caterfield query?
Discussion
Right, I've got a dull as dishwater company car now so am seriously considering floggind the corrado in the new year and putting the money in to a caterfield type car.
Now from my brief research so far I have concluded that Caterhams are considerably dearer than the equivelant westfields or tigers. Is thi extra expenditure worth it?
Can you recomend what I should be looking for and how much I should be looking at paying. I'm looking at no more than £8k and ideally closer to £6k.
All advice appreciated.
Thanks,
Phill
Now from my brief research so far I have concluded that Caterhams are considerably dearer than the equivelant westfields or tigers. Is thi extra expenditure worth it?
Can you recomend what I should be looking for and how much I should be looking at paying. I'm looking at no more than £8k and ideally closer to £6k.
All advice appreciated.
Thanks,
Phill
www.pistonheads.co.uk/sales/detail.asp?i=31456&s=130
Im selling my tiger, I was in a simular position to you and it done the trick. Great fun, cheap to insure. Ive got to sell it cos im buying a house with the mrs, the only regret is that i wish i had done more miles in it.
Im selling my tiger, I was in a simular position to you and it done the trick. Great fun, cheap to insure. Ive got to sell it cos im buying a house with the mrs, the only regret is that i wish i had done more miles in it.
How did I know you'd answer with a link to your car.
Its possibly the sort of thing I'm looking for but I've got to sell the C first.
Also I'm after info regarding how cars like your compare to caterhams.
Thanks anyway, if you've still got it when I sell the C I may well be in touch.
Phill
Its possibly the sort of thing I'm looking for but I've got to sell the C first.
Also I'm after info regarding how cars like your compare to caterhams.
Thanks anyway, if you've still got it when I sell the C I may well be in touch.
Phill
I don't have a car to sell and don't own a Seven (my son is building one, but we'll come to that later.)
My own view, born of 25 years of kitcar building, owning and observing, is that you either buy a Caterham OR virtually all the others are 'the alternative'. Westfield seem to be viewed as next in the pecking order, but I think that's only by hype and the fact that most Westfield kits are bought as a bolt together 'Meccano' kit. In the 'raw', that is as a chassis and components, I think there are many who do it better. My mate Ian went to buy a Westfield at a show and came away having ordered a Caterham... he felt the price saving wasn't worth it.
I have another friend who bought a factory finished Caterham 1400 Roadsport, 6 speed and all that......wiring terminals came off, a hose rubbed through.....
Tigers are nice, but not all of them. With such a wide range I s'pose that's inevitable, but a mate is building a Cat E1 and its a bit grim. The Avon I looked at buying wasn't much better and that was a demonstrator. The Six is a lovely car....
MK and Luego make excellent examples of the 'Locost' chassis and I see no reason to buy a Westfield before a properly built one of those. My son is actually building a Luego Velocity. The choice here, however, was down to price exclusively. He's 16.
So like I said, buy a Caterham if you want a REAL Seven, otherwise look at examples of ALL the others. No doubt Dax people will post now (another great kit) and some Stuart Taylor people (ditto) and so on and so on.....
My own view, born of 25 years of kitcar building, owning and observing, is that you either buy a Caterham OR virtually all the others are 'the alternative'. Westfield seem to be viewed as next in the pecking order, but I think that's only by hype and the fact that most Westfield kits are bought as a bolt together 'Meccano' kit. In the 'raw', that is as a chassis and components, I think there are many who do it better. My mate Ian went to buy a Westfield at a show and came away having ordered a Caterham... he felt the price saving wasn't worth it.
I have another friend who bought a factory finished Caterham 1400 Roadsport, 6 speed and all that......wiring terminals came off, a hose rubbed through.....
Tigers are nice, but not all of them. With such a wide range I s'pose that's inevitable, but a mate is building a Cat E1 and its a bit grim. The Avon I looked at buying wasn't much better and that was a demonstrator. The Six is a lovely car....
MK and Luego make excellent examples of the 'Locost' chassis and I see no reason to buy a Westfield before a properly built one of those. My son is actually building a Luego Velocity. The choice here, however, was down to price exclusively. He's 16.
So like I said, buy a Caterham if you want a REAL Seven, otherwise look at examples of ALL the others. No doubt Dax people will post now (another great kit) and some Stuart Taylor people (ditto) and so on and so on.....
Have you looked a the Dax Rush?
Funnily enough I am building one.
but it is not for sale.
When I looked at the market, I thought that Caterham and Westfield were overpriced and trading on the names.
Tiger seemed very good but the car was a bit small for me.
I am not a fan of the Luego's looks but that is a personal thing.
I then decided I wanted a V8 which only really left the Dax Rush.
It is a very nice motor car.
Funnily enough I am building one.
but it is not for sale. When I looked at the market, I thought that Caterham and Westfield were overpriced and trading on the names.
Tiger seemed very good but the car was a bit small for me.
I am not a fan of the Luego's looks but that is a personal thing.
I then decided I wanted a V8 which only really left the Dax Rush.
It is a very nice motor car.
Liszt said:
I thought that Caterham and Westfield were overpriced and trading on the names.
Het Liszt, I thought much the same about the Caterham, but after a good look over those chassis' they display half-built at shows and a close look at what you get for the money they aren't half as bad as all that.
Westfield, however, have no excuse.
Tom's Luego has 'locost' bodywork which is significantly lower than the Velocity body since it's only got a Kent in it. Much nicer looking.
I have to admit the Rush is an almost completely different kettle of high performance fish.
Factory built cars will always be more expensive than those built "at home", whether they are new or used. That's the price you pay for professionals to build it for you. You can save money (I reckon I halved the cost of a factory Westfield by DIYing).
The reasons I went for a Westfield are:
They've been established for 20 years or so, so, they should know what they're doing.
They have very comprehensive build manuals.
And good in-build, after-build and SVA technical backup.
And they do bolt together "Meccano" style, so the build is relatively quick and painless.
My car has has been on the road for 4 years, I use it as my daily driver as well as an occasional autotester and have had no problems with it in all this time. Definately have a look at a few different seven manufacturers, they do all differ and some will suit better than others, and try before you buy. Stoneleigh in May is a great place to whet your appetite and get some good advice.
Good luck.
Warren
The reasons I went for a Westfield are:
They've been established for 20 years or so, so, they should know what they're doing.
They have very comprehensive build manuals.
And good in-build, after-build and SVA technical backup.
And they do bolt together "Meccano" style, so the build is relatively quick and painless.
My car has has been on the road for 4 years, I use it as my daily driver as well as an occasional autotester and have had no problems with it in all this time. Definately have a look at a few different seven manufacturers, they do all differ and some will suit better than others, and try before you buy. Stoneleigh in May is a great place to whet your appetite and get some good advice.
Good luck.
Warren
I spent a lot of time looking and found Caterham to be poor value for money. Slightly better quality than most but not enough to warrant the price hike.
The premium charged for the “heritage” carried no weight with me.
I think that Caterham try and make you all have the same (so much for “I am not a number”) and if you vary the spec at all the second hand value plummets.
In the end I bought a Tiger R6 and I am very pleased with it.
The premium charged for the “heritage” carried no weight with me.
I think that Caterham try and make you all have the same (so much for “I am not a number”) and if you vary the spec at all the second hand value plummets.
In the end I bought a Tiger R6 and I am very pleased with it.
Thanks for the advice chaps. I should have pointed out, building my own is not an option.
Also If I did get one it'll have to live outside (is that a problem).
Please keep the advice coming, the general feeling I'm getting at the moment is that the Caterham isnt worh the premium.
Thanks,
Phill
Also If I did get one it'll have to live outside (is that a problem).
Please keep the advice coming, the general feeling I'm getting at the moment is that the Caterham isnt worh the premium.
Thanks,
Phill
If you're feeling brave then this could be an option:
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=29750&item=4513702479&rd=1
It will need a new chassis and a bit of body work but once completed you'll have (IMHO) the best Tiger they do with it's lightweight tubular chassis
I've got a Cat which I'm happy with as it suited my budget at the time. However, I think the Avon's a much better car with double wishbones all round and a nicer look to it. Don't look at Tiger's demonstrators as they're not built that well on the whole. A customer built car will be better as they will have taken the time to ensure bodywork fit etc are better.
Whatever you go for, you'll be getting a farily unique and raw driving experiance like nothing you've ever driven before
Edit to add: That eBay car is an R6 not a B6 (the only difference is the B6 take a bike engine and R6 a car one, chassis are the same)
>> Edited by KITT on Wednesday 22 December 09:11
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=29750&item=4513702479&rd=1
It will need a new chassis and a bit of body work but once completed you'll have (IMHO) the best Tiger they do with it's lightweight tubular chassis
I've got a Cat which I'm happy with as it suited my budget at the time. However, I think the Avon's a much better car with double wishbones all round and a nicer look to it. Don't look at Tiger's demonstrators as they're not built that well on the whole. A customer built car will be better as they will have taken the time to ensure bodywork fit etc are better.
Whatever you go for, you'll be getting a farily unique and raw driving experiance like nothing you've ever driven before
Edit to add: That eBay car is an R6 not a B6 (the only difference is the B6 take a bike engine and R6 a car one, chassis are the same)
>> Edited by KITT on Wednesday 22 December 09:11
What you get with Caterham and probably Westfield is quality of design. Caterhams' have been honed over many years and when you bolt them together they work - out of the box - very little fettling required. They handle extremely well and are very light weight (average around 550kg) with the attendant handling benefits that brings.
With most build it yourself cars, you are going to have to do a lot of fettling and adjustment to get it set up right and some of them have some extremely agricultural chassis - weight could be 650kg or more.
Of course a good engineer could make a Sylva or MK handle extrememly well but it would take skill and time. (I know Sylvas are highly rated on the race track so they must be of a good basic design.)
Caterham reckon 70 hours to build a kit, Westfield about twice that and the others - well could be 4 or 5 times longer depending on how much stuff you buy from the manufacturer and how much you have to source yourself. It is easy to build a Caterham to a high standard but the standard of cars built from other kits is hugely variable - there are some excellent ones but there are also some really shoddy bodge jobs - just go to Stoneleigh and you will see.
So it's horses for courses and if buying second hand then you are more likley to get a good one if you go for a Caterham or Westfield. If you know what to look for then you could get a bargain from another manufacturer.
With most build it yourself cars, you are going to have to do a lot of fettling and adjustment to get it set up right and some of them have some extremely agricultural chassis - weight could be 650kg or more.
Of course a good engineer could make a Sylva or MK handle extrememly well but it would take skill and time. (I know Sylvas are highly rated on the race track so they must be of a good basic design.)
Caterham reckon 70 hours to build a kit, Westfield about twice that and the others - well could be 4 or 5 times longer depending on how much stuff you buy from the manufacturer and how much you have to source yourself. It is easy to build a Caterham to a high standard but the standard of cars built from other kits is hugely variable - there are some excellent ones but there are also some really shoddy bodge jobs - just go to Stoneleigh and you will see.
So it's horses for courses and if buying second hand then you are more likley to get a good one if you go for a Caterham or Westfield. If you know what to look for then you could get a bargain from another manufacturer.
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