New to Caterham.. a few questions

[Phooey]

Hi, well i never thought i would be posting in here

I never 'got' the Caterham thing... until i drove them at the Palmersport full day. HUGE fun, and now I'm quite tempted.

1/ Reliability. Being useless at all things mechanics.. would i be getting myself into trouble with one of these? Is there any model/engine to avoid? How reliable are they??

2/ Windscreen. I'd rather not have one.. so what do you guys wear on the road - A helmet or bullet-proof goggles!?

3/ Do they still make the R300?

4/ I live in Nottingham (South - NG13) so i think my nearest service centre is Leicester?

5/ I probably shouldn't mention the 'depreciation' word, but is there a model like the GT3 of Porsche's - where they depreciate very little, are hugely desirable, and sell/trade/P/X very easily?

6/ Probably more questions to follow...

Cheers guys.

[BryanC]

Can't answer the questions you put, but prompted by Q.5 I recently had to explain to a lady that 'no, its not a kit car, and no its not a weekend fun car but its a way of life' so depreciation doesn't really figure in the man maths of ownership.

Some people will never understand this especially when she complained there was not enough space for her shoes and handbags (plural)on a slinky weekend. Didn't fancy her anyhow !.
By the way, this one is a 2011 Orange Classic 1.4 K series in NG12 so presumably will be looking out for another owner Blatting up the A52 when I get back from Le Mans.

So far been totally reliable in 12K miles with only a very minor water leak off the water rail flange cos the nut needed nipping up. However fingers crossed when I cross the Channel next Tuesday, backed up by a small bag of spanners, cable ties, a cycle brake inner and a roll of gaffa tape as insurance.

Stay Cool

[tight fart]

Just came back from Italy in mine, with a very fancy lady (the wife) and I'll probably take her to the sth of France as well in August.
Don't worry about reliability, but may do when it gets a bit older (the car that is) only had it for 26 years so see how I feel when the novelty wears off.

[tomwoodis]

1) the rover k series cars get a bad rep for reliability but in truth if you look after them they are fine. Ford Sigma (1.6) and ford Duratec (2.0) give less trouble and are the current engines fitted to cars at both ends of the spectrum. The lowest powered car '160' uses a Suzuki poweplant. I'd happily have any of the modern range, all will be reliable

2) most people without a windscreen go for an 'aeroscreen'. Eyewear when driving with one is a must. Peoples preferences range from a pair of shatter proof sunglasses through to googles at the other end of the spectrum. Naturally a helmet when on the track is the tool of choice.

3) r300 became supersport R which has very recently become the '360'. 360 equating to its rough power to weight ratio if you assume the car to be 500kg. There has always been a model in the line-up with roughly 175-180hp. This started with the R300 and has been called several things since as above

4) they all run standard engines that run in a bunch of 'run of the mill' vehicles. There are loads of places to get them serviced so don't worry about that

5) All of them hold their value well, it's one of the beauties of Caterham ownership. If you were after a current model, the sweet spot (most sold) of the range appears to be the '270' or the '360' these being formerly known as the Supersport (sigma 1.6 with 140hp) and SuperSport R (180hp 2.0 Duratec). To be fair though the R400 and R500 above them in the range are equally well loved and will hold value well too.

Essentially buy what works for you as you can bet that if you were interested in it someone else will be too come resale time.

Tom
.

Edited by tomwoodis on Tuesday 2nd June 22:08

Edited by tomwoodis on Tuesday 2nd June 22:09

[MikeO996]

Caterham Midlands is very local to you. When I bought mine, they reckoned on average £2k depreciation driving it out of the showroom, then £500 per year. Obviously you could do better buying privately/smartly.

[PAULJA]

For servicing in the Midlands theres also the independents

Example - http://www.njpotter.co.uk/caterham.htm

[Phooey]

tomwoodis said:

1) the rover k series cars get a bad rep for reliability but in truth if you look after them they are fine. Ford Sigma (1.6) and ford Duratec (2.0) give less trouble and are the current engines fitted to cars at both ends of the spectrum. The lowest powered car '160' uses a Suzuki poweplant. I'd happily have any of the modern range, all will be reliable

2) most people without a windscreen go for an 'aeroscreen'. Eyewear when driving with one is a must. Peoples preferences range from a pair of shatter proof sunglasses through to googles at the other end of the spectrum. Naturally a helmet when on the track is the tool of choice.

3) r300 became supersport R which has very recently become the '360'. 360 equating to its rough power to weight ratio if you assume the car to be 500kg. There has always been a model in the line-up with roughly 175-180hp. This started with the R300 and has been called several things since as above

4) they all run standard engines that run in a bunch of 'run of the mill' vehicles. There are loads of places to get them serviced so don't worry about that

5) All of them hold their value well, it's one of the beauties of Caterham ownership. If you were after a current model, the sweet spot (most sold) of the range appears to be the '270' or the '360' these being formerly known as the Supersport (sigma 1.6 with 140hp) and SuperSport R (180hp 2.0 Duratec). To be fair though the R400 and R500 above them in the range are equally well loved and will hold value well too.

Essentially buy what works for you as you can bet that if you were interested in it someone else will be too come resale time.

Tom
.

Thanks for the reply Tom

I think the 2.0 Duratec is what i would go for - good to know they are solid

The Aeroscreen looks smart. Agree - goggles a must!

I like the sound of the 360 but read a good article last night saying not to underestimate the fun of the lesser powered 270 (1.6 Sigma). Mmmmmm

[Phooey]

MikeO996 said:

Caterham Midlands is very local to you. When I bought mine, they reckoned on average £2k depreciation driving it out of the showroom, then £500 per year. Obviously you could do better buying privately/smartly.

Wow, that's brilliant!

[Phooey]

Thanks for all the replies guys!

A bit of reading and a couple of visits to dealers needed

[framerateuk]

If you buy smartly then depreciation isn't a problem at all.

I bought mine used 3 years ago and similar cars are now advertised around £3k higher.

Even new cars hold their values incredibly well, more so now given the waiting time to get a new car.

With regards to servicing, I didn't really do much prior to getting mine (changing brake pads was probably my lot), but I've become a lot more confident since everything is so accessible compared to a normal car. That said, I still get mine serviced by a local Caterham/Lotus specialist every year with it's MOT just to make sure I don't miss anything.

[spanky3]

tomwoodis said:

1) the rover k series cars get a bad rep for reliability but in truth if you look after them they are fine.

I believe the K series engine has been very reliable in the caterham over the 15-odd years they were available. True rover had a nightmare with HGF's in quite a few cars but for various reasons the caterhams haven't suffered in the same way. As I understand it the only 'fragile' K series is in the R500 but that's effectively a race engine and is bound to need a bit of TLC.

Lots of plus points to the K as well... the character suits the car, very light, easy and cheap maintenance plus there are thousands to choose from.

[fergus]

Also, compared to your old 997.2 GT3, they cost peanuts to track, due mainly to their light weight. Tyres, brake pads/discs, etc are all very cheap to start with, and will typically last an age. Also if you do have an 'off' at some point, a new corner, or "long front" (of the chassis) will cost around £2-3k tops to put right.

[BertBert]

spanky3 said:

I believe the K series engine has been very reliable in the caterham over the 15-odd years they were available. True rover had a nightmare with HGF's in quite a few cars but for various reasons the caterhams haven't suffered in the same way. As I understand it the only 'fragile' K series is in the R500 but that's effectively a race engine and is bound to need a bit of TLC.

Lots of plus points to the K as well... the character suits the car, very light, easy and cheap maintenance plus there are thousands to choose from.

Well I'll have to disagree. HGF is endemic in Caterhams. Essentially a brilliant, but fragile design made worse by the installation in the Caterham. The R500 is probably actually quite good in the HG dept and it'll probably be the lower spec k-series that have more issues. I have certainly had more HG failures than I've had k-series caterhams!

Bert

[Glug69]

spanky3 said:

Lots of plus points to the K as well... the character suits the car, very light, easy and cheap maintenance plus there are thousands to choose from.

Is the K lighter than the Sigma engines?

[fergus]

BertBert said:

spanky3 said:

I believe the K series engine has been very reliable in the caterham over the 15-odd years they were available. True rover had a nightmare with HGF's in quite a few cars but for various reasons the caterhams haven't suffered in the same way. As I understand it the only 'fragile' K series is in the R500 but that's effectively a race engine and is bound to need a bit of TLC.

Lots of plus points to the K as well... the character suits the car, very light, easy and cheap maintenance plus there are thousands to choose from.

Well I'll have to disagree. HGF is endemic in Caterhams. Essentially a brilliant, but fragile design made worse by the installation in the Caterham. The R500 is probably actually quite good in the HG dept and it'll probably be the lower spec k-series that have more issues. I have certainly had more HG failures than I've had k-series caterhams!

Bert

As a straw poll, how many HGF have you encountered/heard of after Dave Andrews has implemented his fixes on the engine (typically steel head locating dowels (to replace the stock plastic items), peened fire rings & correct setting of the liner heights to 4 thou proud of the block? Following this, there is no need to use a mega expensive HG.

What's wrong with the installation in the Caterham? Granted, the engine can suffer from thermal shock across the head/block due to the stock thermostat and its location. The oil system is per the std engine, and the pick up is under #4 cylinder, so shouldn't suffer under acceleration any more than any other non dry-sumped, or baffled wet sump engine.

Others?

[Phooey]

fergus said:

Also, compared to your old 997.2 GT3, they cost peanuts to track, due mainly to their light weight. Tyres, brake pads/discs, etc are all very cheap to start with, and will typically last an age. Also if you do have an 'off' at some point, a new corner, or "long front" (of the chassis) will cost around £2-3k tops to put right.

Cheers fergus. This is another big appeal of the Caterham - £/fun has is where it's at!


daft question number 6 - how 'waterproof' are they - any trouble with dashboard electrics if caught in downpour? I'd imagine they are perfectly fine but wondered if they require any maintenance to keep 'fine'?

[fergus]

Phooey said:

daft question number 6 - how 'waterproof' are they - any trouble with dashboard electrics if caught in downpour? I'd imagine they are perfectly fine but wondered if they require any maintenance to keep 'fine'?

generally fine, although they're not submarines! To an extent, it may be dependant upon who built it (factory vs kit build), but other than some nuances with electronic dash panels, there's not a lot going on under the dash board that isn't fairly accessible/obvious to see

[Phooey]

fergus said:

generally fine, although they're not submarines! To an extent, it may be dependant upon who built it (factory vs kit build), but other than some nuances with electronic dash panels, there's not a lot going on under the dash board that isn't fairly accessible/obvious to see

That's good to know, thanks. I won't need my AA card then... but I'd pack some WD40 and a hairdryer justin case

[BertBert]

Ah sorry Fergus, I thought we were taking about k caterhams in general. If you are talking about just DVA ones then you are right. Few of them have another hg failure!!

[Phooey]

I appreciate i could call Caterham directly for the answer to this - but roughly how much would an r360 or 420 be brand new on the road (built)? And what spec do i need?? Specification more towards track with the occasional road use (nice sunny day - might take it for a rip )