Caterham - Impulse buy

[FIESTA]

I am always on pistonshead checking the Caterham ads
The last time I posted was about a year ago when I was looking to buy my first Caterham. Anyway purcahse of a house got in the way and know a garden costing me £9k!!

Anyhow there is a R300 in the classifeds. Its my colour looks well looked after with all the extras that I would be looking for. I am tempted to go for it but wondering whether the price is to high or to low as checking with Caterham Used buys they seem to be slightly more. Details are:
R300 2003 (53) built and supplied by Caterham
£21995
Titanium Silver, in beautiful condition, always garaged.
6200 miles, serviced by Caterham
Carbon Pack
Black Pack
Full weather equipment
Heater
15" Superlight anthracite alloys
Q/R Momo
Push start button
Roller barrel throttle bodies
Tillett seats
Colour coded roll bar
Side intrusion bar

I would appreciate if a experienced sane person could direct me before I make a big mistake?

[mechsympathy]

Not directly helpful I know, but IIRC Caterham charge £1500 for a sale or return from their showroom. That probably explains the price difference.

[MikeE]

Looks like a reasonable price to me.

I don't think you can really go wrong with a 1-2 year old R300 and this is probably Caterhams best/most popular model.

If you have any specific questions just ask.

cheers

[Incorrigible]

The only bit I would change on that is the 15" wheels

Pricy indeed, but you get what you pay for

[Murph7355]

Is this your first 7?

It sounds like it, and with some big recent expenses under your belt, why not look at an original Superlight?

I believe there are quite a few going now for south of 15k, and the originals had all the nice bits you get on the R300, only it had 13" wheels (a plus, not a minus!).

15k would get you a good one now. So you'd be saving a very large pot of cash. Spend a couple of k on a dry sump system (don't believe the R300 has this - but for track work, you really need one), and another 1-2k on a proper ECU, throttle bodies and mapping session and you'll have a car that is a shed load better than an R300 for a good saving (which you could put towards trackdays and/or tuition).

Alternatively, just drive as is with an even bigger wedge saved.

Just a thought. I for one would not be spending 21k on an R300 (I always end up doing way dafter things than that!).

[W333]

Pardon me for being slow, but what is wrong with having the 15" wheel option in this case? Surely the traction/handling issues etc are only positives with the 15", and negatives with anything smaller?

[c7 cya]

i have just purchased an r300 that i am yet to pick up that was at millwood up at 22500 and was an 04 plate, if that helps you decide whether the price is right. The only thing that would concern me in the titanium one you are looking at is the side intrusion bar, which may or may not indicate alot of track use.

[bertie]

W333 said:

Pardon me for being slow, but what is wrong with having the 15" wheel option in this case? Surely the traction/handling issues etc are only positives with the 15", and negatives with anything smaller?

Absolutely not!
Caterhams handle much better on 13" rims and sticky tyres.
The larger wheels are ok for road use but are purely for looks, for function you need 13".

[rubystone]

I thought the R300 did come with dry sump, plus roller barrels.

This R300 seems like a good car to me - not a bargain, but a nice example in a great colour (not that I'm biased...).

Change the 15 inch wheels for 13 inch and it'll be perfect. The other advantage is that you won't have to upgrade for some while.

Finally, the cheaper Superlights may have "histories" I know of a couple that most definitely do - caveat emptor there.

[bertie]

rubystone said:

I thought the R300 did come with dry sump, plus roller barrels. .

R300 has roller barrels but is wet sump.
R400 adds dry sump, Stack dash.

[rubystone]

Fair enough - seems like quite a lot of people spec them with DS then....

[MikeE]

I don't think many people will spec a dry sump for an R300 - especially a road focussed R300.

While you can pick up a superlight for <£15K you're talking about a Caterham that's more than 5 years old with likely more than 15K miles, not a 2 year old R300.

Like I said it looks like a reasonable deal to me.

Oh and the idea of buying a cheaper SL then spending £3-£4K on upgrades is OK but you'll not get the money back if you sell in a years time. Better to get a standard car which comes with these bits to start with.

>> Edited by MikeE on Friday 23 September 14:09

[Incorrigible]

And to bung a curveball in

Have you considered the Caterham Accademy

Yes, I know. Don't keep going on about it

[Murph7355]

MikeE said:

Oh and the idea of buying a cheaper SL then spending £3-£4K on upgrades is OK but you'll not get the money back if you sell in a years time. Better to get a standard car which comes with these bits to start with.

I'd concur with this. But then buying a 22k car and spending 4k on upgrades will ultimately lead to the same thing...

Also, any 7 can have history. Caveat emptor indeed, but do not, under any circumstances, be love struck by shiny paint, a newer number plate and it being sold by a dealer

[Murph7355]

PS...

Dry sumps - I used to be very much of the opinion that they weren't really necessary unless you were doing lots of fast track work. These days I'd want one - definitely on a K and probably on any engine.

13" wheels - the real key is weight. A pig heavy 13" wheel is far from ideal either, but 13" wheels and tyres are typical a *lot* lighter than the 15" equivalent. And you lose next to nothing in terms of traction. 7's are all about saving weight, and unsprung weight is the biggest enemy.

Additionally, standard chassis'd 7s look better on 13" - much more purposeful.

[jackal]

13"



15" rims ive tried make the nose rear upwards and wander under hard acceleration ... feels a bit like a 993