Buying a new caterham
Discussion
After several caterham events (drift, advanced drift and circuit experience) and the need for something that can be enjoyed on track and for a some back road blasts I am going to order a new caterham.
Reaching out to you for guidance, gotchas and general advice.
I am contemplating either a supersport R or R400 both spec'd with the same options (weather,paint,trackday bits and built) the cost difference is 7.5k spec for spec. Planned test drive of the supersport R in May (Caterham midlands building one now) and hopefully an R400 at the same visit.
What considerations should I be thinking about in weighing up the two models (put cost aside for now)?
When I do decide which model and give the nice man at caterham a coupe of grand are there discounts to be had, if so what %? Any discounts on options? Or is the ticket price the price ? Appreciate that fact I am not buying a mainstream car, just need my expectations managed here.
Appreciate any comments, pointers, gotchas to think about.
Thanks in advance
Reaching out to you for guidance, gotchas and general advice.
I am contemplating either a supersport R or R400 both spec'd with the same options (weather,paint,trackday bits and built) the cost difference is 7.5k spec for spec. Planned test drive of the supersport R in May (Caterham midlands building one now) and hopefully an R400 at the same visit.
What considerations should I be thinking about in weighing up the two models (put cost aside for now)?
When I do decide which model and give the nice man at caterham a coupe of grand are there discounts to be had, if so what %? Any discounts on options? Or is the ticket price the price ? Appreciate that fact I am not buying a mainstream car, just need my expectations managed here.
Appreciate any comments, pointers, gotchas to think about.
Thanks in advance
No discount with Caterham, but you might get some sweeteners thrown in, particularly if there are cancelled orders on their books. The one thing to bear in mind is the Duratec engines are different in the the R and R400. If you ever wanted to upgrade an R, it would need new valve spring at an early stage and that (realistically) would be a head off job.
Interesting point about engine upgrade. What can you take the supersport r engine to (bhp) and how much? What about the gearbox then , how is the 5 speed with the additional power?
These questions lead me to an r400. But my initial view was supersport r and speed some cash on tuition as opposed to an r400 without tuition (funds depleted) - didn't want to become the idiot with the great car who' fast on the straights and slow everywhere else (basically a coc$) - but then don't want to think "I wished I'd bought the r400" 18months down the line.
Maybe thinking about this too hard.
These questions lead me to an r400. But my initial view was supersport r and speed some cash on tuition as opposed to an r400 without tuition (funds depleted) - didn't want to become the idiot with the great car who' fast on the straights and slow everywhere else (basically a coc$) - but then don't want to think "I wished I'd bought the r400" 18months down the line.
Maybe thinking about this too hard.
Are you thinking of the car as mainly used on track or as a road car? There's a million different answers but Supersport R power (180bhp) is generally accepted as spot on for road cars but possibly a bit lacking on track. Track wise, the R400D is superb.
As eluded to in the earlier posts, upgrading a Superport R to R400 spec is costly. Aside from the engine upgrades that are not that obvious, a quick glance of the spec sheets shows that stepping up to the R400D not only gives you the extra power but gives you the sublime 6 speed box, a dry sump oil system as well as the luxuries like the carbon front wings and the ACES change-up lights.
In short, (setting cash aside) you need to drive both cars back to back and decide what you want to use the car for and how much power /performance you'd like, which should lead on to the ideal spec. If you do go for the R400D though, make sure you ask CC about the Roller-Barrell Throttle Bodies upgrade, as although the headline power increase is 'only 10bhp' it's actually slightly more, and it utterly transforms the character of the car.
As eluded to in the earlier posts, upgrading a Superport R to R400 spec is costly. Aside from the engine upgrades that are not that obvious, a quick glance of the spec sheets shows that stepping up to the R400D not only gives you the extra power but gives you the sublime 6 speed box, a dry sump oil system as well as the luxuries like the carbon front wings and the ACES change-up lights.
In short, (setting cash aside) you need to drive both cars back to back and decide what you want to use the car for and how much power /performance you'd like, which should lead on to the ideal spec. If you do go for the R400D though, make sure you ask CC about the Roller-Barrell Throttle Bodies upgrade, as although the headline power increase is 'only 10bhp' it's actually slightly more, and it utterly transforms the character of the car.
Get an R 400 , then upgrade with roller barrels when budget permits . It is silly money but it's a silly car anyway so what the hell. And you'll love it- and who cares if you are or are not God's gift to trackdays. Have fun and don't care about those who take it too seriously - get too serious about track days and you should be racing anyway , not pretending to...
You've just reminded me that the R400 has the six speed box which is nice. Both gearboxes would be fine to well over 220BHP, the Caterham six speed perhaps being able handle more than the standard 5 speed. But some will argue that the torque of the Duratec is better matched to the 5 speed than the close ratio Six.
The standard duratec (R) is rev limited by the valve springs, so this is really the first upgrade you would need to do. After that it is bolt on bits to about 220BHP. Beyond that is pistons, rods, and a lot of money, etc.
The standard duratec (R) is rev limited by the valve springs, so this is really the first upgrade you would need to do. After that it is bolt on bits to about 220BHP. Beyond that is pistons, rods, and a lot of money, etc.
Agree re the estimated power increase- I was genuinely gobsmakced the first time I gave my R400D the full workout after roller barrels . If somebody had said the upgrade was 30-40bhp more I would have believed them. The pickup is instant and the noise just sublime. There is some nonsense about how thirsty RBTB cars are- I find I still get the same on long journeys and only a bit less than I used to in maximum attack mode. Cue posts saying " I only get 8mpg in mine - you can't drive properly" "Are you in Brake ?" and "8 mpg ?? Luxury....I dream of 8mpg"
Megabit27 said:
After several caterham events (drift, advanced drift and circuit experience) and the need for something that can be enjoyed on track and for a some back road blasts I am going to order a new caterham.
Reaching out to you for guidance, gotchas and general advice.
I am contemplating either a supersport R or R400 both spec'd with the same options (weather,paint,trackday bits and built) the cost difference is 7.5k spec for spec. Planned test drive of the supersport R in May (Caterham midlands building one now) and hopefully an R400 at the same visit.
What considerations should I be thinking about in weighing up the two models (put cost aside for now)?
When I do decide which model and give the nice man at caterham a coupe of grand are there discounts to be had, if so what %? Any discounts on options? Or is the ticket price the price ? Appreciate that fact I am not buying a mainstream car, just need my expectations managed here.
Appreciate any comments, pointers, gotchas to think about.
Thanks in advance
Would you mind telling me when and where your test is scheduled for? I'm in a similar position to you except that I've almost decided on a Supersport R, and will build it myself.Reaching out to you for guidance, gotchas and general advice.
I am contemplating either a supersport R or R400 both spec'd with the same options (weather,paint,trackday bits and built) the cost difference is 7.5k spec for spec. Planned test drive of the supersport R in May (Caterham midlands building one now) and hopefully an R400 at the same visit.
What considerations should I be thinking about in weighing up the two models (put cost aside for now)?
When I do decide which model and give the nice man at caterham a coupe of grand are there discounts to be had, if so what %? Any discounts on options? Or is the ticket price the price ? Appreciate that fact I am not buying a mainstream car, just need my expectations managed here.
Appreciate any comments, pointers, gotchas to think about.
Thanks in advance
I'd be thinking carefully about the primary intended use of the car. If it's for the road then the SuperSport R makes a lot of sense. It's a good power to weight ratio for the road and the 5 speed is a more relaxed drive when the time comes to take the car on a longer journey somewhere.
I've just bought the R and built it myself and have no regrets. I suspect in the future I'll crave some more power but it's the same base engine as the rest of the Duratec range so I've left that option open. There is no doubt it will cost more that way but there again, if I was after the extra power but not any more concerned about doing more track days then id be willing to stick to the 5 speed gearbox anyway and just focus on the engine upgrades. The 6 speed box is a £3k option on its own after all. The Dry sump is another nice option of you track the car predominantly but again if it's primarily for road use then it's not a must have. Again that's about £2k. When I last looked it seemed you could get R400 power levels on a SuperSport R by adding about £4-5k worth of parts to the engine (that's a fitted price from Caterham).
So again I think the question is are you using it primarily for road use and occasional track use (in which case the R is a good focal point) or is it mainly a track car (in which case the additional parts are quite discounted over list price and thus worthwhile considering)
Hope that helps a bit. I love my R by the way and have absolutely no regrets. I'd like it to make a bit more noise so might consider throttle bodies and a Cam upgrade in the future but it's perfectly adequate for now!
Tom
I've just bought the R and built it myself and have no regrets. I suspect in the future I'll crave some more power but it's the same base engine as the rest of the Duratec range so I've left that option open. There is no doubt it will cost more that way but there again, if I was after the extra power but not any more concerned about doing more track days then id be willing to stick to the 5 speed gearbox anyway and just focus on the engine upgrades. The 6 speed box is a £3k option on its own after all. The Dry sump is another nice option of you track the car predominantly but again if it's primarily for road use then it's not a must have. Again that's about £2k. When I last looked it seemed you could get R400 power levels on a SuperSport R by adding about £4-5k worth of parts to the engine (that's a fitted price from Caterham).
So again I think the question is are you using it primarily for road use and occasional track use (in which case the R is a good focal point) or is it mainly a track car (in which case the additional parts are quite discounted over list price and thus worthwhile considering)
Hope that helps a bit. I love my R by the way and have absolutely no regrets. I'd like it to make a bit more noise so might consider throttle bodies and a Cam upgrade in the future but it's perfectly adequate for now!
Tom
Gassing Station | Caterham | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff