Golden Gate Sevens

WHY CATERHAM?

Why a Caterham indeed?  

There are many reasons, not the least is that this is the brand that legally has the rights to the design and name from Lotus.  Add to that the numerous improvements in the original design and you have the underpinnings of the continuation of the legend and cult that is the Super Seven.

But don't rely on that alone, look closely at the finish, the attention to detail, the quality of the welds, the list goes on and on, but why not visit us and see for yourself.

Add to that the completness of the kit plus the extensive option list, you won't be wondering why a part was not provided up front.

The following comments are from a popular British based Caterham dealer's website...

The Lotus 7 was an inspired design because it combined some of the crucial design elements of a single seater racing car with at least a modicum of road useability and factored in mechanical simplicity.

Today, in Caterham 7 format, this philosophy is taken to outer limits, because whilst a modern 7 is inherently "simple", it uses some of the very latest technology and techniques to create a truly unique car, whose ability to provide shattering performance and total controllability is unmatched almost regardless of price.

What alternatives are there?

There are many types of "7" lookalike. There is only 1 Caterham 7, because they purchased the rights to the Lotus design when Colin Chapman moved on to other things. Essentially, this site will only really cover the Caterham 7, because it is my particular area of interest, but suffice to say that I have owned a Westfield too, which is essentially a copy of the 7.

The Westfield range has, in fairness, of late, become oriented more down the route of motorcycle powered cars, and having driven a "MegaBusa" (Suzuki Hayabusa power) with its sequential gearbox, I can report that the car is excellent. As a criticism, I found the 'Busa tough to control at the limit, and certainly nothing like as "friendly" as a Caterham Superlight.

There are many more, very popular 7 type cars; many are very low budget build cars like the Locust 7. Some have a big following like the "Robin Hood" 7. Basically, though, and this remains a fact, stop a man in the street and show him a picture of a 7 derivative and he'll answer either "Lotus 7" or "Caterham". I have to admit that I have seen most of the 7 copies and my opinion of them is very low. Please make up your own mind; don't take my opinion for granted because a very many people are happy with them all but I think they are, without exception, massively outclassed.

How much does it cost? (Note, all these prices are expressed in British pounds!)

A new Caterham isn't cheap. The 1.6 Classic starts at about 11 grand as a component car (where you bolt the major bits together, a bit like meccano for adults(!). If you are after serious performance (and most people are!) then bank on spending 20 grand as a minimum for a new 1.6 Superlight. This rises to a realistic 26 grand for a 190bhp VHPD superlight "R" (an evil machine with the Lotus Exige engine bolted into itŠ.) and about 34 grand for the ridiculous R500 model with 230bhp and a power to weight ratio that many single seat racing cars would kill for!

You must be mad?

Maybe. Now take a look at www.caterham.co.uk and click on the used car section. These cars sell. They are very expensive. The fact is that owners cherish their 7's and they do low mileages every year. There is a very select bunch of customers and enthusiasts who aspire to own a highly specced 7 but once you've tapped into that market you have a car which is remarkably resilient to depreciation. Typically, a new 7 will lose around 30% of its value in the first 3 years and this is amazing compared to every other type of new car. Very old examples still fetch in excess of 10 grand and there is nothing to stop an owner keeping his or her new 7 indefinitely, simply upgrading parts as needed over the years.