Caterham Seven 360R
Discussion
OpulentBob said:
Love it dirty. Looks like it's being used properly! 
Next time you do a track day, a go pro on the dash would make an awesome YouTube video for us...
I might have to invest in one of these - would love to watch a track day back. Next time you do a track day, a go pro on the dash would make an awesome YouTube video for us...
Update time.... thought I may as well since my last post was a photo of some horse poo.
After a minor disappointment at Donington with the car understeering around right handers, I was very keen to get a proper flat floor setup. It had initially been done by Caterham at Donington whilst I had the 1000 mile service. I didn't fancy the slog back down the M1 for that - luckily Gemzoe Motorsport are only a stone's throw from me and have a very good reputation in the Caterham world. Such a good reputation in fact, I had to wait until the end of July for an opening. It was worth the wait - I'll get onto that later.
Early July saw a few of us head up to North Yorkshire for a day of wearing out tyres and an evening of supping ale.
A mate and I drove up together, me in the Caterham, and him on his bike:
I bought a pair of ear defenders to save my hearing during a motorway slog:
Once I'm off the motorway, I switch to those little yellow squishy bud things; the type people wear when sharing a bed with a loud snorer.
We convoyed up the A64, turning off just after York to sample some back roads that take you to Malton. The biker chose this part of the route so I followed him. It was like being in a Fast and Furious film - keeping up with a bike was incredibly exciting!
Once we got to Malton, I took the lead over some back roads I know that end up in Helmsley. The biker didn't enjoy this part of the journey too much with the route being very twisty....perfect for a Caterham.
Once we had made it up to Helmsley, another couple of mates joined us in a hired K-series Caterham:
More silliness ensued tearing up the loop over Blakey Ridge and up Rosedale Chimney. Blakey Ridge is a lot of fun because it's so open and well sighted. You just need to keep an eye out for sheep, and BMW X5s with flashing blue lights on top with angry men inside dressed as police officers!
After all this excitement we dropped down to a good pub I know to cool down a bit.
After a short brake, we were back at it again. Another mate turned up in a Boxster to join in on the fun of the Helmsley to Stokesley road, aka Chop Gate. The biker had resided in the pub at this point, and the other Caterham lads had to nip down to Thirsk to check into their digs for the evening.
So it was Caterham vs Boxster. I lead the way and managed to lose the Porsche fairly quickly - my advantage being overtaking power. Once I'd got to the Stokesley end of the route, I turned round and headed back to Helmsley. It was 10 minutes or so before I came across the Porsche who was stuck behind a load of cars I'd managed tp pick off.
That's one of the many great things about a Caterham, you have the instant grunt and diminutive size to get past things when the smallest opportunities arise.
After that, it was back to The Feathers for a well earned pint, then up to the village we were staying in for a good pub session.
The Sunday just consisted of a brisk drive back home reflecting on my favourite weekend of the summer so far. It's really made me want to live in North Yorkshire purely for the roads - they're amazing. I need to try Wales and Scotland next, and then I'd imagine I'll be all on for setting up camp there!
After that weekend, it was back to my usual blats around the local area and sometimes over to Snake Pass. Whilst waiting for the flat-floor to come round, my attention turned to lighting, or lack thereof. Someone posted up a photo of an LED conversion they had undertaken on the main and dipped beam. Not to be confused with the pricey Caterham option of replacing the whole lamp unit.
This was the cheap option of just swapping the bulbs:
They're definitely brighter than standard but don't really project much further. Might have to revisit this at a later date.
Now onto Gemzoe Motorsport. The long awaited flat-floor:
Long story short, the settings that had been previously dialed in were a fair way out. I'm not saying Caterham Donington did a bad job; I've done at least 2000 miles since they initially set the car up so anything could have happened since then.
Anyway, it now drives a lot better. I'm getting that lovely pivoting sensation round tighter corners, both left and right. Roundabouts were the biggest show of understeer previously - they can now be taken at speed, with little worry of the front end washing out.
Dave at Gemzoe is a top bloke and very informative. Really keen to explain the process and work with you to set the car up exactly the way you want. Definitely recommended to anyone with a Caterham in West Yorkshire or who is willing to travel.
I'll report back after my next track day with a more tested account of the difference it has made. ......this brings me onto my next point.
I've booked Blyton again for this bank holiday Monday. Really need to be a bit more adventurous and explore tracks I haven't done before...
Anyway, I went out last night on my usual Snake Pass blast. On the way back, I turned off Woodhead Pass and headed up toward Holme Moss. There's a nasty dip in this road that contains many gouges left by people hitting their sumps.... You can see where this is going can't you?
Well, muggins here knows about this dip but proceeded to attack it at full tilt....this resulted in a nasty thud at the front end of the car. What a fool.... I kept a beady eye on the oil pressure gauge which didn't drop thankfully. Perhaps (fingers crossed etc) I'd just grazed it slightly?? Wrong! Pulling up in the nearest petrol station confirmed I hadn't been so lucky.
It could have been much worse to be fair. I could have smashed a massive hole in it and gushed the engine's contents all over the tarmac. Oil was definitely coming out but in a small weep, so I managed to get the car back to work (where I built it) and up on axle stands.
I undid the sump plug and let the oil drain overnight. Then this lunchtime just gone, pulled the sump off the car for closer inspection:
Whilst it is weldable, the crack goes through a threaded bolt hole and halfway towards the back of the pan. By the time it's been welded, helicoiled and skimmed, it'll nearly add up to the price of a new sump - so I've cut my losses and ordered a new one from Raceline. Their sumps are identical to Caterham's...they just say Raceline along the belly instead.
So please can everyone cross their fingers that everything arrives in time and I can fit it before my track day on Monday?! To make it more interesting, the only free time I've got this weekend is Sunday morning. The odds aren't looking great...
Edited by ECG1000 on Thursday 24th August 18:12
Well, lucky me. The new sump pan and oil arrived this morning.
Just finished fitting and so far, so good.
I've been out for a quick drive to get it up to temperature and ensure the oil pressure remains good.
Now parked up with newspaper underneath. Will revisit tomorrow to see if we have any leaks.
Fingers crossed again!
Just finished fitting and so far, so good.
I've been out for a quick drive to get it up to temperature and ensure the oil pressure remains good.
Now parked up with newspaper underneath. Will revisit tomorrow to see if we have any leaks.
Fingers crossed again!
ECG1000 said:
Early July saw a few of us head up to North Yorkshire for a day of wearing out tyres and an evening of supping ale.
A mate and I drove up together, me in the Caterham, and him on his bike:
Once we got to Malton, I took the lead over some back roads I know that end up in Helmsley. The biker didn't enjoy this part of the journey too much with the route being very twisty....perfect for a Caterham.
Interesting the biker though the road was to twisty, I'm a biker and the twistier the better. Not sure I would be keeping up with your caterham though, I'm more likely to find my speed being seriously hampered by very poorly surfaced b-roads, a caterham might iron out the bumps more.A mate and I drove up together, me in the Caterham, and him on his bike:
Once we got to Malton, I took the lead over some back roads I know that end up in Helmsley. The biker didn't enjoy this part of the journey too much with the route being very twisty....perfect for a Caterham.
One of the reasons I love the bike is how easy it is to overtake slower traffic, it needs a much smaller gap than any car would.
Edited by Max5476 on Saturday 26th August 07:55
Max5476 said:
Interesting the biker though the road was to twisty, I'm a biker and the twistier the better. Not sure I would be keeping up with your caterham though, I'm more likely to find my speed being seriously hampered by very poorly surfaced b-roads, a caterham might iron out the bumps more.
I think it was the fact that the twisty-er parts weren't that well sighted compared to the more open and flowing route we took prior.Edited by Max5476 on Saturday 26th August 07:55
Max5476 said:
One of the reasons I love the bike is how easy it is to overtake slower traffic, it needs a much smaller gap than any car would.
That's something I noticed when I first drove the Caterham on the road. I can imagine the step up to a bike is even more mind boggling.Edited by Max5476 on Saturday 26th August 07:55
noddyrocket1 said:
Brilliant thread. I am looking into Caterham ownership and have just read all the posts.
Enjoy the car, it looks spot on and the satisfaction you get from (having built it yourself) must be huge!
Thank you very much. Enjoy the car, it looks spot on and the satisfaction you get from (having built it yourself) must be huge!
Yep, it does feel good driving around in something I've put together. It's comforting knowing I can fix anything (within reason) if it goes wrong.
Definitely get one! They are such a joy to drive - making normal tin tops feel so numb in comparison.
Time for an update after the sump debacle which occurred just before the August bank holiday weekend...
As previously detailed, it was a mad rush to get the parts delivered and fitted in time. I only had the Friday night to get this done due to having plans Saturday and Sunday, then a trackday on Monday. The Caterham needed to be fighting fit for this. Luckily the stars aligned and everything went to plan.
The Saturday plans...? Well that was a full day at Palmer Sport:
I'm the mug with the flat cap...
What an incredible day out! If you haven't been already, you need to go. It consists of a day tearing round six different tracks in seven different cars - plus an off road course in a Defender (which was surprisingly good fun despite the far quicker machinery on offer).
The standout feature for me was the Formula 3000. This is the first time I've been aware of downforce working and now I'm hooked. It's such an alien feeling to keep accelerating when you're sliding to suddenly find a whole load more grip!
I managed to snag the fastest karting time of the day. Then came 3rd out of 67 overall once all the points scored in each vehicle were added together. "Chuffed" is an understatement.
Itching to go back now...!
On the Sunday I had a birthday party to attend which was incredibly lame compared to the day I had experienced before. I wanted to be back at Palmer rather than watching someone blow out 30 candles!
Then it was up bright and early Monday morning for a day out in the Caterham at Blyton.
Another good day here but I won't be going back for a while. The track is fantastic and a great place to have a good play with your (and the car's) limits - but I've done it too many times now. I need to swallow a brave pill and do some more serious tracks. Cadwell next perhaps? Or maybe I need to revisit Donington now I've got a proper geo setup.
A couple of photos I bought:
The car performed faultlessly all day despite the heat. Pretty sure it was 27 degrees at one point!
We no longer have understeer around right handers - just lovely throttle adjustable balance....thank you Gemzoe Motorsport.
There was however one mishap... I may have clipped an apex cone which may have smashed the rear wing a bit...
The front tyres are now goosed, nearly through to the thread on the insides. The initial flat floor at Caterham is partly to blame for this... The rears aren't far behind but have nice even wear.
Otherwise that's been it for the 360. I'll get the rubber replaced before the end of the month so I can get a few last blasts in before the weather turns. Then it'll be up on axle stands over the winter where I plan to give it a thorough spanner check and liberal coating of Acf-50.
What about fun drives/track days over the winter I hear you say? No.....just me?
Well the recent sale of my GT86 ( thread here: https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&... ) left a fun shaped hole in the garage.
Which was soon filled with this:
Always wanted to try a Fiesta ST ever since reading good things about them.
Plan is to run it for 6 months, then move it on... hopefully losing little to no equity. Then try something else - always wanted an MX5 for example or even a 350z, and what about those Panda 100hp things everyone raves about? Etc. etc.
That's the plan anyway but it'll likely change as the little Fezzie has got right under my skin. It's such a laugh! I might even start a thread for it...
As previously detailed, it was a mad rush to get the parts delivered and fitted in time. I only had the Friday night to get this done due to having plans Saturday and Sunday, then a trackday on Monday. The Caterham needed to be fighting fit for this. Luckily the stars aligned and everything went to plan.
The Saturday plans...? Well that was a full day at Palmer Sport:
I'm the mug with the flat cap...
What an incredible day out! If you haven't been already, you need to go. It consists of a day tearing round six different tracks in seven different cars - plus an off road course in a Defender (which was surprisingly good fun despite the far quicker machinery on offer).
The standout feature for me was the Formula 3000. This is the first time I've been aware of downforce working and now I'm hooked. It's such an alien feeling to keep accelerating when you're sliding to suddenly find a whole load more grip!
I managed to snag the fastest karting time of the day. Then came 3rd out of 67 overall once all the points scored in each vehicle were added together. "Chuffed" is an understatement.
Itching to go back now...!
On the Sunday I had a birthday party to attend which was incredibly lame compared to the day I had experienced before. I wanted to be back at Palmer rather than watching someone blow out 30 candles!
Then it was up bright and early Monday morning for a day out in the Caterham at Blyton.
Another good day here but I won't be going back for a while. The track is fantastic and a great place to have a good play with your (and the car's) limits - but I've done it too many times now. I need to swallow a brave pill and do some more serious tracks. Cadwell next perhaps? Or maybe I need to revisit Donington now I've got a proper geo setup.
A couple of photos I bought:
The car performed faultlessly all day despite the heat. Pretty sure it was 27 degrees at one point!
We no longer have understeer around right handers - just lovely throttle adjustable balance....thank you Gemzoe Motorsport.
There was however one mishap... I may have clipped an apex cone which may have smashed the rear wing a bit...
The front tyres are now goosed, nearly through to the thread on the insides. The initial flat floor at Caterham is partly to blame for this... The rears aren't far behind but have nice even wear.
Otherwise that's been it for the 360. I'll get the rubber replaced before the end of the month so I can get a few last blasts in before the weather turns. Then it'll be up on axle stands over the winter where I plan to give it a thorough spanner check and liberal coating of Acf-50.
What about fun drives/track days over the winter I hear you say? No.....just me?
Well the recent sale of my GT86 ( thread here: https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&... ) left a fun shaped hole in the garage.
Which was soon filled with this:
Always wanted to try a Fiesta ST ever since reading good things about them.
Plan is to run it for 6 months, then move it on... hopefully losing little to no equity. Then try something else - always wanted an MX5 for example or even a 350z, and what about those Panda 100hp things everyone raves about? Etc. etc.
That's the plan anyway but it'll likely change as the little Fezzie has got right under my skin. It's such a laugh! I might even start a thread for it...
I'm with you on Blyton, it's a great little track but I tend to avoid it now. It never really 'flowed' for me.
My personal favourite is the Snetterton 300 - a nice mix of fast and technical, with enough run-off in most places not to feel too daunting. Here's me taking the Westfield round earlier this year (a sprint, admittedly, but you get the idea)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cELR9VzjKLo&t=...
My personal favourite is the Snetterton 300 - a nice mix of fast and technical, with enough run-off in most places not to feel too daunting. Here's me taking the Westfield round earlier this year (a sprint, admittedly, but you get the idea)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cELR9VzjKLo&t=...
seiben said:
I'm with you on Blyton, it's a great little track but I tend to avoid it now. It never really 'flowed' for me.
My personal favourite is the Snetterton 300 - a nice mix of fast and technical, with enough run-off in most places not to feel too daunting. Here's me taking the Westfield round earlier this year (a sprint, admittedly, but you get the idea)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cELR9VzjKLo&t=...
That looks fantastic! Well done on the class win too.My personal favourite is the Snetterton 300 - a nice mix of fast and technical, with enough run-off in most places not to feel too daunting. Here's me taking the Westfield round earlier this year (a sprint, admittedly, but you get the idea)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cELR9VzjKLo&t=...
I may need to invest in a trailer for next season. Anything more than 2 hours on the motorway is pretty miserable in a Caterham.
ECG1000 said:
I may need to invest in a trailer for next season. Anything more than 2 hours on the motorway is pretty miserable in a Caterham.
Long distances are definitely not their strong point. I drove from Hampshire to Inverness in a day in my BEC with an aero screen and it nearly broke me. It's so tedious when you know how much fun the cars can be!OliilO said:
Long distances are definitely not their strong point. I drove from Hampshire to Inverness in a day in my BEC with an aero screen and it nearly broke me. It's so tedious when you know how much fun the cars can be!
Bloody hell, I bet that was awful! Was that to get you to the start of the NC500?It's a combination of the noise and having to sit at 75 due to said noise which gripes me.
Suppose it's my fault for choosing the 6 speed 'box - 75mph (indicated) equates to pretty much bang on 4000rpm.... The diff makes a bit of a din too.
I moved up there for work for a couple of years. The roads were fantastic with minimal traffic at any time; being back down south is rubbish in comparison!
My gearing works out at about 6800 rpm at 70 which gets wearing after a while. When I brought the car back I drove cross country over 2 days after picking some good routes from google maps which was a much better way to do it.
My gearing works out at about 6800 rpm at 70 which gets wearing after a while. When I brought the car back I drove cross country over 2 days after picking some good routes from google maps which was a much better way to do it.
OliilO said:
I moved up there for work for a couple of years. The roads were fantastic with minimal traffic at any time; being back down south is rubbish in comparison!
My gearing works out at about 6800 rpm at 70 which gets wearing after a while. When I brought the car back I drove cross country over 2 days after picking some good routes from google maps which was a much better way to do it.
6800?!? wow, thought I had it bad.My gearing works out at about 6800 rpm at 70 which gets wearing after a while. When I brought the car back I drove cross country over 2 days after picking some good routes from google maps which was a much better way to do it.
I've always wanted to pick the fun route like that but fear I'd spend too much time stopping to look at a map to make sure I'm going the right way.
ECG1000 said:
I might have to invest in one of these - would love to watch a track day back.
Update time.... thought I may as well since my last post was a photo of some horse poo.
After a minor disappointment at Donington with the car understeering around right handers, I was very keen to get a proper flat floor setup. It had initially been done by Caterham at Donington whilst I had the 1000 mile service. I didn't fancy the slog back down the M1 for that - luckily Gemzoe Motorsport are only a stone's throw from me and have a very good reputation in the Caterham world. Such a good reputation in fact, I had to wait until the end of July for an opening. It was worth the wait - I'll get onto that later.
Early July saw a few of us head up to North Yorkshire for a day of wearing out tyres and an evening of supping ale.
A mate and I drove up together, me in the Caterham, and him on his bike:
I bought a pair of ear defenders to save my hearing during a motorway slog:
Once I'm off the motorway, I switch to those little yellow squishy bud things; the type people wear when sharing a bed with a loud snorer.
We convoyed up the A64, turning off just after York to sample some back roads that take you to Malton. The biker chose this part of the route so I followed him. It was like being in a Fast and Furious film - keeping up with a bike was incredibly exciting!
Once we got to Malton, I took the lead over some back roads I know that end up in Helmsley. The biker didn't enjoy this part of the journey too much with the route being very twisty....perfect for a Caterham.
Once we had made it up to Helmsley, another couple of mates joined us in a hired K-series Caterham:
More silliness ensued tearing up the loop over Blakey Ridge and up Rosedale Chimney. Blakey Ridge is a lot of fun because it's so open and well sighted. You just need to keep an eye out for sheep, and BMW X5s with flashing blue lights on top with angry men inside dressed as police officers!
After all this excitement we dropped down to a good pub I know to cool down a bit.
After a short brake, we were back at it again. Another mate turned up in a Boxster to join in on the fun of the Helmsley to Stokesley road, aka Chop Gate. The biker had resided in the pub at this point, and the other Caterham lads had to nip down to Thirsk to check into their digs for the evening.
So it was Caterham vs Boxster. I lead the way and managed to lose the Porsche fairly quickly - my advantage being overtaking power. Once I'd got to the Stokesley end of the route, I turned round and headed back to Helmsley. It was 10 minutes or so before I came across the Porsche who was stuck behind a load of cars I'd managed tp pick off.
That's one of the many great things about a Caterham, you have the instant grunt and diminutive size to get past things when the smallest opportunities arise.
After that, it was back to The Feathers for a well earned pint, then up to the village we were staying in for a good pub session.
The Sunday just consisted of a brisk drive back home reflecting on my favourite weekend of the summer so far. It's really made me want to live in North Yorkshire purely for the roads - they're amazing. I need to try Wales and Scotland next, and then I'd imagine I'll be all on for setting up camp there!
After that weekend, it was back to my usual blats around the local area and sometimes over to Snake Pass. Whilst waiting for the flat-floor to come round, my attention turned to lighting, or lack thereof. Someone posted up a photo of an LED conversion they had undertaken on the main and dipped beam. Not to be confused with the pricey Caterham option of replacing the whole lamp unit.
This was the cheap option of just swapping the bulbs:
They're definitely brighter than standard but don't really project much further. Might have to revisit this at a later date.
Now onto Gemzoe Motorsport. The long awaited flat-floor:
Long story short, the settings that had been previously dialed in were a fair way out. I'm not saying Caterham Donington did a bad job; I've done at least 2000 miles since they initially set the car up so anything could have happened since then.
Anyway, it now drives a lot better. I'm getting that lovely pivoting sensation round tighter corners, both left and right. Roundabouts were the biggest show of understeer previously - they can now be taken at speed, with little worry of the front end washing out.
Dave at Gemzoe is a top bloke and very informative. Really keen to explain the process and work with you to set the car up exactly the way you want. Definitely recommended to anyone with a Caterham in West Yorkshire or who is willing to travel.
I'll report back after my next track day with a more tested account of the difference it has made. ......this brings me onto my next point.
I've booked Blyton again for this bank holiday Monday. Really need to be a bit more adventurous and explore tracks I haven't done before...
Anyway, I went out last night on my usual Snake Pass blast. On the way back, I turned off Woodhead Pass and headed up toward Holme Moss. There's a nasty dip in this road that contains many gouges left by people hitting their sumps.... You can see where this is going can't you?
Well, muggins here knows about this dip but proceeded to attack it at full tilt....this resulted in a nasty thud at the front end of the car. What a fool.... I kept a beady eye on the oil pressure gauge which didn't drop thankfully. Perhaps (fingers crossed etc) I'd just grazed it slightly?? Wrong! Pulling up in the nearest petrol station confirmed I hadn't been so lucky.
It could have been much worse to be fair. I could have smashed a massive hole in it and gushed the engine's contents all over the tarmac. Oil was definitely coming out but in a small weep, so I managed to get the car back to work (where I built it) and up on axle stands.
I undid the sump plug and let the oil drain overnight. Then this lunchtime just gone, pulled the sump off the car for closer inspection:
Whilst it is weldable, the crack goes through a threaded bolt hole and halfway towards the back of the pan. By the time it's been welded, helicoiled and skimmed, it'll nearly add up to the price of a new sump - so I've cut my losses and ordered a new one from Raceline. Their sumps are identical to Caterham's...they just say Raceline along the belly instead.
So please can everyone cross their fingers that everything arrives in time and I can fit it before my track day on Monday?! To make it more interesting, the only free time I've got this weekend is Sunday morning. The odds aren't looking great...
How are you getting on with the new headlight bulbs? Thinking of getting the same. Have you got a link for them?Update time.... thought I may as well since my last post was a photo of some horse poo.
After a minor disappointment at Donington with the car understeering around right handers, I was very keen to get a proper flat floor setup. It had initially been done by Caterham at Donington whilst I had the 1000 mile service. I didn't fancy the slog back down the M1 for that - luckily Gemzoe Motorsport are only a stone's throw from me and have a very good reputation in the Caterham world. Such a good reputation in fact, I had to wait until the end of July for an opening. It was worth the wait - I'll get onto that later.
Early July saw a few of us head up to North Yorkshire for a day of wearing out tyres and an evening of supping ale.
A mate and I drove up together, me in the Caterham, and him on his bike:
I bought a pair of ear defenders to save my hearing during a motorway slog:
Once I'm off the motorway, I switch to those little yellow squishy bud things; the type people wear when sharing a bed with a loud snorer.
We convoyed up the A64, turning off just after York to sample some back roads that take you to Malton. The biker chose this part of the route so I followed him. It was like being in a Fast and Furious film - keeping up with a bike was incredibly exciting!
Once we got to Malton, I took the lead over some back roads I know that end up in Helmsley. The biker didn't enjoy this part of the journey too much with the route being very twisty....perfect for a Caterham.
Once we had made it up to Helmsley, another couple of mates joined us in a hired K-series Caterham:
More silliness ensued tearing up the loop over Blakey Ridge and up Rosedale Chimney. Blakey Ridge is a lot of fun because it's so open and well sighted. You just need to keep an eye out for sheep, and BMW X5s with flashing blue lights on top with angry men inside dressed as police officers!
After all this excitement we dropped down to a good pub I know to cool down a bit.
After a short brake, we were back at it again. Another mate turned up in a Boxster to join in on the fun of the Helmsley to Stokesley road, aka Chop Gate. The biker had resided in the pub at this point, and the other Caterham lads had to nip down to Thirsk to check into their digs for the evening.
So it was Caterham vs Boxster. I lead the way and managed to lose the Porsche fairly quickly - my advantage being overtaking power. Once I'd got to the Stokesley end of the route, I turned round and headed back to Helmsley. It was 10 minutes or so before I came across the Porsche who was stuck behind a load of cars I'd managed tp pick off.
That's one of the many great things about a Caterham, you have the instant grunt and diminutive size to get past things when the smallest opportunities arise.
After that, it was back to The Feathers for a well earned pint, then up to the village we were staying in for a good pub session.
The Sunday just consisted of a brisk drive back home reflecting on my favourite weekend of the summer so far. It's really made me want to live in North Yorkshire purely for the roads - they're amazing. I need to try Wales and Scotland next, and then I'd imagine I'll be all on for setting up camp there!
After that weekend, it was back to my usual blats around the local area and sometimes over to Snake Pass. Whilst waiting for the flat-floor to come round, my attention turned to lighting, or lack thereof. Someone posted up a photo of an LED conversion they had undertaken on the main and dipped beam. Not to be confused with the pricey Caterham option of replacing the whole lamp unit.
This was the cheap option of just swapping the bulbs:
They're definitely brighter than standard but don't really project much further. Might have to revisit this at a later date.
Now onto Gemzoe Motorsport. The long awaited flat-floor:
Long story short, the settings that had been previously dialed in were a fair way out. I'm not saying Caterham Donington did a bad job; I've done at least 2000 miles since they initially set the car up so anything could have happened since then.
Anyway, it now drives a lot better. I'm getting that lovely pivoting sensation round tighter corners, both left and right. Roundabouts were the biggest show of understeer previously - they can now be taken at speed, with little worry of the front end washing out.
Dave at Gemzoe is a top bloke and very informative. Really keen to explain the process and work with you to set the car up exactly the way you want. Definitely recommended to anyone with a Caterham in West Yorkshire or who is willing to travel.
I'll report back after my next track day with a more tested account of the difference it has made. ......this brings me onto my next point.
I've booked Blyton again for this bank holiday Monday. Really need to be a bit more adventurous and explore tracks I haven't done before...
Anyway, I went out last night on my usual Snake Pass blast. On the way back, I turned off Woodhead Pass and headed up toward Holme Moss. There's a nasty dip in this road that contains many gouges left by people hitting their sumps.... You can see where this is going can't you?
Well, muggins here knows about this dip but proceeded to attack it at full tilt....this resulted in a nasty thud at the front end of the car. What a fool.... I kept a beady eye on the oil pressure gauge which didn't drop thankfully. Perhaps (fingers crossed etc) I'd just grazed it slightly?? Wrong! Pulling up in the nearest petrol station confirmed I hadn't been so lucky.
It could have been much worse to be fair. I could have smashed a massive hole in it and gushed the engine's contents all over the tarmac. Oil was definitely coming out but in a small weep, so I managed to get the car back to work (where I built it) and up on axle stands.
I undid the sump plug and let the oil drain overnight. Then this lunchtime just gone, pulled the sump off the car for closer inspection:
Whilst it is weldable, the crack goes through a threaded bolt hole and halfway towards the back of the pan. By the time it's been welded, helicoiled and skimmed, it'll nearly add up to the price of a new sump - so I've cut my losses and ordered a new one from Raceline. Their sumps are identical to Caterham's...they just say Raceline along the belly instead.
So please can everyone cross their fingers that everything arrives in time and I can fit it before my track day on Monday?! To make it more interesting, the only free time I've got this weekend is Sunday morning. The odds aren't looking great...
Edited by ECG1000 on Thursday 24th August 18:12
Thanks
mikeulster500 said:
How are you getting on with the new headlight bulbs? Thinking of getting the same. Have you got a link for them?
Thanks
Here you go mate: http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/110W-22000LM-H4-Bi-Xenon...Thanks
They're OK - not life changing. They do a good job of illuminating the area immediately in-front of the car but don't project much further (if at all) than the standard filament bulbs.
I don't do a great deal of night time driving though so can't really complain. Worth a punt at £20...
ECG1000 said:
Here you go mate: http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/110W-22000LM-H4-Bi-Xenon...
They're OK - not life changing. They do a good job of illuminating the area immediately in-front of the car but don't project much further (if at all) than the standard filament bulbs.
I don't do a great deal of night time driving though so can't really complain. Worth a punt at £20...
Many thanks. Will give them a goThey're OK - not life changing. They do a good job of illuminating the area immediately in-front of the car but don't project much further (if at all) than the standard filament bulbs.
I don't do a great deal of night time driving though so can't really complain. Worth a punt at £20...
I may as well post something (exciting or not) to keep this thread alive.
Not much to report as I put the Caterham away for hibernation at the end of October.
(Apologies for the photo quality - screenshot from Instagram)
The car's up on stands in a heated warehouse until April. I start it once a month to get some heat into it and have a trickle charger connected so the battery doesn't expire.
Plans up until April?
- Fit new tyres (currently piled up in my office).
- Replace the rear wing that got smashed at Blyton.
- Fit cat-less collector. Should make a nicer noise with added flames.
- Change stripes and repaint "7" emblem in the nose cone grill.
- Proper spanner check
- Apply a liberal coat of ACF50. Hoping this will leave me less inclined to shy away from wet roads!
- Finally, down to Caterham for their official 12 month service.
Will update once I’ve fitted the “de-cat”.
Not much to report as I put the Caterham away for hibernation at the end of October.
(Apologies for the photo quality - screenshot from Instagram)
The car's up on stands in a heated warehouse until April. I start it once a month to get some heat into it and have a trickle charger connected so the battery doesn't expire.
Plans up until April?
- Fit new tyres (currently piled up in my office).
- Replace the rear wing that got smashed at Blyton.
- Fit cat-less collector. Should make a nicer noise with added flames.
- Change stripes and repaint "7" emblem in the nose cone grill.
- Proper spanner check
- Apply a liberal coat of ACF50. Hoping this will leave me less inclined to shy away from wet roads!
- Finally, down to Caterham for their official 12 month service.
Will update once I’ve fitted the “de-cat”.
Edited by ECG1000 on Friday 2nd February 11:25
Gassing Station | Readers' Cars | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff