The Caterham 7 has been stuck in my consciousness for as long as I can remember. When visiting my extended family as a child I used to walk down to the Caterham show room in the town of the same name and press my nose up to the glass, in awe of the little racecars.

With some encouragement from an enthusiastic Porsche-owning uncle my interest in cars continued to grow.

As soon as I could afford the insurance I bought my first 'performance car'. An original Peugeot 106 Rallye that Cars & Car Conversions magazine described at the time as 'the Caterham 7 of hot hatches'. This was a fantastically balanced little car that taught me a lot about driving enthusiastically; suffering thousands of B road miles and a dozen or so track days.

Eventually I moved on to supposedly quicker machines but the pared back simple driving pleasure, was missing.

I idly started looking for a Caterham 7 in the spring of 2005 and found the car I have today locally on www.pistonheads.com. I paid the private seller £11,800 and had to sell my Renault Clio 172 Cup to fund the purchase.

Not only was it in great condition but a good specification for road use. No. 27 of 30 Roadsport Limited Editions from 1995, the original owner built the car from a factory-supplied kit and then proceeded to do just 3000 miles before the first MOT. The only question mark over the car was the number plate, which ended DNF; I hoped it didn't refer to the car...

The Roadsport Ltd Edition uses a Super Sport 1400 K Series engine. The standard Rover engine is rated at 100bhp. Caterham make simple modifications to the inlet and exhaust and add high lift camshaft profiles, raising the output to 130bhp and 100 lb·ft, plenty to pull 560kgs around with enthusiasm. Other features of the Limited Edition are such niceties as Momo steering wheel, carbon fibre cycle wings and rear wing guards, leather seats, carpet, heater, full weather gear and heated screen. Of course being a Caterham the options list is almost limitless and they are easy to progressively upgrade.

For the first six months I used DNF as my only vehicle. Commuting everyday to work in Manchester city centre, regular weekend trips down the M6/M1 to Hertfordshire and weekend 'blats' in the countryside.

I have progressively upgraded and personalised DNF. The first upgrade was the result of a leaking radiator. The original was made from steel and had corroded causing it to leak. Before I discovered the leak the fact it was losing coolant rang alarm bells in my head about the Head Gasket, acknowledged as one of the K series weak points.
When I'd tracked the leak down to the radiator I replaced it with a very nice alloy item, purchased via a Lotus 7 Club group buy for a generous discount. It took a few days to work out how to bleed the coolant system as the heater matrix sits a few inches above the expansion tank. This requires the front of the car to be jacked up to make sure there are no air locks in the system.

The next alteration I had to make was to the spare wheel carrier on the rear. I had removed the spare for security and to save weight replacing it with a can of expanding foam. Whilst it was parked outside my house a clumsy neighbour hit the wheel carrier, bending it and breaking the number plate. I simply cut the carrier off near the chassis, covering the exposed ends with rubber caps. I rerouted the wiring for the number plate light and stuck a new number plate to the rear boot panel. At the same time I fitted a smaller three quarter size front number plate.

I also had to replace the windscreen as I had been over enthusiastic jumping into the car and kneed the rear view mirror putting a big crack down the passenger side. Although small the screen is relatively expensive as it has a heater element running through it. It was a simple case of undoing 6 screws, unplugging the old screen and replacing with the new.

My concerns about the K series engine longevity seemed to again be coming to the fore. I began to get very variable readings from the oil pressure gauge. As a first step I replaced the oil pressure sensor but after a few days of unsavoury noises from the top end I dropped the car round to a local engine specialist.

A couple of days later he showed me all the oily gunk that was blocking the oil pickup pipe. In wet sumped Caterham K series engines a foam baffle is bolted to the bottom of the block to try and keep the oil in the sump and near to the oil pick up pipe. This is needed because a shallower sump with less volume is used to improve ground clearance. Over time the heat and the oil broke down the foam and it then got sucked up into the pick up pipe blocking it. Not good for the internals of the engine. I replaced the baffle but many of the Lotus 7 club run without one precisely because of this risk.

Other than these niggles the car has just needed regular servicing and an MOT. I had the exhaust silencer repacked but it blew the packing material out again within 1,000 miles. During the spring I plan to check the condition of the rear A frame bushes and replace if necessary.

For summer use it is refreshing to run without the doors. However this can get uncomfortable at speed and so I plan to fabricate some wind deflectors from Perspex which mount on the same hinges as the doors. Because the wing mirrors are mounted on the doors I have fitted SPA racing mirrors to the windscreen allowing the doors and wind deflectors to be interchangeable.
Insurance is with a specialist at £330 per annum on a limited mileage policy including the Lotus 7 Owners Club discount with no NCD applied. This would rise by approximately £70 for unlimited mileage.

In July 2005 I took DNF to Anglesey for a track day with Track Action. The soft suspension set up gives a lot of grip, traction and feel on the limit. It was a revelation to have as much cornering attitude adjustment through the throttle pedal as the steering wheel and the only thing I found lacking was the open differential. An LSD would greatly improve drive out of the corners.

There were a few other Kit cars on track including two R300s. DNF was as quick through the corners as the hotter Caterhams, only losing out on the straights and under braking, although this was never more than a few car lengths. It was much quicker than a pair of very stiffly sprung bike engined MK kit cars.

The Yokohama AO21R tyres are a great compromise between outright grip, water dispersion and grip but over the winter I purchased a second hand set of 13" wheels which had part worn A539s still mounted on them. I went for the 13" wheels primarily to save weight. A welcome side effect was the improved ride, handing and feel, so I replaced my 14" set of wheels for another set of 13". Whereas previously I'd found the car under damped on bumpy roads the reduction in unsprung weight means the dampers aren't working as hard to control the wheels, improving grip and ride comfort.

I have only sampled the A539s in the very wet on the road but they were excellent, very progressive with a great deal of lateral grip on a steady throttle.

Future plans include: For Safety; fitting harnesses and possibly a lightweight composite Tillet seat. For Handling and Braking; adjustable spring platforms for adjusting the ride height and 'flat flooring' the car. For Security; fitting a quick release steering wheel boss for easier access and security. For vanity; powder coating the windscreen and headlights black to give it a more contemporary look.

It is a cliché but nearly every time I drive the 7 it is an event. The car includes you in the elements not just the driving. Even driving in the rain with the hood down isn't an issue, as long you keep moving. If I could keep the car from filling up with water whilst it's sat outside my house over the winter, I would drive it everyday. As it is I currently keep it in storage waiting for spring to come. I can't wait.

Photographs courtesy of Dave Sanderson -
gottahavea911@hotmail.com

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