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The Caterham 7 (or Caterham Seven) is a super-lightweight sports car produced by Caterham Cars in the United Kingdom. It is based on the Lotus Seven, a lightweight sports car sold in kit and factory-built form by Lotus Cars, from 1957 to 1972.
After Lotus ended production of the Lotus Seven, Caterham bought the rights to the design, and today make both kits and fully assembled cars. The modern Caterham Seven is based on the Series 3 Lotus Seven, though developed to the point that no part is the same as on the original Lotus.
Various other manufacturers offer a sports car in a similar basic configuration, but Caterham owns various legal rights to the Lotus Seven design and name. The company has taken legal action in the past in order to protect those rights, although in South Africa, it lost its case against Birkin Cars on the basis that it never obtained the claimed rights from Lotus.
In 1973, Lotus decided to shed its kit car image and concentrate on limited series motor racing cars and up-market sports cars. As part of this plan, it sold the rights to the Seven to its only remaining agents, Caterham Cars in England and Steel Brothers Limited in New Zealand. At the time the current production car was the Series 4, but when Caterham ran out of the Lotus Series 4 kits in 1974 they introduced its own version of the Series 3, as the Caterham Seven. The modern-day Road sports and Superlights (in "narrow-bodied chassis" form) are the direct descendants of this car and therefore of the original Lotus 7.
The Caterham 7 range was based exclusively on this Series 3 chassis until 2000, when the SV (Series V, or Special Vehicle) chassis was released, aimed at accommodating the increasing number of prospective buyers who could not fit comfortably in the Series 3 cockpit. The SV chassis offers an extra of width across the cockpit, at a cost of of extra weight, and both chassis sizes are available today in earlier Superlight and current 360, 420, 620 and Super Seven 2000 configurations, though only the S3 chassis is offered on the 170 and Super Seven 600.
The SV chassis subsequently provided the basic dimensions for the Caterham CSR. The suspension was completely redesigned, bringing the front suspension inboard, using pushrods, and replacing the De-Dion rear axle with a lighter, fully independent, double-wishbone layout with new coil/damper units. Additional chassis modifications resulted in a 25% increase in torsional stiffness. The CSR was released in October 2004, with a Cosworth Duratec engine and was available from the factory in either or form.
Three years later Caterham took the same concept to a new level and created the iconic Superlight R500, still based on the Rover 1.8-litre K-series but now tuned (by Minister Racing Engines) to around at 8,600 rpm in a car weighing just . The R500 was initially available in kit-form but quickly became a factory-build only item. Quoted performance figures still make impressive reading; 0–100 mph in 8.2 seconds (although EVO magazine quotes 8.8 secondsEVO Magazine, Issue 100, January 2007. Published by Dennis Publishing Limited). Perhaps unsurprisingly, such a stressed engine required frequent "refreshing" in order to keep it on the road and a series of engine revisions were undertaken throughout the R500's life in order to increase reliability. This culminated in 2004 with perhaps the most extreme production Caterham of all; the R500 EVO was bored out by Minister to 1,998 cc and delivered . At £42,000, the R500 EVO sold poorly; it is believed that just three were sold. It did, however, succeed in setting a series of performance car benchmarks several of which last to this day; the 0–100 mph-0 record was set at 10.73 seconds (in second place was a Ferrari Enzo costing ten times as much) and, until the end of 2006 it remained the fastest production car timed by EVO magazine around the Bedford Autodrome West Circuit, ahead of a Porsche Carrera GT. Only the Radical SR3 1300 has subsequently posted a faster time than the R500 EVO.
In 2013 the 620R had installed a Ford Duratec direct injection supercharged straight-four engine rated at at 7700 rpm and at 7350 rpm of torque.
The 160 was replaced in 2021 by the 170, available in both R (track) and S (road) specifications. The 170 uses a newer Suzuki 660 cc three cylinder turbo R06A engine, producing , and features narrower front and rear bodywork resulting in the smallest Seven Caterham have produced, and the lightest of the current range, weighing in at in R specification. Again, this variant was only available in the S3 body. In 2022 a further variant, the Super Seven 600, was added. This features the same engine and chassis, but with more traditional clamshell front wings and a variety of other heritage styling changes.
There has also been at least one installation of the RST-V8, created by Moto Power; a 2-litre, 40 valve V8 made from a pair of motorcycle engines joined at the crank. An early, pre-production review of the car/engine combination exists on the EVO website. In Feb 2008, the "Caterham 7 Levante" was announced, featuring a supercharged version the RST-V8, offering over , installed in a modified Caterham chassis, with bespoke bodywork. Made by RS Performance (described in the press release as "Caterham's new performance arm"), the Levante is intended to be a limited run of 8 cars at a cost of £115,000 each.
After dominating open class races for decades, Caterham Super 7 Racing, a one-make championship for Caterhams, began in 1986. Caterham 7 races have since expanded to include club and competitive races in the United Kingdom, continental Europe, Canada, the United States and Asia. In 1995 the Caterham Academy, a novices-only format, was introduced in the UK. For £17,995 (2009 price), entrants get a modified Roadsport kit (although a factory-built option is available for extra cost) with a sealed engine and 5-speed gearbox. Having completed the ARDS license qualification, the season then consists of four sprints followed by four circuit races. The Academy is designed as the first step in a well-established chain of Caterham race formats, such as the Caterham Racing which consists of Road sports B then Road sports A, R300, Superlight and Eurocup, or the Caterham Graduates Racing Club.
The car was banned from production car racing in the UK in 1976 for being too successful. This prompted Caterham Cars' boss Graham Nearn to produce T-shirts which read "Caterham Seven, the car that's Too Fast to Race ...". More significantly, Nearn also reached out to his local MP, Sir Geoffrey Howe, arguing that it was unreasonable to ban a British product from a British championship. The RAC lifted the ban in 1980, but initially only allowed Caterhams to be raced under rather severe restrictions, requiring a full windshield be fitted and limiting the engine to the Crossflow unit. These restrictions were later gradually lifted. In 2002 an R400 won its class (and came 11th overall out of 200 starters) at the Nürburgring 24-hour race by 10 laps, ahead of the competition that included Porsche and BMW racecars, leading, once again, to a ban on entry in subsequent years.
Until mid-2013 the factory had offered options around the Rover K-series engine, including the entry-level "Classic" with a 1.4-litre, capable of 0–60 in 6.5 seconds and a top speed of . But with the cessation of the engine production and new EU emissions regulations, the end of the engine's production also removed the "Classic" from the company's model line-up. As of 2017, the company maintains two separate ranges for mainland Europe (Euro 6 compliant) and the United Kingdom, reflecting the different legislative systems.
As of 2015, the range was simplified and is now simply a number, reflecting the horsepower per tonne, with ‘S’ or ‘R’ packages for either street or track use. Most versions (not the 170) are available on the standard S3 or on the wider SV chassis. The European models end with the number "5" while the UK models end in a "0". The range consists of the Seven 165, 275, 355, and 485. The 170 model is powered by a 660cc Suzuki engine, while the more powerful variants have 2.0 Ford engines. The UK range for 2022 is 170, 360, 420, and 620.
The car's gearbox and live rear axle is also supplied by Suzuki, with the rear axle coming from the Suzuki Every kei van; this is the first Caterham with a live rear axle since the supply of Morris Marina rears dried up and the Seven Beaulieu ended production in 2003. The car received a large amount of publicity for a low-powered entry-level model, with an appearance on Top Gear,Series 21, episode 4 and Suzuki displaying it at the 2014 Frankfurt Motor Show. Production had to be adjusted upwards by 50 percent, with a third of the first year's production of 150 cars shipped to Japan.
At the beginning of December 2008, Top Gear made the R500 its '2008 Car of the Year'.
In 2006, Caterham introduced the CSR Superlight. Based on the CSR260, this model adds a 'Superlight' lightweight specification to the CSR, further extending the CSR260's already epic performance envelope. The 2.3-litre Cosworth-powered Caterham CSR260 Superlight brings all the performance credentials associated with its stablemate; performance is quoted as a 0–60 mph time of 3.1 seconds and a top speed of . The Superlight swaps the windscreen, carpet, heater, and weather gear on the standard car for a limited-slip differential and a quicker steering rack. There is a 25-kilo weight reduction over the standard CSR260, this model variant also adds distinctive Superlight styling to the exterior, including a wind deflector, a carbon-fibre dashboard and wings, a black powder-coated cockpit, and a quick-release MOMO steering wheel. Of particular note are 'Dynamic Suspensions' Damper units developed by a specialist Multimatic for the car. The damper units lend the already capable CSR a further edge in terms of handling and cornering performance. It features the same 2.3-litre (260 bhp) engine as the CSR260, but weighs only and has a power-to-weight ratio of -per-tonne.
Caterham has a number of models, such as the Roadsport, Supersport and Superlight, that are occasionally re-introduced with chassis upgrades or changes in the engine options.>
360
The 360 is now the second-level offering from Caterham. It is available in both S3 and SV chassis sizes and is sold in ‘kit’ form as standard. The 360 is available in both ‘S’ and ‘R’ trims for street and track respectively.
The 360 has 180hp, produced from a 2.0 Ford Duratec engine. 0-60mph time is 4.8s going on to a top speed of 130mph.
The Caterham 360 starts at £31,990 for the ‘S’ trim and an additional £1,000 for ‘R’ trim.
Superlight
The Superlight is available in both S3 and SV chassis sizes. The list of standard equipment reflects the Superlight's bias to track work: Wide-track front suspension, 6-speed sequential manual gearbox, carbon-fibre dashboard and front wings, GRP aeroscreen, and seats, racing harness, removable steering wheel. Quoted weight for the Superlight is about less than the Roadsport, due in part to the lack of a spare wheel and carrier. All Superlight cars use the 2-litre Ford Duratec engine in differing states of tune; the R400 with and R500 with . Caterham used to manufacture an R300 using the same engine at 175 bhp, but this car has effectively now become the Supersport R. With the launch of the R500 (April 2008), Caterham made available the options of a sequential gearbox and launch control. Quoted performance for the R500 is 0–60 in 2.88 seconds and a top speed of . In October 2012 a supercharged model 'R600' for a race-series above the R300-class was released, including slick tyres and a sequential gearbox. archive.org: caterham.co.uk: Caterham launches premier Superlight R600 series, 4 October 2012 The weight of the R600 was 1139 lbs or 517 kg.
Super 7
The Caterham Super 7 is the retro-inspired 1,600cc version of the Caterham 7. The Super 7 is powered by a 1.6 litre Ford Sigma petrol engine which makes use of twin throttle bodies to aid airflow. Caterham has designed the Super Seven to have long, flared wheel arches, dials provided by Smiths, and a wire mesh grille. Optional packages include a wooden Mota-Lita steering wheel to complete the look.
EV
Two Seven EV concepts were shown at Goodwood Festival of Speed in July 2023. These had electric engines from Swindon Powertrain E-axle and weighed 70 kg more due to the 40 kWh battery. Electric Caterham EV Seven, press release from Goodwood on 24 May 2023.
Model history
50th Anniversary editions
Caterham celebrated the 50th year of Seven productions with a couple of special edition "50th Anniversary" paint options. In addition, as part of the 50th-anniversary celebrations in early June 2007, they showcased the X330 concept car. Based on the CSR, the X330 employs a supercharged version of the Duratec engine to produce . The use of lighter-gauge steel and of carbon-fibre instead of GRP further improves the power-to-weight ratio. Caterham says that they have no plans to put this car into production.
CSR
The CSR represents the top of the range and in some respects can be considered a separate model. It has its own chassis, suspension, and interior and is available with 2.3-litre (200 bhp or 260 bhp) Ford Cosworth Duratec engine. Quoted performance for the CSR260 is 0–60 in 3.1 seconds and a top speed of . There is no home-build option; the factory supplies the finished car.
Variants
+Since Caterham took over production from Lotus Carryover from Lotus production; ultimately discontinued due to manufacturing logistics issues CS3 3557 at the request of the purchaser, a New Zealand gentleman racer, was supplied with a 1962 cc twin cam Alfa Romeo Engine This unit was the only version allowed to partake in British production car racing in the 1980s Silver paint (excl. one BRG car) with coloured striping on bonnet and front wings Hi-spec features such as re-trimmed two-tone interior and pepperpot alloy wheels Purchase required taking performance driving course. Car was fitted with limited slip differential. For Swiss export only Trim package to commemorate The Prisoner television series Purchase included a performance driving course run by John Lyon of HPC Limited (mandatory for drivers under 25 before taking delivery). Genuine HPC cars are not determined by the presence of the letter H in the 7th VIN position. Often confused with genuine HPC due to by the presence of the letter H in the 7th VIN position. Some of these cars are built on the later Post 1996 "handbrake on tunnel" chassis. Caterham mismarketed some of these cars in order to shift an excess stock of HPC's unique parts. Trim and equipment package to commemorate production of the Seven. Lotus green/yellow paint. Genuine 35th Anniversary cars will have a dashboard plaque. Intended as a return to the basics of the Seven, with a live axle and four-speed gearbox Even more minimal than the GTS, the Classic was intended as low-priced entry-level model. Built with special trim, weight-reducing components, and the Caterham six-speed gearbox Very minimal and lightweight and with engine suggested to be similar to that used in British Touring Car Championship. The engine is in fact just forged pistons and an uprated cylinder head with Weber Alpha Injection. Several JPEs were built as special customer orders using steel internals and rated at 280bhp, those these are very rare. In popular culture, this model plays a role as Sōichi Sugano's car in the anime series éX-Driver by Kōsuke Fujishima. For Swiss market Introduced chassis modifications that improved rigidity and ride quality Special trim including two-tone red-and-silver paint scheme Constructed with lightweight carbon fiber components Equipped with numerous racing-inspired features Vauxhall 1.6L 8v Inexpensive entry-level model with live rear axle Employed engine with Rover's Variable Valve Control Aluminum bodywork Intended for motorsport (with roll-over protection and fire suppression features) Built for the United States market Painted red with a gold band around the nose, this special edition was built to commemorate Autosport magazine's 50th year of publication First of the models with a wider and longer chassis for more interior space For Canadian market. Built with sequential gearbox. Also available with Hayabusa 'R' Type engine, or with Rotrex supercharging Sequential gearbox, world record : fastest car going backwards (101 mph), rear live-axle, handrake lever under dashboard Entry-level model with live rear axle, rear drum brakes, and paint scheme to recall the Lotus 7 Intended as a less hard-core alternative to the Superlight R500 Rebranded Superlight R with engine and other modifications Superlight R500 with engine developed further by Minister Racing Engines and PTP (Powertrain Products) Built to commemorate the 30th year of the Caterham 7. All finished in Boston Green paint and fitted with 1.6L K-Series engine. Intended for track use, and, like the SV30, was built to commemorate the 30th anniversary of the Caterham 7 Not an official Caterham offering; powered by the small-displacement V8 designed by Russell Savory and derived from Yamaha motorbike engines Used a developed SV chassis, with increased rigidity and pushrod front suspension Similar specification as the CSR200, but with further engine development to produce 260 hp Lightened, minimalist version of the CSR260 A relaunch of the Superlight R400 with Duratec (rather than K-Series) power Marked the major transition from the Rover K-Series engine to the Ford Sigma/Duratec line High-fuel-economy prototype developed by Axon Automotive First of the 'Superlight' cars to be fitted with Ford Sigma engines One-off built to celebrate Caterham's 50th anniversary. Fitted with Rotrex C30-94 supercharger. Cosmetic changes only, including two-tone exterior colour schemes and a numbered plaque on the dashboard Available in either 400 hp normally-aspirated or 550 hp supercharged form Replica of the "Caterham Driving Experience" track-day cars Lower cost export model for Europe and Japan Trimmed and painted in Union Jack colours, in partnership with Lambretta Clothing and Oxted Trimming Cosmetic package for the Roadsport, inspired by the Flag of Monaco Lotus green-and-yellow colour scheme
Caterham 7 literature
The Caterham 7 has spawned many books, test reports, and articles, many of which are still in print.
External links
Clubs
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