Too old for a caterham?

[yellow elan]

After wanting a Caterham for 40 years I can now afford to buy one for my approaching 65th birthday! Have I left it too late,? is there anybody older than 65 with a car. I know my wife will just laugh but I fit nicely into a wide body type-its the getting out that matters
Start the debate

[Shaun_E]

Never too old for one. There are people in their 70's and 80's competing in them! The demographic of Caterham ownership would barely put you in the upper quartile

[BertBert]

There's clearly not an age limit, the question is more whether you'll like it and use it when you get it and even whether that matters to satisfy the 40 year wait! They hold value reasonably well. So if you buy carefully, perhaps privately to avoid the dealer margin, after having it for a year you could sell on with little or even no loss.

Have you driven one?

Bert
PS I waited 40 years to get a Lotus Elan!

[PiersR]

I’m 69 this year and the big 70 next October. I’ve had two 7’s. The first in 1985 and the second 10 years ago, so 35 years in all. I can still hop in and out without problems. However, I appreciate that there will come a time when I won’t be able, but that’s a few years away. Go for it and enjoy.

[Tiggers]

I bought my Caterham this year after wanting one for over 20 years and it's well worth it but I'm 30 years your junior. My dad, who is 67, has no trouble getting in and out of my S3 and that's with a full roll cage so he has to go in via the top of the cage! I say go for it

[Matt230]

I co own a Superlight R with my father who is 73. He still enjoys using it for trackdays and tinkering at the weekend.

Matt

[tight fart]

Anybody here remember Geoff Tobert from the L7c, he did a couple of trips while in his 70s.
One to the arctic circle with his wife, and another to Stalingrad (I think) with his son.
So no at 65 your not to old.

[ken46]

Short answer, no, you haven't left it too late. I bought mine seven years ago when I was 67 and I'm still like a kid with a new toy every time I get into it. Not only is it a wonderful car to drive, it's also very comfortable and once you've worked out your own technique, getting in and out won't be a problem. Wife? Don't worry, mine won't get into the car (that can be a good thing or a bad thing depending on your point of view!), and the icing on the cake is that it's now worth more than I paid for it.

[Murph7355]

Best bet - hire one for a weekend if you've never driven one.

There's no age limit, but the cars can be Marmite. And a bit like me with Land Rovers, you may adore them but reality might convince you otherwise

[PiersR]

Agree with above comments. If you have an Elan and have never driven a Caterham, then hire one for a day or weekend. They make all sorts of noises, rattles, etc and very different and raw compared to your Elan, so make sure you are going to like it. Where are you in UK ?

[Skyedriver]

PiersR said:

Agree with above comments. If you have an Elan and have never driven a Caterham, then hire one for a day or weekend. They make all sorts of noises, rattles, etc and very different and raw compared to your Elan, so make sure you are going to like it. Where are you in UK ?

TBH, my Cterham rattles a lot less than the Elan I had and less bits drop off!

OP I built my Caterham in 1990, I'm now 67 and it's a great bit of fun to drive. Getting in and out is easier than the TVR Chimaera I had....They do seem to get smaller as the years roll on though.

[CanAm]

Skyedriver said:

TBH, my Cterham rattles a lot less than the Elan I had and less bits drop off!

OP I built my Caterham in 1990, I'm now 67 and it's a great bit of fun to drive. Getting in and out is easier than the TVR Chimaera I had....They do seem to get smaller as the years roll on though.

Tony, i still remember my ride with Ross!
OP, I'm the second oldest on this thread and have no problems getting into or out of my S3. Go for it!

[yellow elan]

Thanks for all your replies. That’s it I am having one.After 7 years of motoring hell with the Elan I finally realised it was a money pit and bought a new MX5 which is a nice car but it leaves me cold. I built a Caterham copy a Tiger about 20 years ago which was a shed to be honest, the chassis wasn’t even square!. Built an AK cobra replica after !which was brilliant but with a big Chevy in it I never got more than 10mpg. So that’s it a 360SV for me

[CanAm]

yellow elan said:

Thanks for all your replies. That’s it I am having one.After 7 years of motoring hell with the Elan I finally realised it was a money pit and bought a new MX5 which is a nice car but it leaves me cold. I built a Caterham copy a Tiger about 20 years ago which was a shed to be honest, the chassis wasn’t even square!. Built an AK cobra replica after !which was brilliant but with a big Chevy in it I never got more than 10mpg. So that’s it a 360SV for me

Excellent!

If it's just a weekend toy for yourself, you wont need an SV. If you'll be taking a passenger regularly or going on extended trips, then maybe an SV would be better, though my wife and I had a week in France in our S3 and had no trouble fitting everything in. Well OK, it was a bit of a squeeze.......

[Skyedriver]

CanAm said:

Tony, i still remember my ride with Ross!
OP, I'm the second oldest on this thread and have no problems getting into or out of my S3. Go for it!

Hi Alan glad to hear you are keeping well.
(for the uninitiated, I sold the car to someone who sold it to a dealer who sold it to Ross. I bought it back).

Gratuitous pictures

[CanAm]

Hi Tony,

I just found the link here!. It was 14 years ago, just before I bought my own car.

Glad to see you enjoying the car!

Be careful out there.
Alan

Edited by CanAm on Saturday 28th November 20:25

[BryanC]

I hold my hand up to 73 and a 2011 S3-K with 23K continental touring miles from new.
Not so easy for my 6'2" frame climbing in or out now with the hood up but it hasn't stopped me yet.
The grand kids think I'm a hero.

Moved from an MGTA, TC, Morgan4/4, MGTF, Westfield, MX5 before buying the 7.

Edited by BryanC on Saturday 28th November 22:38

[repsna]

Too old I will be 70 in January and did 200.000 km with my CSR since 2006 and see no end :-))

[BertBert]

yellow elan said:

and bought a new MX5 which is a nice car but it leaves me cold.

I was running a MK1 MX5 as a company car when I went to test drive my first Caterham. I quite liked the MX5, but thought it was a real boat when I got back in it that wonderful Saturday morning on top of the hill in Caterham!
I haven't had a Caterham for a while, but with the last one I owned, whenever I got the itch to get a Lotus (modern Europa, then Exige then Evora) I always went to B&C in my Caterham for the test drive. No matter how good the Lotus all thoughts of buying one evaporated on the drive home in the Caterham!

Ironically I am back contemplating an Evora again. Perhaps I should drive a Caterham first!

Good luck in finding a good one!!

[Roblot]

BertBert said:

I was running a MK1 MX5 as a company car when I went to test drive my first Caterham. I quite liked the MX5, but thought it was a real boat when I got back in it that wonderful Saturday morning on top of the hill in Caterham!
I haven't had a Caterham for a while, but with the last one I owned, whenever I got the itch to get a Lotus (modern Europa, then Exige then Evora) I always went to B&C in my Caterham for the test drive. No matter how good the Lotus all thoughts of buying one evaporated on the drive home in the Caterham!

Ironically I am back contemplating an Evora again. Perhaps I should drive a Caterham first!

Good luck in finding a good one!!

With tongue in cheek I say this, and many will probably disagree. I thought ( BertBert) would be pleased to be able to hear normally again after driving the Caterham, especially the more recent ones ones; at least Lotus cars, although they may lack the raw experience of a Caterham, do have an acceptable level of transmission noise!!! and on the whole don't do too badly.