tjuniper

Paul, PM sent.

I have an SV and a single width, but double length garage. Have been looking at trailers that would fit the car and also fit in the garage. The Bateson PT32 hydraulic tilt trailer looks a good option. Anyone got any experience of this trailer? http://www.batesontrailers.com/shop/hydraulic-tilt-trailers/ex-demo-pt32-compact-car-vehicle-transporter-1300kg-3000mm-long-x-1800mm-wide/ Regards, Tom J.

I have a similar low profile boot cover but from SBFS. That does extend past the triangular hood fixings. The issue with this is that it assumes those have been removed! Not wishing to do so if I were ever to sell the car, this required me to cut a small slit in the boot cover through which the triangular fixing now protrude. Not a perfect solution. As such, have a think about you want to do. I think your solution looks pretty good.

PM sent re. ZZR’s.

I have 15” orcas running cr500’s on my 310r. They are 6.5” wide at all four corners. I also have some 13” 8 spoke trackdays wheels 6” front, 8” rear running Kumho tyres. There is a larger gap between the front cycle wing/stay and the tyre when on the 13” wheels. As the fronts are also a little slimmer they do not align nicely with the front wings so the wheel looks a little inset. I have tried hub spacers but you quickly run out of thread depth for the wheel nuts. As a result, I don’t worry about the hub spacers and live with the slightly inset look of the front wheels when on Trackdays. I’m no driving god and to be honest struggle to really feel a major difference when on either set. The only noticeable difference appears to be some understeer on very cold tyres when on the 15”orcas. Bottom line, I much prefer the look of the orcas on my car and protect these from any major damage by having a 13” trackday set that according to the experts are generally better suited to the Caterham.

PM sent.

Chris B You know the real answer is both... 13" for your track days and 15" for all other activities. I went for the 15" wheels on my 270R (nowhere near as powerful or as much fun on track as your 420R will be I'm sure) and got myself a set of second hand 13" wheels (6" front, 8" rear) that I am more comfortable getting marked, chipped, scuffed, pebble dashed when on track. Allows you some slightly more aggressive tyre choices also for your track days. I too think the Orcus 15" look better but also agree that the wider rears on 13" look good. In an ideal world purely from a looks perspective would be some 15" Orcus alloys that are wider at the rear - similar to the 15" multi-spoke wheels that the CSR variants came with. Have a great time.

Jim fantastic, thanks. My previous change (the first I have done at the 500 mile mark) was a similar experience to Garth's although my cursing wasn't so silent.

I'm interested in the Soft Bits for Sevens SV Reversible Shower Cap with bag please. PM sent. Regards, Tom J

Tyres are late 2008 and early 2009 - wouldn't sell separately unless I can't sell them anywhere and have to consider splitting. I plan to leave on here for a little longer and then try eBay if no luck.

More pics available via e-mail but a few below.

4 x 15" 10 Spoke Anthracite Wheels with CR500's for sale. £425. Wheels and tyres in good condition. Wheels have had some of the coating flake off but only on patches on the inside - these areas have been stripped, cleaned and painted and are not visible from the outside of the wheel. Pictures available via email tjuniper@me.com. Located in Chelmsford Essex. Collection only.

D Jones You have mail.

Hi Gary, I'm interested in these please. Have PM'd you. Regards, Tom.

test submission

Just got home from my very first track day in my Caterham at Snetterton. Very slippery in the morning but a lot better in the afternoon and amazing weather (cold but cloud free, sunny and bright) when you consider its Jan 20th. Thanks to all those who posted on this thread - really helped me today. one question: I bought some secondhand 15" wheels with CR500 tyres for trackdays and used those today. Weight of opinion seems to be that 13" better for track use (doh). Any recommendations for psi on 15" as I assume the 13" are preferred due to their deeper side wall and flex in that regard.

Seen in E Hanningfield on Sunday a.m. at about 9. Blue with silver stripe. Very jealous as I was in the family S-Max.

All the very best. I built a 270R SV from Sept. 2015 to March 2016. Upgraditous hit me pretty early too. I would recommend the clear rear light clusters, fog light etc. as well as the front indicators. They make such a difference to how the car looks imho. One item I have since discovered since running the car over this summer. One of the first maintenance actions will be changing the oil and oil filter. I found it impossible to get the oil filter off the car after it had been built and ended up putting a screw driver through it and levering it off that way - you may want to loosen and re-tighten to a more humanly achievable level before you install the engine. I think the 310 upgrade may also be in the post for me sometime next year.

Thanks all for your help. I got the car back from Caterham today - issue was with the starter motor that they believe remained engaged as I was driving, causing a major failure as it burnt out. Drive back from Crawley to Chelmsford was a joy - loads of country roads and some great little villages and country pubs. Other small items all resolved and just the cost of the service. All other items covered under warranty with no quibbles. Hoping the weather stays good for some late summer blast now I have my baby back.

Car currently with Caterham - fuel pump and starter motor replaced so far (under warranty). Small issues of flash not working, fuel gauge not accurately reading all resolved but further investigation underway associated with a small misfire I have and what I originally thought was an alternator failure.

Thanks Jim. A friend at work has loaned me an oil filter tool of the type you are suggesting so I'll have a go at making a better seal on that sometime this week. I did lubricate the seal before putting on but I'm obviously not quite strong enough without the correct kit - more gym work required. Jonathan - to be honest I am trying to avoid having to change the alternator and hoping that the Caterham boys wll do this as they see the burnout on the alternator casing. It looks a pretty involved job and given this was all pre-assembled on the engine when I got the car I don't think it is related to anything I have done as part of the cars assembly. Clearly a warranty issue in my mind. Will take another look at the starter battery over the long weekend.

Thanks all. Confirmed as an alternator failure. As mentioned above, the car is almost new so have agreed with Caterham that this is an item covered by warranty. That may change when they get their hands on it but so far I have a repair plan, couple of other small issues and a 1000m service booked with Caterham in a week or so time.

All wiring fine, no earthing issues and all fuses ok. Battery also v healthy. Found this though.../sites/default/files/images/users/35777/small_image.jpeg Some residue on the alternator. Assume this is from an issue with the alternator rather than just some residue from the belt????