Adjustments needed for a drive to Italy.
Discussion
So a quick synopsis, friends are getting married in Italy(near Assisi) in June next year, decided I want to to drive there in the Caterham (previously done a 2500 mile euro drive in a Caterham 10+ years ago, so know what’s to be expected)
My 7 is quite track oriented so will need to do a few changes, most notably raise the suspension and fit a higher temp thermostat.
The last time I did a long trip in a 7 across Europe, it was far more set up for road use with the leather seats and soft suspension. Whilst I think I can cope with the Tillets, I’m wondering if them combined with the ‘track spec’ Bilsteins will be a bit too much? Has anyone done a long tour with the Tillets and track Bilsteins?
Obligatory pic for reference:
My 7 is quite track oriented so will need to do a few changes, most notably raise the suspension and fit a higher temp thermostat.
The last time I did a long trip in a 7 across Europe, it was far more set up for road use with the leather seats and soft suspension. Whilst I think I can cope with the Tillets, I’m wondering if them combined with the ‘track spec’ Bilsteins will be a bit too much? Has anyone done a long tour with the Tillets and track Bilsteins?
Obligatory pic for reference:
Hi!
I'm based in Italy, driving with tillet is not an issue if we speak about stifness and ass confort, different if we involve temperature. Remember that here we can have High temperature all day long, last May there was several day with +35°C from 10am to 6pm.
Prepare to have wet back.
My summer setup involve no Doors and a half Hood. Sun hit as f
k!
I'm based in Italy, driving with tillet is not an issue if we speak about stifness and ass confort, different if we involve temperature. Remember that here we can have High temperature all day long, last May there was several day with +35°C from 10am to 6pm.
Prepare to have wet back.
My summer setup involve no Doors and a half Hood. Sun hit as f
k!Edited by antonio.cocchi on Tuesday 12th December 07:19
Toured for many years with a Tillett and aeros and found it more than comfortable but I do have one of Oxted Trimmings leather inserts. I've sprinted and toured with the same set-up for many 1000's of miles, but I do have one way adjustable dampers. Just do it and enjoy yourself and the drive by avoiding motorways.
Edited by Aeroscreens on Wednesday 13th December 22:33
antonio.cocchi said:
Hi!
I'm based in Italy, driving with tillet is not an issue if we speak about stifness and ass confort, different if we involve temperature. Remember that here we can have High temperature all day long, last May there was several day with +35°C from 10am to 6pm.
Prepare to have wet back.
My summer setup involve no Doors and a half Hood. Sun hit as fk!
I'm based in Italy, driving with tillet is not an issue if we speak about stifness and ass confort, different if we involve temperature. Remember that here we can have High temperature all day long, last May there was several day with +35°C from 10am to 6pm.
Prepare to have wet back.
My summer setup involve no Doors and a half Hood. Sun hit as f
k!Edited by antonio.cocchi on Tuesday 12th December 07:19
antonio.cocchi said:
Looks like we have very similar 7’s!!The heat isn’t an issue for me, half my family is Texan and Im completely content over there in 40+ degree heat.😁
Aeroscreens said:
Toured for many years with a Tillett and aeros and found it more than comfortable but I do have one of Oxted Trimmings leather inserts. I've sprinted and toured with the same set-up for many 1000's of miles, but I do have one way adjustable dampers. Just do it and enjoy yourself and the drive by avoiding motorways.
I’ve got an aero screen as well, but will not be using that for the drive 😄.Edited by Aeroscreens on Wednesday 13th December 22:33
I’ll probably use motorways for the drive down, but take a more scenic route coming back.
Current coilovers are incredibly firm, so thinking about picking up a used set of softer ones to fit for the drive. Will definitely look into the Tillet inserts though.
Driven there several times when had our SV albeit with leather seats but did have adjustable dampers. Didn’t change a thing as we drove to Perugia via Stelvio and returned on motorways only. Italians loved the car! Recommend you stay old Perugia where the hotel up top has underground parking.
Last trip to Rome we stayed there and the day we went to tour Assisi the car park up top was full. A loverly policewoman told us no problem “follow me” and up to the car park we went. She had us park on yellow hatched lines and stood guard by our car.
Bypass Rome in a Caterham!
Last trip to Rome we stayed there and the day we went to tour Assisi the car park up top was full. A loverly policewoman told us no problem “follow me” and up to the car park we went. She had us park on yellow hatched lines and stood guard by our car.
Bypass Rome in a Caterham!
It is a few years ago and as a reference point I was in my R400 K Series, with Tillet seats. I was c90Kg, so not an obvious candidate to find Tillets comfortable.
I drove to Italy several times and enjoyed every trip, even the one where I was soaked in a very heavy thunder storm. The furthest drive into Italy was an unplanned trip fleeing from unexpected snow at Stelvio. We ended up on the Adriatic Coast in a tourist town that became base for a couple of days before we returned to the mountains.
The car was faultless, although I had a brake light failure the week before that was sorted by some very knowledgeable and friendly club members in Kent. Comfort was not a problem I encountered although there are many fuel stops… and in certain countries, you also need to attend to toll roads.
People love the car. While travelling to a friend in Germany I was followed into a Autobahn services by a rather spirited driven black Cayenne. The driver approached and was enthusing about the Caterham and very quickly dived in power to weight, torque delivery etc. This was not the usual “I like your car, how fast is it?” discussion. It turned out he was the lead engineer at Porsche working on their GT cars.
Back to the question, its great fun. I would not hesitate to drove again but a few tips that may help you.
Security – think about the security of the contents of the car at fuel and toilet breaks. This is becoming more of an issue especially further south in Italy. During a toilet stop that I had to make, I was assisted greatly by a group of German pensioners who decided to form a posse to keep my car safe from a crowd of undesirables that were watching with it/me with unnerving interest. I am forever grateful to those German gentlemen who I hope enjoyed the remainder of their bus trip.
Luggage – waterproof bags are helpful. I used karting tyre bags as they are a great shape t slot into the passenger footwell. There will be many options from the various outdoor and camping shops.
Toll Booths – I relied on a helpful truck driver to activate the ticket machine on an Autoroute, as the Caterham wasn’t heavy enough to trigger the ticket. This only occurred once, and again showed how the funny little British car generates a lot of goodwill. If you can buy an automated tag, then this will be strongly recommended. Also worth noting that there can be crowds of beggers hanging around the toll booths. This is more of an issue the further south you travel in Italy.
Passes – consider basing at one of the many out of season ski hotels. This will provide some incredible night drives back to the hotel. The roads will be fairly empty, just watch out of the wildlife! Also certain Swizz/Italian borders are locked at night…. Something I found out the hard way!!
Snow – it can catch out even the best prepared plans, July is not totally exempt from snow.
Waterproof sunblock – normal sunblock gets washed away, via the eyes! Stings like nothing else! Best to pack the waterproof sunblock.
Otherwise, enjoy your trip(s)
I drove to Italy several times and enjoyed every trip, even the one where I was soaked in a very heavy thunder storm. The furthest drive into Italy was an unplanned trip fleeing from unexpected snow at Stelvio. We ended up on the Adriatic Coast in a tourist town that became base for a couple of days before we returned to the mountains.
The car was faultless, although I had a brake light failure the week before that was sorted by some very knowledgeable and friendly club members in Kent. Comfort was not a problem I encountered although there are many fuel stops… and in certain countries, you also need to attend to toll roads.
People love the car. While travelling to a friend in Germany I was followed into a Autobahn services by a rather spirited driven black Cayenne. The driver approached and was enthusing about the Caterham and very quickly dived in power to weight, torque delivery etc. This was not the usual “I like your car, how fast is it?” discussion. It turned out he was the lead engineer at Porsche working on their GT cars.
Back to the question, its great fun. I would not hesitate to drove again but a few tips that may help you.
Security – think about the security of the contents of the car at fuel and toilet breaks. This is becoming more of an issue especially further south in Italy. During a toilet stop that I had to make, I was assisted greatly by a group of German pensioners who decided to form a posse to keep my car safe from a crowd of undesirables that were watching with it/me with unnerving interest. I am forever grateful to those German gentlemen who I hope enjoyed the remainder of their bus trip.
Luggage – waterproof bags are helpful. I used karting tyre bags as they are a great shape t slot into the passenger footwell. There will be many options from the various outdoor and camping shops.
Toll Booths – I relied on a helpful truck driver to activate the ticket machine on an Autoroute, as the Caterham wasn’t heavy enough to trigger the ticket. This only occurred once, and again showed how the funny little British car generates a lot of goodwill. If you can buy an automated tag, then this will be strongly recommended. Also worth noting that there can be crowds of beggers hanging around the toll booths. This is more of an issue the further south you travel in Italy.
Passes – consider basing at one of the many out of season ski hotels. This will provide some incredible night drives back to the hotel. The roads will be fairly empty, just watch out of the wildlife! Also certain Swizz/Italian borders are locked at night…. Something I found out the hard way!!
Snow – it can catch out even the best prepared plans, July is not totally exempt from snow.
Waterproof sunblock – normal sunblock gets washed away, via the eyes! Stings like nothing else! Best to pack the waterproof sunblock.
Otherwise, enjoy your trip(s)
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