Benton

For what it's worth.... I've run the Caterham RBTB and a decat on my 420R for over 6,000 miles now. Improvements for me included much better pickup/response/no kangarooing, cold running, more mid range torque (seat of the pants measurement), great induction noise and lots of pops and bangs. The only downside is the pops and bangs at inappropriate times and places, though you can control these to an extent with your right foot and as an aside the throttle pedal weight is increased but you soon get used to it. As mentioned the decat pipe gives a more bass tone to the exhaust note, though one of the prime reasons I fitted it was I felt sorry for the catalytic converter being subjected to abuse. Although the car was remapped by Caterham I'm sure it has more potential that could be released by a visit to Track N Road though I haven't felt a need to do so far.

Not chromed but just have had to have my black headlamp bezels re-powder coated as the original was flaking off and they're less than two years old.

Thanks for the offer TigerSuperSix. I thought I'd better take off and have a closer look at the second bezel and it too has started to bubble. I phoned Caterham but they don't sell the bezels separately, at least in black. So I've decided to have the two re-powder coated.

Many thanks for the replies and suggestions.

Bit of a long shot but has anybody got a spare Caterham one in a sound condition they want to part with? I've looked at SVC parts but the headlamp bowl/bezel do not appear to be the same fitting as the Caterham one on the car currently. My one is losing pieces of powder coat/ bubbling up and is less than 2 years old! Unfortunately it's not covered by warranty because I've dared to exceed 12,000 miles (ffs) Otherwise it'll be a Hammerite job UPDATE:- Originals re-powder coated :-)

My 2018 420 had the necessary 3 connectors coming out from the main loom lurking behind the main/dip switch. Just the case of attaching spade terminals on the DRE unit. Wires can be fed through the opening for the heated screen wire having loosened the windscreen.

Another supporter for Autoglym Tar Remover, it always seems to work where other solvents sometimes struggle.

Guilty! ......... nothing like hitting some standing water and getting an impromptu shower to freshen you up! i do get some strange looks / photo requests from the Far East tourists when stopping at Birling Gap for some refreshments :-)

(i),(ii),(iii) yes (iv) probably not, due to (i) you'll need to check in addition (v) Much improved soundtrack both intake and exhaust. However I do suggest also fitting a cat bypass pipe as:- a. it saves the cat from bombardment! b. gives a slightly more gruff exhaust note c. for me personally I felt gave the car more midrange grunt

Well, well .... interesting Jonathan ... going through my head today were 3 options; where had I left the car recently, thinking that someone deliberately removed the clips, then doubting my own mechanical ability and finally could they just fall out! It seems that the latter could very well have been the cause based on the above, and whilst it’s far from an ideal answer I can sleep easier tonight :-) As suggested nice big normal split pins will be used going forwards!

Thanks Jonathan, I’ll try giving them a bell in the morning.

Not that one I’m afraid.

After a spirited 50 mile drive today was just putting the 420R into the garage when there was an almighty clonk from the front wheel immediately identifiable as a pad hitting a disk. When I got out I was astonished to find a bent pad retaining pin lying on the ground. One minute later astonishment turned to shock for when I checked the other retaining pins only one of them had the R retaining clip in situ!! Also missing from one side was the anti rattle plate. Now about 2000 miles ago I checked the pads but I’ve serviced enough car/motorcycle brakes in my time to check/double check stuff like this and the clips were definitely in place when I last inspected them.... scary. How they came to be missing is anyone’s guess. I’m now presently with an opportunity..... naively I phoned up caterham for some replacement parts, a set of new retainer pins for good measure , some R clips and a replacement anti rattle plate. None of which they appear to have in stock. I can obviously source some R clips elsewhere, the bent pin I think can be gently persuaded back into shape but I’ve drawn a blank for the anti rattle plate. The caliper is a two pot, I believe AP Racing derived item, the anti rattle plate has a part number CP5119-170. Any recommendations as to how to source this part or does anyone have an old caliper etc they are willing to part with? Thanks

Green / yellow 270

Thanks for the replies and suggestions. Caterham have agreed a new tank is required, the warranty is subject to examination of the old tank by the tank’s original supplier/manufacturer, though I cannot foresee any issues at this stage.

I came across this opportunity today as I was examining the rear pads on my 2018 420R as I’ve clocked up 10500 miles recently and was wondering what state they were in. A crack about 4cm long slap bang in the middle of the bottom of the petrol tank, slightly seeping petrol. The strange thing is it doesn’t look like impact damage, nothing around it is damaged and if anything the crack stands proud of the tank, rather than being pushed in. To me the untrained eye it’s almost like metal fatigue, though how I’ve no idea. Any thoughts, and what’s the best method of repair or should it be replaced, something a warranty claim possibly would cover?

Red C7 *** parked outside

In my case the “spare” bundle I located contained all the necessary wires ie. white/black(signal), green(live) and black(earth). It’s worth checking if your car has this bundle, as I found there were some separate green and black loom connectors available (for whatever reason), but I only wanted to splice into the white/black as a last resort. I recall having to take out both the rev counter and the speedo in order to have a good look around

When I fitted DRE to my 2018 420R a few months back after rummaging around i found a set of spare connectors (negative spades) bundled together presumably for the optional ACEs unit, lurking as part of the loom at the RHS of the dash, roughly behind the area of the on/off rocker switch for the lights After lifting up the windscreen threaded the DRE wires down through the existing grommet/hole for the heated windscreen wire and connected. Works fine.

Yellow R** heading down to Dorking, chasing an early Porsche?

Duplicate post

In my case there is a vent pipe for the catch tank that is zip tied to the chassis and therefore i’ve temporarily attached the yoghurt pot to see if any oil is being expelled from here.

So this morning I took another look around, no discernible oil leaks. So I took the oil catch tank out to have a better look. I noticed its vent pipe of the catch tank was touching the bottom of the tank, I therefore decided to adjust it, rightly or wrongly, so that it’s end was about 1/3 of the way up the catch tank instead, in theory well clear of any residual oil that could appear in the tank. I’ve also temporarily attached a container (yogurt pot) to the other end of the vent pipe to stop any oil dripping on the chassis and to monitor if indeed this is the source of any wayward oil Went for a “spirited” drive including deliberately exploring the upper rev range (sorry officer just testing the car :-)), came back and checked, no wayward oil to be seen anywhere either on the chassis or in the pot. Will continue to monitor....

Thanks for the replies and clarification of terms, I’ll have a more thorough look and poke around tomorrow weather permitting and report back

I didn’t even know there was a gearbox vent, I’ve a lot to learn However the residual oil appears to be largely concentrated directly under the catch tank, i.e around the vicinity of the cutout in the skin for the front suspension, if this isn’t referred to as the “grot” trap then sorry for the confusion.