Steve. It would be interesting to see what you've come up with in the configurator.

Steve Evil said:

I'd say smaller wheels are all but essential, especially given they're free to swap out.

Why's that? Lower ride height?

[Steve Evil]

I'll bung up my spec once I get back to a computer, away on holiday at the moment.

Smaller wheels for a few reasons, the steering is more direct and not as heavy, accelerates quicker, they're lighter and unsprung weight is key in a car like this. Plus it's more playful on smaller tyres, especially on the default 6" front 6" rears, though they'd put staggered widths on the higher powered cars so you can still spec that as an option if you want more outright grip and go for 8" rears.

[AndrewGP]

I have a 2012 Duratec R300 so essentially the same car as you’re looking at and I use it in the same way you intend so I’ll give you my thoughts for what it’s worth.

Gearbox is subjective, I love my 6 speeder and would never want anything else but others hate them so there’s no right or wrong. You’d need to drive both to make sure you get what you want as changing the box after the car is built is major nightmare.

I have the upgraded track day roll bar. I prefer the fact it’s stronger and it looks better to my eyes as well. Worth considering if you’re going to do 3 or 4 track days per year.

13” wheels are a must IMHO. Give more progressive handling and a wider choice of tyres.

Big brake upgrade. It’s expensive, but again if you’re tracking the car (and possibly looking to upgrade the engine later on) I think it’s worth it. I have it with an upgraded master cylinder and the feel and stopping power of the brakes is awesome. No fade whatsoever on track.

Finally, make sure you get an LSD, I think it’s included in the ‘R’ pack though.

Other than those thoughts, I think your spec and colour choice with the carbon wings looks superb! Bright sevens are safer too

[KN02LEY]

You'll want a track day roll bar for L7C track days

[upsidedownmark]

I'd want the trackday bar ayway.. just because the other one looks scarily weedy
13's may not look as good, but don't think I'd have anything else.
Echo the LSD.

[Trackdayguy]

Steve Evil said:

Been playing with the configurator myself quite a bit recently. I'd say smaller wheels are all but essential, especially given they're free to swap out. There's also things on your list that you can get cheaper elsewhere such as the weather gear. Likewise I'm sure you can get hold of some of the carbon bits cheaper from aftermarket suppliers. For track work the 4 pot brakes are generally recommended and whilst the 6 speed box isn't on their site at the moment you might want to consider that although it's not cheap and the newer 5 speed is supposed to be better, although 5th is still geared too high for track use.

The 6 speed has been discontinued.

[Steve Evil]

Trackdayguy said:

The 6 speed has been discontinued.

Interesting. What's the story behind that?

[anonymous-user]

Steve Evil said:

Trackdayguy said:

The 6 speed has been discontinued.

Interesting. What's the story behind that?

The story, I believe is that it was originally developed for the smaller revvy K series engines and the Ford engines just don’t need 6 speeds.

There’s some truth in that but having driven both, IMO, the 6 speed is way better on track and only an issue on road if you want to do a lot of cruising around.

Anyway, moot point, they don’t do it any more.

[anonymous-user]

By the way, do I gather you’re not bothering with a heater? I think that’s a mistake.

If they’re properly installed they work well and are extremely worthwhile most of the year.

[HardtopManual]

REALIST123 said:

By the way, do I gather you’re not bothering with a heater? I think that’s a mistake.

If they’re properly installed they work well and are extremely worthwhile most of the year.

Yes - I didn't really get on with the heater in the PH loaner 310R, finding it impossible to find a comfortable temperature (it seemed to be either off, or hotter than the sun) and thought heated seats would work better. They're more for the mrs anyway, as she loves the heated seats in our daily.

Having spent another hour on the configurator, I think I've talked myself out of carbon bling and into a 420, as carbon bits are easier to add further down the line than horses are. Then I started researching semi helical gear sets. And a petty bar for the track. And... well, I've had to set myself a budget cap before things get too silly. The PH 310R came in at £38,930 as tested, and given that's the car that gave me the bug, I decided to spend no more than that.

So I'm now at:

SEVEN 420
Body Colour - Hyper Green
Chassis - Standard Chassis
Packs - R-Pack
Floor - Lowered Floor
Wheels - 13" Apollo black alloy with Avon ZZS (6” front and 8” rear)
Brakes - Front - ventilated discs with quad piston calipers
Seats - heated carbon seats with padding
Roll bars/cages - Trackday roll bar
Weather protection - Full windscreen, hood and side screens
Side screen armrests - With Side screen armrests
Hood Bag - With Hood bag

Really appreciate all the advice above, so thanks for that.

Any members of the Lotus 7 club on here? Worth joining?

[Mossy7]

I'd definitely add the battery master cut off switch. It makes lay ups through poor weather periods or over the winter much less a worry about battery drain. Side screen arm rests create a little more arm room so are worth the small out lay. A half hood beats the full hood any day and can be added from soft bit for 7s or Thunder sport. I'd also save some cash for some driver tuition, particularly for any track work; cheapest performance upgrade you can get.

[jimmy7]

HardtopManual said:

Yes - I didn't really get on with the heater in the PH loaner 310R, finding it impossible to find a comfortable temperature (it seemed to be either off, or hotter than the sun) and thought heated seats would work better. They're more for the mrs anyway, as she loves the heated seats in our daily.

Having spent another hour on the configurator, I think I've talked myself out of carbon bling and into a 420, as carbon bits are easier to add further down the line than horses are. Then I started researching semi helical gear sets. And a petty bar for the track. And... well, I've had to set myself a budget cap before things get too silly. The PH 310R came in at £38,930 as tested, and given that's the car that gave me the bug, I decided to spend no more than that.

So I'm now at:

SEVEN 420
Body Colour - Hyper Green
Chassis - Standard Chassis
Packs - R-Pack
Floor - Lowered Floor
Wheels - 13" Apollo black alloy with Avon ZZS (6” front and 8” rear)
Brakes - Front - ventilated discs with quad piston calipers
Seats - heated carbon seats with padding
Roll bars/cages - Trackday roll bar
Weather protection - Full windscreen, hood and side screens
Side screen armrests - With Side screen armrests
Hood Bag - With Hood bag

Really appreciate all the advice above, so thanks for that.

Any members of the Lotus 7 club on here? Worth joining?

I was a member until recently - the forum can be useful and there is a wealth of knowledge from other local members that can be useful to connect with.

In terms of spec - I think what you have is pretty comprehensive. Personally, I would add the following items:

External Battery Cut Off
Shift Lights
Half Hood - I have never used the full hood or found a need for the bag.
Aeroscreen - On track I really found it made the experience.
Rear exit exhaust - You might struggle with noise levels with a 420 on a lot of circuits.

I think if I bought another this might be a close spec.... https://www.caterhamcars.com/en/configurator?pagem...

Edited by jimmy7 on Wednesday 5th June 11:56

[BertBert]

Trackdayguy said:

The 6 speed has been discontinued.

Such a retrograde step. I love the 6 speeder!
Bert

[HardtopManual]

A.G. said:

as dry sump is standard so no cost on these, my man maths convinced me it made sense to go 420

Exactly the same man-maths I used!

Mossy7 said:

I'd also save some cash for some driver tuition, particularly for any track work; cheapest performance upgrade you can get.

Completely agree and will be investing when I have the car.

jimmy7 said:

Half Hood - I have never used the full hood or found a need for the bag.
Aeroscreen - On track I really found it made the experience.

I don't think I'll have much use for the full hood either (I hated it when I borrowed PH's 310R), but I would like a proper windscreen and "doors", and it seems like buying the full weather package at build time is about the same price as buying a windscreen, wipers and sidescreens separately. I'll speak to the factory to see if swapping out the full hood for a half hood is an option though.

[anonymous-user]

HardtopManual said:

A.G. said:

as dry sump is standard so no cost on these, my man maths convinced me it made sense to go 420

Exactly the same man-maths I used!

Mossy7 said:

I'd also save some cash for some driver tuition, particularly for any track work; cheapest performance upgrade you can get.

Completely agree and will be investing when I have the car.

jimmy7 said:

Half Hood - I have never used the full hood or found a need for the bag.
Aeroscreen - On track I really found it made the experience.

I don't think I'll have much use for the full hood either (I hated it when I borrowed PH's 310R), but I would like a proper windscreen and "doors", and it seems like buying the full weather package at build time is about the same price as buying a windscreen, wipers and sidescreens separately. I'll speak to the factory to see if swapping out the full hood for a half hood is an option though.

Haha. I very much doubt CC are fitting the DS at no cost!

[HardtopManual]

REALIST123 said:

Haha. I very much doubt CC are fitting the DS at no cost!

Well, I wouldn't say they are, as the 420 is 3 grand dearer than the 360, but a quick browse of https://www.caterhamcars.com/en/models/the-iconic-...
will reveal "Dry sump system as standard".

Edited by HardtopManual on Thursday 6th June 13:48

[framerateuk]

upsidedownmark said:

13's may not look as good, but don't think I'd have anything else.

Same. Swapped my 15's for 13x6 all round and would never go back.

Big brakes and uprated master cylinder are a must too if you're tracking the car.

Biggest track upgrade for me was a clear aeroscreen!