Discussion
Just out of curiosity, do you know why Caterham offers unpainted cars in bare aluminium, but with the rear wings and the nose already painted in a few colors of your choice? Isn't a car with all its body in aluminium legal or something? And, do you know if an unpainted car is a good idea? You don't have to worry about stone chips, for instance, but are there any drawbacks?
I ran bare ally for 10 years . it is quite easy to maintain with one 10 hour polishing session per year but as Mick says the stones can nip the ally
the paint protects the visible surfaces but salt and water still get into all the non visible parts of the chassis and cause corrosion.
this can be a serious problem for cars that are used all year round if you don't go at it with the dinatrol like a tramp on a sandwich ......
the paint protects the visible surfaces but salt and water still get into all the non visible parts of the chassis and cause corrosion.
this can be a serious problem for cars that are used all year round if you don't go at it with the dinatrol like a tramp on a sandwich ......
Bare ali is 2kg lighter than a painted car. Chapman supplied one of the early series 2's (I think it was) to a chap who was going to compete in it. When he saw the chap and the car at an event painted he said something along the lines of "I supply you a competitive car and you go and make it heavy" - Source one of the books I have on the history of the 7.
So bare is lighter! You try and find 2kgs on other bits on a pared down race prepped 7. It can get very expensive indeed!
Personally I like Red wings and nose / ali best of all ali / colour combos.
So bare is lighter! You try and find 2kgs on other bits on a pared down race prepped 7. It can get very expensive indeed!
Personally I like Red wings and nose / ali best of all ali / colour combos.
Yellow 7 said:
Bare ali is 2kg lighter than a painted car. Chapman supplied one of the early series 2's (I think it was) to a chap who was going to compete in it. When he saw the chap and the car at an event painted he said something along the lines of "I supply you a competitive car and you go and make it heavy" - Source one of the books I have on the history of the 7.
So bare is lighter! You try and find 2kgs on other bits on a pared down race prepped 7. It can get very expensive indeed!
Personally I like Red wings and nose / ali best of all ali / colour combos.
Speaking of race cars, right, still most PHers use them as everyday or at least weekend drives, so they have to cope with corrosion.So bare is lighter! You try and find 2kgs on other bits on a pared down race prepped 7. It can get very expensive indeed!
Personally I like Red wings and nose / ali best of all ali / colour combos.
ERDi said:
Yellow 7 said:
Bare ali is 2kg lighter than a painted car. Chapman supplied one of the early series 2's (I think it was) to a chap who was going to compete in it. When he saw the chap and the car at an event painted he said something along the lines of "I supply you a competitive car and you go and make it heavy" - Source one of the books I have on the history of the 7.
So bare is lighter! You try and find 2kgs on other bits on a pared down race prepped 7. It can get very expensive indeed!
Personally I like Red wings and nose / ali best of all ali / colour combos.
Speaking of race cars, right, still most PHers use them as everyday or at least weekend drives, so they have to cope with corrosion.So bare is lighter! You try and find 2kgs on other bits on a pared down race prepped 7. It can get very expensive indeed!
Personally I like Red wings and nose / ali best of all ali / colour combos.
Rain is not a problem. Salt is but it is to all 7's unless regularly treated with waxoyl or similar.
Yellow 7 said:
Bare ali is 2kg lighter than a painted car. Chapman supplied one of the early series 2's (I think it was) to a chap who was going to compete in it. When he saw the chap and the car at an event painted he said something along the lines of "I supply you a competitive car and you go and make it heavy" - Source one of the books I have on the history of the 7.
So bare is lighter! You try and find 2kgs on other bits on a pared down race prepped 7. It can get very expensive indeed!
Personally I like Red wings and nose / ali best of all ali / colour combos.
2kgs seems an awful lot of paint tbh but either way 2kgs is nothing on a caterham race car......just 6 pints of stella and a curry.So bare is lighter! You try and find 2kgs on other bits on a pared down race prepped 7. It can get very expensive indeed!
Personally I like Red wings and nose / ali best of all ali / colour combos.
James.S said:
Yellow 7 said:
Bare ali is 2kg lighter than a painted car. Chapman supplied one of the early series 2's (I think it was) to a chap who was going to compete in it. When he saw the chap and the car at an event painted he said something along the lines of "I supply you a competitive car and you go and make it heavy" - Source one of the books I have on the history of the 7.
So bare is lighter! You try and find 2kgs on other bits on a pared down race prepped 7. It can get very expensive indeed!
Personally I like Red wings and nose / ali best of all ali / colour combos.
2kgs seems an awful lot of paint tbh but either way 2kgs is nothing on a caterham race car......just 6 pints of stella and a curry.So bare is lighter! You try and find 2kgs on other bits on a pared down race prepped 7. It can get very expensive indeed!
Personally I like Red wings and nose / ali best of all ali / colour combos.
Dave J - Ran his car in bare ali & carbon, but having now got 'middle edge spread hisself', he's given in and had it sprayed, even the roll bar, Plus he's even got a 'go fasta' stripe, and very nice it all looks too
Now if he were to ever carry a passenger we may have a chance of keeping up with him
CU tomorrow DJ
Now if he were to ever carry a passenger we may have a chance of keeping up with him
CU tomorrow DJ
It's all the Pies!
If you have around 30k sitting in your side drawer, you can have a paintjob like Daves too
http://www.topgear.com/UK/car-news/abarth-695-trib...
If you have around 30k sitting in your side drawer, you can have a paintjob like Daves too
http://www.topgear.com/UK/car-news/abarth-695-trib...
James.S said:
Yellow 7 said:
Bare ali is 2kg lighter than a painted car. Chapman supplied one of the early series 2's (I think it was) to a chap who was going to compete in it. When he saw the chap and the car at an event painted he said something along the lines of "I supply you a competitive car and you go and make it heavy" - Source one of the books I have on the history of the 7.
So bare is lighter! You try and find 2kgs on other bits on a pared down race prepped 7. It can get very expensive indeed!
Personally I like Red wings and nose / ali best of all ali / colour combos.
2kgs seems an awful lot of paint tbh but either way 2kgs is nothing on a caterham race car......just 6 pints of stella and a curry.So bare is lighter! You try and find 2kgs on other bits on a pared down race prepped 7. It can get very expensive indeed!
Personally I like Red wings and nose / ali best of all ali / colour combos.
My 2004 Caterham is unpainted and all I do is spray it all over with Muc-off "Bike Spray" which seems to work very well as a preservative. I do as little polishing as possible - the side skins have never been polished - as I don't want to kill the grain of the ali and I certainly don't want it mirror finished. It has a few white patches and the odd white 'worm' but I know they will polish out if I want so I can live with them.
I saw some pictures of a 1960s Seven in bare ali and it seemed to have acquired a patina of "used but well cared for" and I'll be happy if my matures like that. As for the impact on other people (if one cares at all) I think Joe Public is so struck by the unusual sight of a bare ali car that I don't think they really notice or care about the minor imperfections.
I saw some pictures of a 1960s Seven in bare ali and it seemed to have acquired a patina of "used but well cared for" and I'll be happy if my matures like that. As for the impact on other people (if one cares at all) I think Joe Public is so struck by the unusual sight of a bare ali car that I don't think they really notice or care about the minor imperfections.
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