First Caterham Advice

[dirtbiker]

Hi All,

Just looking for a bit of advice - planning on buying my first Caterham and have stumbled on this 1992 Supersprint. I'm not totally sure how much to offer for it given that it needs a bit of TLC and is on a Q-Plate. Any thoughts welcome and also would like input on what to check for next time I go over to see it/make an offer? It's the standard 1700cc engine and has done around 30,000 miles. Does have lots of carbon parts (wings, nose, dash and sill covers) which are nice; a bit of rust here and there though - not so nice.



Thanks in advance.

[Eric Mc]

Has the head been sorted for running on unleaded? I presume it's fitted witrh a Crossflow.

[dirtbiker]

Good question; I'll be sure to ask the seller.

Yes, the Supersprint engine is a bored out version of the Ford Kent (crossflow)

[Eric Mc]

I own a 1600 Sprint. I bought it in 1996 and had the head adapted for u8nleaded in 2000. The Crossflow head as originally fitted will suffer wear around the ports if the head isn't changed.

I think it is pretty vital that this job be done if you are going to use the car on anything like a regular basis (a couple of thousand miles a year).

[dirtbiker]

Thanks for that - I'd slightly assumed that a car from 1992 would already be converted for unleaded fuel so hadn't given it much thought. Definitely want to avoid valve seat recession so will check next time I talk to the seller.

Any other thoughts much appreciated - it's a while since a bought a car that isn't boring!

[Eric Mc]

The head may have been changed already. Most Crossflow Sevens from the late 80s were using Crossflow blocks manufactured in South Africa.

The other major item from that era that might need looking at is the rear axle which is probably a Morris Marina/Ital one.

[dirtbiker]

Can anyone provide some guidelines for the value of this car? £7k or so has been mentioned by the seller but that was once it's fully cleaned up and polished - I assume it's worth a bit less than that in it's current state?

[Tango7]

When was the car last used on the road or is it still roadworthy (MOT/Taxed)? Is it a 5 speed box or 4 speed and does it have a live axle or De Dion rear diff (the DD unit is a centrally mounted diff unit with separate driveshafts whereas the live axle is a solid casing with the halfshafts (driveshafts) contained within it). Also what type of seats and interior does it have under the tonneau. All of these factors are fairly fundamental to working out a price.

If its a 5 speed DD car with leather adjustable seats and its fairly roadworthy i.e. current, the owners indication of £7k might not be too far away if it simply needs a good clean and wire brush to some areas and repaint with POR15. If its a 4 speed LA car with a bench seat and its been off the road for several years and its very untidy under the bonnet and in the cockpit, I would expect you could be around £4.5-5k

Caterham prices are firming up again with the better weather and they are so easy to recondition (assuming the alloy body panels are in decent uncorroded condition) that nothing really need put you off unless there is evidence of poor repair or crash damaged - and even then, if the price is right this isn't an issue.

HTH

T

[dirtbiker]

Right; the car has an MOT and was last used in February - I think the last time it was "properly" used was a track day last summer so it's been stood for a while. It's a live axle four speed with what I presume is a bench seat (no headrests and the seat squab is currently not in the car). I haven't had a chance to look under the bonnet yet so can't comment on the condition under there.

I'm starting to think that it would be better to spend a bit more and get a newer model with the De dion axle, five speed box, adjustable seats and not on a Q-plate - starting to get into the nice weather now though so prices will obviously be on the rise.

Thank you very much for your input.

[RacerMDR]

dirtbiker said:

Can anyone provide some guidelines for the value of this car? £7k or so has been mentioned by the seller but that was once it's fully cleaned up and polished - I assume it's worth a bit less than that in it's current state?

I think 7k is way too high. Last year I sold a 1600 K Series, 2005 ex Academy (and race car) for 7k.

It was in much better nick then the car you present here.........it has a few bits of ali damage from the odd race contact - the back basket was slightly bent (cosmetic as it's behind rear suspension mounts) - so wouldn't need doing, if you wanted it done it would be about 1k all in.

Loads of spares came with mine, and a spare set of wheels.

To be fair I priced it at mates rates, but it wouldn't have been worth more than 8k.

I'd be offering no more than 4 to 5 based on your description and the fact it's got a Xflow in it.

Edited by RacerMDR on Wednesday 13th April 09:29

[dirtbiker]

Hmm, glad I asked on here first then as I had previously thought it was a bit of a bargain (based on the prices of used Caterhams in the classifieds) - guess the spec is a bit poor even though it does have the Supersprint engine...

I don't have a problem with paying a bit more if it makes for a better car - does anyone have any experience of how well the four speed ratios are matched to the Supersprint engine?

[Eric Mc]

I would think £7,000 is "about right" - possibly a little high but not madly so,

There is a lot to be said for the old technology Crossflow. If the engine was one prepared by Caterham themselves or Redline Components, it should be fine. Some Crossflows have dubious histories however so you migt need to check that. You can check the history of this 7 by quoting the Chassis Number which should be on a plate near the pedal box. If you have that number, pm it to me and I might be able to trace the origins of the catr to some extent. Caterham themselves might be able to help on that score too as they keep a record of all chassis produced and in what way it was sold to the original customer i.e. fully built, chassis only, complete kit etc.

The Q plate means that some compnonets were recionditioned rather than brand new. My 1600 Seven is on Q plates but the only reconditioned parts are the Ital axle and the 4 speed gearbox. The engine was brand new in the car.

The Ital axle is not that bad and actually makes the back end a bit more lively - which some people actually like.

[dirtbiker]

Just been browsing the classifieds (like I do every day it would seem!) and stumbled across this one: http://www.pistonheads.com/sales/2723664.htm

Very similar spec (apart from the seperate seats and lack of carbon bits) although has done a few less miles and is a couple of years younger. Do people think the red one is fairly priced? If so then it would follow that the green one in the photo is probably about right for £6.5-7k?

I'm impressed by how nicely the aluminium polishes up but it must be quite a pain to keep it that shiny!

[Benny Saltstein]

I would say the red one in the link above looks a little pricey for a Q plate and private sale. There is a similar priced non-Q at Caterham Midlands with less miles which looks tidy with lots of bling.

http://www.caterham.co.uk/assets/html/preowned/pre...

[V7SLR]

At the price of the 2 mentioned you should be able to pick up a good 1400K Supersport - much more upgradeable and DeDion which as a road car is a far better chassis.