Rust!

[Rob Mullan]

2 hours ago, Gridgway said:

Well that's not the case.  I used to get earlier caterhams serviced at the factory when Len Unwin was in charge of that bit!!

Then they used to do servicing at the showroom by the station.

Then that all moved to Gatwick.

I probably didn’t word that comment well-enough. Caterham appear to be denying that Caterham Gatwick was ever their service department. I didn’t mean to say never in history did they have a service department.

[Gridgway]

apologies I mis-understood.  But still they have definitely serviced Caterhams in Caterham and then when they moved that operation to Gatwick.

[Gridgway]

7 minutes ago, Rob Mullan said:

What would you class as extensively?

Almost anything which is more than "put it away when the salt came and got it out again when the salt left in the Spring"!

Rightly or wrongly, they don't do well being used with any amount of salt down

[SLR No.77]

47 minutes ago, Rob Mullan said:

What would you class as extensively?

Driving it plenty through the winter, clearly not summer usage because it’s bloomin’ cold!  But if used with any salt down it’ll need a really good clean afterwards, if you want a car you can cover in salt and ignore you probably need to buy a Porsche!

[ScottR400D]

……. at all?😉

[TomB]

4 hours ago, ScottR400D said:

……. at all?😉

That's been my philosophy for years, especially since I rebuilt the 7.  They are just not designed with any sort of corrosion protection in mind.  

[Rob Mullan]

1 hour ago, TomB said:

That's been my philosophy for years, especially since I rebuilt the 7.  They are just not designed with any sort of corrosion protection in mind.  

In my opinion that makes them not fit for purpose. In any case, winter roads are not nearly as salty as they used to be, thanks to global warming.

Also, and others may think differently, I don't think this really explains the headlights and grille. These get washed regularly and don't have much in the way of crevices to retain the salt.

[SLR No.77]

Of course they're fit for purpose Rob, they're not sold as everyday transport! Do you see a 6 year body warranty like many mainstream manufacturers who intend their vehicles to be used all weathers? There's plenty I could moan about regarding Caterham build and component quality but degradation due to salt damage I'd put down to my own error.

The headlights and grill are a concern and in truth I've never seen that on a 7 unless it's been sat outside rotting away for many years which is why I initially thought it might have had something quite aggressive used to clean them. The lights and grill will likely have been supplied to Caterham by different manufacturers so the factor is your car, not the coatings on the products.

Stu.

[StevehS3]

I think rain or condensation can enter a headlight easy enough and be trapped in there resting in the bottom. There isn’t much in the way of sealing.  I have wiped the inside of the bowl with a very light film of corrosion protection and during winter remove every light lens to take a look inside and dry out if necessary.

Whilst I don’t think the powder coating is always great there are a lot of older Caterhams with totally corrosion free chassis. The main difference comes down to when it has been driven, how it has been stored and how well it has been maintained.

[TomB]

Quote

The main difference comes down to when it has been driven, how it has been stored and how well it has been maintained.

That's the bottom line - its been used in a couple of winters, and now shows the after effects.  Its hopefully a case of it looking worse than it is (wishbone aside). Rather than griping and talking about  warranties, T&C etc, taking it off the road, buying a POR15 starter kit https://www.frost.co.uk/blk-por15-starter-kit/ and getting cracking on cleaning it up would be time & energy well spent.   

[Gridgway]

Well I still think that the underneath chassis protection is not up to the mark.  I've POR-15'd as much as the next man, but on a Caterham which is a couple of years old, it's poor. 

[Rob Mullan]

On 12/12/2023 at 12:16, SLR No.77 said:

Of course they're fit for purpose Rob, they're not sold as everyday transport!

When I bought my car I discussed how I would be using it with the salesman at Gatwick. I have always used my cars winter and summer, so I mentioned this. He told me of a couple who lived in west London and ran a Caterham. Not only did they use it all year round, but they kept it parked on the road outside their house - no garage. In short they are sold as everyday transport, at least to me.

On 12/12/2023 at 13:39, TomB said:

That's the bottom line - its been used in a couple of winters, and now shows the after effects.  Its hopefully a case of it looking worse than it is (wishbone aside). Rather than griping and talking about  warranties, T&C etc, taking it off the road, buying a POR15 starter kit https://www.frost.co.uk/blk-por15-starter-kit/ and getting cracking on cleaning it up would be time & energy well spent. 

The wishbone has been replaced, rusted bolts and other minor components have been replaced, it has new headlamp bowls and other small areas of rust have been rubbed down and touched in. It's now as good as it should have been. It's also for sale.

You can criticise me for griping about warranties and Ts and Cs, but if you had been quoted £1485 to replace components which can be sourced for £135, you might be feeling a bit hard done by too.

[p.mole1]

Looking at the headlights the surface is just not prepared properly before it is powder coated so it is not keyed to the surface. I have found it is often better getting things re-powder coated as you normally end up with a much more  durable and better finish  

[ScottR400D]

10 hours ago, Rob Mullan said:

 

You can criticise me for griping about warranties and Ts and Cs, but if you had been quoted £1485 to replace components which can be sourced for £135, you might be feeling a bit hard done by too.

No criticism warranted. You’re right to feel aggrieved. Just because some are happy, apparently, to be abused, no reason you should be. 

[David JLM]

5 hours ago, ScottR400D said:

No criticism warranted. You’re right to feel aggrieved. Just because some are happy, apparently, to be abused, no reason you should be. 

I agree. 

People cut Caterham too much slack. This is 2023, they're not a cute British cottage industry they're a company charging an 'arm and a leg' for their product, selling internationally, and one might expect it to withstand some weather for a couple of years.

While their front-end is quite shiny, their back-office and customer service haven't moved forward (perhaps even backwards) and leaves a lot to be desired in this day and age.

 

[Gridgway]

I do understand that it's a harsh environment in the UK with salty roads and I'm personally ok with having my 7 off the road over winter, I too think it's not really good enough.  Useless powder coated chassis tubes have been a thing for ever more,  They were a thing in the mid 90s when I got my first Caterham to use as a daily.  It literally rotted away.  And no I didn't man-up, get out my wire brush and POR-15!  That's nearly 30 years ago!

Mind you when I got my next one, an SLR and asked Caterham about any head gasket issues - they brazenly said "oh no we don't see any problem there, we've never had a head gasket failure"

Bit then it was ok with my R500 that firstly grenaded at 450 miles (not the bearing issue), then sat around with it's new engine for 6 months whilst they worked on the R500 solution.

Quality is definitely at the forefront of all they do!

[StevehS3]

I quite like to have a break from using the 7 for a few months over winter. It’s a time to catchup on those little jobs and sort out a bit of fettling. Spring is a wonderful season to look forward to and isn’t it great to start it up for the first time and head out for a blat. I really look forward to that. A lovely experience and a new year ahead to make the most of the 7. 

[SLR No.77]

… and in the spring you jump in and think the car feels like a bag of spanners … then a couple of miles later the big grin sets in with a resounding yeeeaaaaaasssssss!!!

Okay maybe not a full couple of miles!