General advice around my 1800 Supersport
Discussion
I've always had an interest in 7's, my father owned them for many years and something rubbed off on me during this time! When he died 6 months ago I took on his 2000/X 1800 Supersport (k series), due to his illness it had been standing for a little while and despite only being serviced about 1000 miles earlier almost 2 years had passed. The vehicle had only ever been serviced by Caterham, the service book appeared to only have 2-3 signatures present and on this basis I booked it in for a little TLC with them directly.
I asked them to look at a few bits in addition to the standard service and decided to get the cambelt done as well. It was rather predictably expensive, but at the time I was unsure if I was going to keep it and I didn't want to tarnish the Caterham only service history. So I guess my first question is, for a factory built car is there any value in keeping this expensive line of servicing up? The OCD in me says it seems such a shame to change such a pretty service book
Anyway onto the car, it's immaculate with a pathetic 16k miles and although spec and colour wise it wouldn't have been my choice, I am now looking at a few tasteful upgrades just to make it mine. Begining with tyres, the avon rubber has been on there a little while. Rotated the front/rears in the hope some enthusastic driving would start to wear them. But I fear they have been on there far too long, and have hardened, grip seems okay but confidence is low. So what's the best rubber choice for road use on the 14in wheel?
The car doesn't have an LSD, what is the best option for me and more importantly what kind of costs are involved? Engine wise, it sounds fantastic. So whilst it's not an absolute animal there is enough power to keep me interested, anyhow I'd like to master the handling, so I don't have to rely on acceleration for my thrills.
That leads me to the brakes. They are ok, Caterham seemed to think they were fine but I am used to modern technology, huge disc/caller combos with servo assisted technology so is hard to know what to expect. I would bet money on the pads being original, would a simple pad upgrade help? or pads and discs?
Lastly weight, it's a bit of a tourer. Heater matrix, heated screen etc. Both of which I want to keep, but that spare wheel on the back..... it must weigh a bit. I've seen a few spare wheel conversions where you can see the car really wasn't manufacturerd that way. What are my options? This car has sentimental value, so I need to keep any changes understated and v.tasteful and in a way I believe my dad would have approved.
I asked them to look at a few bits in addition to the standard service and decided to get the cambelt done as well. It was rather predictably expensive, but at the time I was unsure if I was going to keep it and I didn't want to tarnish the Caterham only service history. So I guess my first question is, for a factory built car is there any value in keeping this expensive line of servicing up? The OCD in me says it seems such a shame to change such a pretty service book
Anyway onto the car, it's immaculate with a pathetic 16k miles and although spec and colour wise it wouldn't have been my choice, I am now looking at a few tasteful upgrades just to make it mine. Begining with tyres, the avon rubber has been on there a little while. Rotated the front/rears in the hope some enthusastic driving would start to wear them. But I fear they have been on there far too long, and have hardened, grip seems okay but confidence is low. So what's the best rubber choice for road use on the 14in wheel?
The car doesn't have an LSD, what is the best option for me and more importantly what kind of costs are involved? Engine wise, it sounds fantastic. So whilst it's not an absolute animal there is enough power to keep me interested, anyhow I'd like to master the handling, so I don't have to rely on acceleration for my thrills.
That leads me to the brakes. They are ok, Caterham seemed to think they were fine but I am used to modern technology, huge disc/caller combos with servo assisted technology so is hard to know what to expect. I would bet money on the pads being original, would a simple pad upgrade help? or pads and discs?
Lastly weight, it's a bit of a tourer. Heater matrix, heated screen etc. Both of which I want to keep, but that spare wheel on the back..... it must weigh a bit. I've seen a few spare wheel conversions where you can see the car really wasn't manufacturerd that way. What are my options? This car has sentimental value, so I need to keep any changes understated and v.tasteful and in a way I believe my dad would have approved.
Edited by markda on Monday 13th August 23:37
Hi Mark,
Good stuff keeping your Dad's car going!
The only value in keeping up Caterham Service History is if you ever want to sell the back to them. If you're happy to sell the car privately then either an independent specialist or your own servicing (with paperwork receipts for oil etc to back it) would be fine. That's of course assuming you'll ever want to sell the car!
Definitely a good idea to change the tyres for fresh, although I have CR500s on 13" wheels and don't know what would best suit 14" wheels. With those miles the dampers should be OK so handling wise the new tyres should suffice. LSD wise, you'd be looking at several hundred pounds minimum depending on whether you got one new or second hand but in the first instance you could speak to Road and Race on 01959 525105. They specialise in Caterham diffs and LSDs and will be able to give some good advice. Do you need one? Possibly, they are great but if primarily a road car you can get away with not having one.
Brakes, well a simple pad change should be fine. The Seven only weighs ~500kg and plenty of people can attest to the standard brakes being more than adequate. The 'big brake' upgrade puts AP 4 pots on the front and is quite pricey so I'd see if you're happy with the standard ones first.
If you're planning to go touring then a heater and screen are most welcome and really don't weigh that much. Spare wheel carrier can be made removable though quite easily. If you have a look here it will give you a start.
Another top tip is to join the Lotus 7 Club. You'll more than get back your fee in member discounts and there's plenty of good advice on there when you get stuck! See blatchat for details.
Hope that helps, Andrew
Good stuff keeping your Dad's car going!
The only value in keeping up Caterham Service History is if you ever want to sell the back to them. If you're happy to sell the car privately then either an independent specialist or your own servicing (with paperwork receipts for oil etc to back it) would be fine. That's of course assuming you'll ever want to sell the car!
Definitely a good idea to change the tyres for fresh, although I have CR500s on 13" wheels and don't know what would best suit 14" wheels. With those miles the dampers should be OK so handling wise the new tyres should suffice. LSD wise, you'd be looking at several hundred pounds minimum depending on whether you got one new or second hand but in the first instance you could speak to Road and Race on 01959 525105. They specialise in Caterham diffs and LSDs and will be able to give some good advice. Do you need one? Possibly, they are great but if primarily a road car you can get away with not having one.
Brakes, well a simple pad change should be fine. The Seven only weighs ~500kg and plenty of people can attest to the standard brakes being more than adequate. The 'big brake' upgrade puts AP 4 pots on the front and is quite pricey so I'd see if you're happy with the standard ones first.
If you're planning to go touring then a heater and screen are most welcome and really don't weigh that much. Spare wheel carrier can be made removable though quite easily. If you have a look here it will give you a start.
Another top tip is to join the Lotus 7 Club. You'll more than get back your fee in member discounts and there's plenty of good advice on there when you get stuck! See blatchat for details.
Hope that helps, Andrew
If I were you all I'd do now is bin the tyres and buy some Yokohamas- look on Blatchat for endless threads re tyre choice. Leave the brakes alone for now- Sevens are very light on them - as they would be because they were a third of lardy saloons. Just drive it- do some long road trips (and I mean 500 mile + , not a Sunday morning blat )and a gentle track day or two.. The spare wheel can wait- or if it bugs you just take it off. You won't notice too much difference. No idea about servie history - if you are selling - are you ? - then leave it with CC ; if not don't bother. Sevens become part of family - enjoy the experience.
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