Academy cars - good second hand buy?
Discussion
Hi (again!),
I've noticed that the Academy cars are close to the spec that I'd quite like in a road going Caterham (and nearer my price range). Obviously they will have had a hard life, but I'd like to imagine that one with under 10k on the clock would still be good for some time. A couple of q's:
Can the 125bhp VCT equipped car be upgraded to 270/310 spec?
How commonplace is the (baffling) disconnection of the odometer?
Is removal of the full cage to replace with an FIA cage laborious, and does it leave any unpleasantness? (i.e. unused holes everywhere).
Any input much appreciated!
ps. this one looked a reasonable bet: https://www.ptsportscars.com/car/caterham-academy-...
I've noticed that the Academy cars are close to the spec that I'd quite like in a road going Caterham (and nearer my price range). Obviously they will have had a hard life, but I'd like to imagine that one with under 10k on the clock would still be good for some time. A couple of q's:
Can the 125bhp VCT equipped car be upgraded to 270/310 spec?
How commonplace is the (baffling) disconnection of the odometer?
Is removal of the full cage to replace with an FIA cage laborious, and does it leave any unpleasantness? (i.e. unused holes everywhere).
Any input much appreciated!
ps. this one looked a reasonable bet: https://www.ptsportscars.com/car/caterham-academy-...
Personally I think they are a great buy - you might view it as a hard life, but actually they get far more attention than a road car does - everything is checked between races (or for those with a motorsport background between every session). Parts are replaced with no expense spared, oil changed super regularly.
Key things to check will be cracks in suspension components (front wishbones and de-dion ear's), but I'd want to check that on any caterham that's been on track.
You can upgrade to 270 spec engine for just £250 (ecu remap and plugs), then it's up to you what you want to go to on suspension front. If its only for road use the standard (now old) academy brake master cylinder is fine. 310 is a bit more involved/costly with cams needed also.
Roll cage is easy to remove and has a fair resale value. Assume you mean replace with FIA rollbar rather than cage (as the existing cage will be FIA spec).
This will leave holes where the front pillar of the cage mounts the chassis, but can be easily blanked off. PT can do all these upgrades for you and more (potentially building into a deal to buy the car I would have thought)
Speedo's are almost always disconnected in race cars, couple of reasons for this. Over about 80mph the speedo simply waves at you on most cars, which isn't helpful, on slightly older cars (and car's of the age that one is) there is a potential issue where if you go through the gravel and the speedo sensor gets broken, it can create a short and blow a fuse that takes out the whole dash/ecu, obviously not something you want to happen in a race. Additionally, if used on the road it's usually on a limited mileage insurance policy, so disconnecting the speedo when on track stops you using up milage for the road. Caterhams don't tend to follow the traditional mileage/value rules, so I don't think you should see that as an issue. Get an understanding for how many race seasons it did, what else it was used for, it'll give you a much better idea of the age/condition of the car.
Give Ian at PT a call, he's a great guy and will look after you really well.
Key things to check will be cracks in suspension components (front wishbones and de-dion ear's), but I'd want to check that on any caterham that's been on track.
You can upgrade to 270 spec engine for just £250 (ecu remap and plugs), then it's up to you what you want to go to on suspension front. If its only for road use the standard (now old) academy brake master cylinder is fine. 310 is a bit more involved/costly with cams needed also.
Roll cage is easy to remove and has a fair resale value. Assume you mean replace with FIA rollbar rather than cage (as the existing cage will be FIA spec).
This will leave holes where the front pillar of the cage mounts the chassis, but can be easily blanked off. PT can do all these upgrades for you and more (potentially building into a deal to buy the car I would have thought)
Speedo's are almost always disconnected in race cars, couple of reasons for this. Over about 80mph the speedo simply waves at you on most cars, which isn't helpful, on slightly older cars (and car's of the age that one is) there is a potential issue where if you go through the gravel and the speedo sensor gets broken, it can create a short and blow a fuse that takes out the whole dash/ecu, obviously not something you want to happen in a race. Additionally, if used on the road it's usually on a limited mileage insurance policy, so disconnecting the speedo when on track stops you using up milage for the road. Caterhams don't tend to follow the traditional mileage/value rules, so I don't think you should see that as an issue. Get an understanding for how many race seasons it did, what else it was used for, it'll give you a much better idea of the age/condition of the car.
Give Ian at PT a call, he's a great guy and will look after you really well.
Thanks for the comprehensive reply, especially injecting some sense into the odometer disconnection. Good to know the 270/310 upgrades are on the table at ~£250/£2400 respectively.
Also glad to hear a good report of PT. I've got them, 7&C, and GP7s all within a reasonable distance. Not sure if there are others I've missed, but that is more than I was expecting for these cars.
Also glad to hear a good report of PT. I've got them, 7&C, and GP7s all within a reasonable distance. Not sure if there are others I've missed, but that is more than I was expecting for these cars.
Boggo said:
Parts are replaced with no expense spared, oil changed super regularly.
I kind of agree with this. but buyer beware. There are many many many shagged race cars that have not been run on a no expense spared basis and this includes Caterhams. Often Academy Caterhams have a light race life and are very well looked after, make sure the one you get is like this!DoubleD said:
Can a roof or half hood be fitted to a car with a full cage?
Depends on the type of cage - don't think a full hold will go on a Superlight cage but will on a Roadaport cage. Half hood should work as well.I use a helmet with my full caged car so just go aeroscreen. No doubt I look like a t
t but that's probably the case without the helmet as well so I am not bothered..I've had four academy cars so like to think I could offer some useful advice.
Most race cars I've come across have had a pampered life, fluids, brakes changed regularly. There's no salt on the race track or pot holes that could damage rims etc.
I've never come across a race car with a working speedo and I've probably looked at and seen over 200 different race cars.
All my cars have come with a full cage and it's a real pain to get in and out of the car, so removed the cage and replaced with a roll bar. It's an easy job, the cage is bolted down by six bolts, and takes me an hour to remove and fit a roll bar ( only four bolts required ) though some 'specialists' have quoted three hours to remove a cage . There's two holes, one each side of the door . You can always refit a nut and bolt or put a rubber bung.
Most race cars I've come across have had a pampered life, fluids, brakes changed regularly. There's no salt on the race track or pot holes that could damage rims etc.
I've never come across a race car with a working speedo and I've probably looked at and seen over 200 different race cars.
All my cars have come with a full cage and it's a real pain to get in and out of the car, so removed the cage and replaced with a roll bar. It's an easy job, the cage is bolted down by six bolts, and takes me an hour to remove and fit a roll bar ( only four bolts required ) though some 'specialists' have quoted three hours to remove a cage . There's two holes, one each side of the door . You can always refit a nut and bolt or put a rubber bung.
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