Help with value?

[edb49]

Just wondering if I could get a few opinions on what my car is worth?

59-reg R500
- 2800 miles
- Quaife sequential box
- Aeroscreen AND full screen
- Foam filter AND track day filter
- Caterham exhaust with catalyst AND Raceco quiet track day exhaust
- Peltor intercom with headsets
- Orange, decal pack, lowered floors, heater, 12v socket, leather seats
- All the paperwork, looked after at no expense, etc etc

I also have:
- Second set of wheels with Michelin slicks
- Tyres: Full set of unused CR500s, 4 Michelin slick fronts, 2 Michelin rears
- Brian James trailer (car I am thinking of replacing it with won't fit)

I'm toying with the idea of getting something just for the track, e.g. an aero car like Radical etc, but only want to do this if I'm not going to take too much pain on the Caterham... hence I'm interested in values etc.

[Z3MCJez]

Why get something else for the track? You've got a perfect track-day weapon there!

Jez

[edb49]

Z3MCJez said:

Why get something else for the track? You've got a perfect track-day weapon there!

It is a fantastic track day car without a doubt, I probably won't replace it but can't hurt to daydream can it.

[Incorrigible]

looked after with no expense spared......

2800 miles

are you taking the piss ?

[edb49]

Incorrigible said:

looked after with no expense spared......

2800 miles

are you taking the piss ?

No - it has probably had more oil & filter changes than any other R500. (It's on its 4th or 5th set of oil now, and Mobil 1 ain't cheap!) Regularly had spanner checks too, geo set up, and lots of niggly things Caterham get wrong sorted - all done at a local motorsport specialist.

[Incorrigible]

I know "you can't have enough fresh oil"

But every 500 miles.... really

Good luck with the sale

[MikeE]

Mate of mines done exactly the same. He sent his R500 back to Caterham and they sold it for him Ssle Or Return and he took a very small hit so suggest you try that route.

He's now considering an SR3 RS but I'm trying to pursuade him a Honda engined Junos a better option

[jimmyslr]

An R500 on slicks with a sequential is a fast motor. Will a Radical be that much faster? I race a 250bhp caterham and a friend has a honda powered Juno (of the type referred to above). Very different experiences and both great fun, but Juno only about 2s quicker at a twisty circuit like Brands Indy. The running costs of the slicks/wings racer are higher too with more support needed. Both awesome fun for the petrol headed, but different propositions.

Edited to add: keep both????

Edited by jimmyslr on Friday 3rd September 10:33

[edb49]

jimmyslr said:

An R500 on slicks with a sequential is a fast motor. Will a Radical be that much faster? I race a 250bhp caterham and a friend has a honda powered Juno (of the type referred to above). Very different experiences and both great fun, but Juno only about 2s quicker at a twisty circuit like Brands Indy. The running costs of the slicks/wings racer are higher too with more support needed. Both awesome fun for the petrol headed, but different propositions.

Edited to add: keep both????

I did think about keeping both, but to be honest there would be little point. I hardly ever get the Caterham on the road now, it's almost all track days. If I had both, I'd have to choose which one to take to track days, and I'm guessing it would be the same one every time.

You are right though, I doubt anything would be quicker than an R500 on slicks at somewhere like Silverstone Stowe circuit.

[MikeE]

Part of the reason my mate sold his R500 is £45k is a lot of money to have tied up in a track car for only 5-6 trackdays a year. He was also somewhat upset that my home grown Duratec was considerably quicker than his and cheaper too. Not trying to criticise the R500D just pointing out there are cheaper and quicker alternatives.

Agree about the Juno on a twisty circuit but I imagine it would be in it's element at somewhere like Spa?

I'm at Donington with BaT on 11th and my mate with the Junos there too so I'll get to see first hand how much quicker it is.

[MikeE]

Jimmy is your mates Juno the blue 2007 championship winning car? If so I had Peter Brooker trying to sell it to me the other day, ironically he'd actually called about buying my Caterham

[fergus]

edb49 said:

You are right though, I doubt anything would be quicker than an R500 on slicks at somewhere like Silverstone Stowe circuit.

there are plenty of quicker cars out there, although they are not

1) as cheap to maintain
2) cheap to buy
3) as benign to drive
4) as easy to catch when they let go

Also, driving a car on its limit is very different to just driving it quickly. Would you consider getting coaching prior to sale? It may reignite your interest in the car?

[jimmyslr]

MikeE said:

Jimmy is your mates Juno the blue 2007 championship winning car? If so I had Peter Brooker trying to sell it to me the other day, ironically he'd actually called about buying my Caterham

Most likely it is. Is certainly blue and Peter Booker, who sold it to us, is keeping an eye out for a buyer. We were going to race in Speed Series and in fact did race at Brands GP. To be on the pace in Speed though we needed to be pro drivers, an enormous team and v large wallet for all the testing. We have done a couple of track days post that race and are pondering its future. It got fully prepped and had a lot of bits and bobs done to it to get it ready for this season. It's a blast around fast corners and takes a real leap of faith vs the Caterham - neither of us had driven an aero car before. If I can make some space in my garage it will be living with me shortly...

[MikeE]

Jimmy thanks for the info, if the Junos possibly for sale I'd be interested in taking a look. Where abouts are you based?

[jleroux]

fergus said:

there are plenty of quicker cars out there, although they are not...

as quick or as cheap to fix if/when things go wrong.

in my opinion - for track day use, anything quicker than a caterham on slicks is a waste of time unless you're renting the circuit exclusively. I can't imagine even on a quiet day that a well driven Juno will ever get a clear lap of the track.

the kind of frustration you get from an R300 not quite being able to keep up with that R500 or Juno on the straights is nothing like as great as the frustration of having a Juno or Radical and not being able to use the aero because you're held up mid-corner at half the corners on any given lap.

somewhat controversially perhaps, I don't actually think there's any place for aero cars on track days at all.

Jonny
BaT

[Murray993]

how much do you want to sell it for is the question,