K-series Caterham for sub 11k... possible??

[HustleRussell]

DoubleD said:

Smitters said:

andy97 said:

PTF said:

Smitters said:

There's a 140bhp Sigma just come up on Arsebook. It's £12.5k and seems insanely good value. If you like that sort of thing.

I've got my eye on that. I'm still unsure about going down the caterham route (again), or looking at elises.

It looks like good value, but it's done a fair few miles on its original engine if it's had a lot of track use. Most race cars of that age will have had a new engine during that time.

Looks fantastic value, and i dont see why it would routinely need a new engine as long as it has been looked after and refreshed occasionally. At 140 bhp it is still not stressed for a 1.6litre in a 600kg car (&driver), even if it spends most of its life at high revs.

Agree - I would have absolutely no qualms about taking on a routinely serviced 8k car. Just for the avoidance of doubt, I don't know the seller or the car either, so no agenda.

Is it not a road car engine?

Modern engines are designed to be used over thousands and thousands of miles with very little servicing.

A racing car engine is a very different matter though.

PTF is probably half thinking of making a competitive return in the CGRC Sigmax class with it, in which case you would need every last BHP you can get. Installing a brand new Sigma engine after four or five seasons' racing was pretty standard practice, particularly in the official Caterham Motorsport series where the chequebooks were a bit bigger.

Unless you're trying to win races, all of you above are quite correct- the Sigma is a production car engine and in most cases will take all the abuse you care to give it, pretty much indefinitely provided you can keep oil and coolant going through it.

[BertBert]

Even road car engines wear quite a lot when they spend their lives between 5k and 7k on WoT on a race track.

[Smitters]

PTF said:

Smitters said:

There's a 140bhp Sigma just come up on Arsebook. It's £12.5k and seems insanely good value. If you like that sort of thing.

I've got my eye on that. I'm still unsure about going down the caterham route (again), or looking at elises.

It looks like good value, but it's done a fair few miles on its original engine if it's had a lot of track use. Most race cars of that age will have had a new engine during that time.

OT, but I went 140bhp 7 to Elise S1, if you want a viewpoint.

[HustleRussell]

Smitters said:

PTF said:

Smitters said:

There's a 140bhp Sigma just come up on Arsebook. It's £12.5k and seems insanely good value. If you like that sort of thing.

I've got my eye on that. I'm still unsure about going down the caterham route (again), or looking at elises.

It looks like good value, but it's done a fair few miles on its original engine if it's had a lot of track use. Most race cars of that age will have had a new engine during that time.

OT, but I went 140bhp 7 to Elise S1, if you want a viewpoint.

I'd like to hear it?

[Smitters]

HustleRussell said:

Smitters said:

PTF said:

Smitters said:

There's a 140bhp Sigma just come up on Arsebook. It's £12.5k and seems insanely good value. If you like that sort of thing.

I've got my eye on that. I'm still unsure about going down the caterham route (again), or looking at elises.

It looks like good value, but it's done a fair few miles on its original engine if it's had a lot of track use. Most race cars of that age will have had a new engine during that time.

OT, but I went 140bhp 7 to Elise S1, if you want a viewpoint.

I'd like to hear it?

So as not to derail the thread completely... https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&...

[Drooles]

Hi all. This is my first post, so apologies if anything comes across awkwardly. Also apologies for the lateness to the thread but I thought some of my experiences might be helpful. A few years ago, I bought a Caterham 1700 xflow to use as my everyday car (fortunately my wife had something sensible for impending family duties). The car proved perfectly reliable and ran extremely well when used regularly. I also found it to be comfortable and reasonably practical (within its obvious limitations) in that I could carry enough work stuff in the boot and collect sensible amounts of shopping, if needed. The two biggest issues I had were the four point harnesses made climbing in and out a bit of a chore in situations where you might have to do a number of quick stops (petrol, post a letter, collect a parcel etc) and, more worryingly, security; this was fine if I knew where I was going and could plan appropriately but if I had to visit somewhere new I was always concerned, not so much that it would get stolen but more that it would be tampered with or used as a handy substitute for a bin!

Driving the car was and is a joy but I got something with a roof after a couple of years and kept the Caterham for weekends.

[Drooles]

I should add, my car has clamshells and I have heard that these do help to keep you dry!

[HustleRussell]

Drooles said:

I should add, my car has clamshells and I have heard that these do help to keep you dry!

Can confirm that if its more than damp, you can expect to get your right arm wet in a cycle wing car even if you have doors / half doors fitted

[DoubleD]

HustleRussell said:

Drooles said:

I should add, my car has clamshells and I have heard that these do help to keep you dry!

Can confirm that if its more than damp, you can expect to get your right arm wet in a cycle wing car even if you have doors / half doors fitted

Are cycle wings the newer style that wrap around the tyre?

[Stridey]

DoubleD said:

Are cycle wings the newer style that wrap around the tyre?

Yes, they rotate as the wheel steers and pleasingly go up and down on the bumps. Easier to place on the road too, I find.

Mine originally had ‘clams’ (the long fixed ones), removal is possible leaving a line of 5 fixing holes, however mine was resprayed and these are invisible. The lamp bracket can also be adapted rather than get a new lamp bracket. I think you also need a bump stop of some kind to prevent cycle wings hitting bodywork on a tight turn.

You could argue they aren’t ‘new style’ at all, as the very earliest 7s cam e with cycle wings. I think clams were introduced as they were easier to homolugate (sp?) for foreign markets, but I stand to be corrected.

Edited by Stridey on Friday 2nd August 20:23

[DoubleD]

Stridey said:

DoubleD said:

Are cycle wings the newer style that wrap around the tyre?

Yes, they rotate as the wheel steers and pleasingly go up and down on the bumps. Easier to place on the road too, I find.

Mine originally had ‘clams’ (the long fixed ones), removal is possible leaving a line of 5 fixing holes, however mine was resprayed and these are invisible. The lamp bracket can also be adapted rather than get a new lamp bracket. I think you also need a bump stop of some kind to prevent cycle wings hitting bodywork on a tight turn.

You could argue they aren’t ‘new style’ at all, as the very earliest 7s cam e with cycle wings. I think clams were introduced as they were easier to homolugate (sp?) for foreign markets, but I stand to be corrected.

Edited by Stridey on Friday 2nd August 20:23

Ah thanks for that. The clams look like they would catch the air and cause a lot of drag?

[BertBert]

I think all caterhams catch the air and cause a lot of drag

[HustleRussell]

BertBert said:

I think all caterhams catch the air and cause a lot of drag

Not to mention the lift they generate at speed, particularly with the clamshell wings apparently

[Stridey]

Endlesss arguments that the clams don’t cause front end lift, however when I tested a cycle wing and a clammed car back to back when looking for a 7 I just felt the front end was lifting in a clam.
It may well be a visual trick, relating to acceleration, but hey ho, I felt something.
Clams do have their fans, a chum who bought a similar Crossflow was adamant he wanted clams, and now he does and he’s happy.
As I said earlier love the visual of seeing the chuckle wings move and extra info from knowing exactly where the wheels are.
And kids don’t use them as slides at car shows...

[Drooles]

I haven’t had any problems with lift so far with the clams, but then most of the time I’m pretty sedate.

One other thing I should have said in my first post was that when I bought my car it was on 16inch HPC wheels with fairly wide tyres. These were fine in the dry (apart from occasional and very scary tramlining) but they were very unpredictable in the cold and wet. I changed to 13s fairly quickly with 185 tyres all round and this has helped massively.

[DoubleD]

What do people think of this dealer car? Is there any difference with these older cars, apart from the handbrake position?

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/1993-Caterham-SuperSeve...

I should add, im not the OP.

Edited by DoubleD on Sunday 4th August 17:36

[Ziplobb]

There is a 5k car on Caterham Marketplace today - needs an engine

[7mike]

DoubleD said:

What do people think of this dealer car? Is there any difference with these older cars, apart from the handbrake position?

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/1993-Caterham-SuperSeve...

I should add, im not the OP.

Edited by DoubleD on Sunday 4th August 17:36

I sold it to the dealer, pm me if you want to know anything about it

[dhutch]

7mike said:

I sold it to the dealer, pm me if you want to know anything about it

Good info and offer!

[dhutch]

DoubleD said:

I should add, im not the OP.

Anyone know where they are?