Croc

Gareth - I am glad to hear of your lucky escape. It was after my chat with @SamC that I checked my USA-based 2010 CSR this year. One side, a cast metal (looks like iron) part was cracked. The other side, in aluminium, was not cracked and was in good condition. The cracked part had evidence of corrosion being the cause. Both have were replaced this month with the steel replacement from Team Leos. Given my CSR is almost exclusively a track car these days, the consequences of a failure on track are frightening. Why I had two different metal parts - one on each side led me to do some investigation. Its fuzzy but there was a CSR production line changeover point from the cast metal part to an aluminium part around 2010-2013. All CSRs after 2015 in the USA (that I am aware of - about 6) consistently have the aluminium part. My 2019 CSR build has the aluminium parts. Since my experience, a USA Caterham dealer has since detected two cracked rear damper mounts in a 2006 CSR. The failure point on the older cars seems to be only happening on the older style cast metal part - but I would assume all are potentially suspect given we don't really know. I echo Gareth - check your CSR rear suspension mounts as a matter of urgency.

Thanks Jonathan - your email outreach worked.

Hi Jonathan - As an owner of two CSRs I would be interested in any CSR documentation you have please. I also have a online technical library of Caterham information (including CSRs) that a bunch of us have been collecting that we posted for free access to all. Seven Technical Downloads I would be happy to put into the online technical library to make it more accessible to owners.

A couple of articles on point for this topic, jointly done by a few C&L7C members based in USA and UK. How to Mount an Action Camera to your Se7en and Getting Good Audio on your Se7en for a Track Day Video

I would echo Tazio and say don't do it. I had the Reverie version on my car. I found out after I purchased I was going to be the first to install one of their diffusers on a Caterham. Reverie had not ever test fitted it to a car - they just made it for what they thought would work. Had to fabricate brackets. Had to cut out pieces and insert some reinforcement panels in aluminium to allow suspension deflection (I have a CSR which made it more challenging). Real pain. But I made it work as the photos below from 12 years ago show. For road driving you would not notice anything. On track there was a difference but not desirable. At one of my local circuits there is a hump on the back straight where my Caterham gets all wheels airborne at around 125mph. With the diffuser installed, I could get the front end higher of the ground which made it awfully exciting coming back to tarmac as it would get very squirrely given it would land unevenly. I ended up putting the Caterham into a university wind tunnel and we found the diffuser was having a mild downforce effect but it was more messing up the front end for front/rear chassis balance. It also became a collector of all rubber, rocks, trash, etc thrown up by the front wheels. I eventually took it off after four years. I think if I had a race set up with a lower ride height, the answer would have been somewhat different. I wanted to use my Caterham for both road and track and so ran a regular road ride height. The diffuser was then not close enough to the ground in track usage to make the effects of its installation positive. Aerodynamics is complicated.

Another option - photo of a friend's Caterham in Ferrari yellow - it was a custom paint colour at the time.

Ex-mine now but it was Caterham yellow at time of build in 2005. Think it is the same yellow as David in post #33 above.

For all round road driving the Avon ZZS are excellent - I think they were an upgrade from the CR500. Quite good in the wet and snow. The Avon ZZR are much grippier on a track in the dry but the moment a hint of water appears on the road surface then you need to worry as they lose grip very quickly and have no hope in standing water. I found there was a Yokohama tyre I could fit to the CSR wheels but discarded that option very quickly as it changed the gearing too much and was 40% heavier than the Avons.

Yes I am in NYC and yes Caterham agreed to sell a CSR to me after some dealer persuasion. Yes - I have a sheet like that but it is slightly different which I will assume comes from UK to US market differences. The Multimatic dampers were not an option but were just fitted for the Superlight. I remember asking the dealer at the time what the difference was and being told it was "probably only a marketing wan%"! I did select aerofoil wishbones - $1200 in 2010. Don't recall what I paid this go around for that upgrade?

I have a document from when I first got my CSR Superlight that described the differences between the regular CSR and Superlight. Superlight dropped the windscreen and heater, added carbon wings, trackday rollbar, carbon aeroscreen and carbon Tillett seats. Came standard with LSD and special Multimatic dampers that were supposedly an upgrade over the standard (Bilstein?) dampers. I seem to recall a black trim package was also added as standard. But then you could "spoil" it by adding windscreen, heater, regular S-type seats, etc. The CSR chassis remains on the order list for certain non-UK markets. It is a homologated car for European and Australian markets as a 485. Australian cars got ADR approval on the back of the European cars. Its always been available in the USA but not shown publicly anywhere - you have to know it is there to order or be told by your US dealer who will go the extra yards with the factory to order one. I believe they only sell it now in the USA as a CSR200 as the Cosworth Duratec for the CSR260 is no longer offered. I think my new chassis is technically a CSR200 but I will have "slightly" more power since I went silly. I get the impression that they have problems meeting the production volumes needed if the UK market is included so easiest to limit the markets it is made available for.

Sorry to make you blush James! I probably saw your 'other' car when I was at the workshop coordinating the move of my car from Blyton Park. I have known Phil and Sarah going on 10 years now. Its good to see them so successful with this business. Looking forward to seeing you at a TFL Track Day Club Event if not a C&L7C event. Cheers mike

#16 Hi Andrew - How did I miss mileage? Apologies. I have 17,000 track miles and another 5,000 road miles. It is worked hard. Not sure what the right equation of track miles to road miles is but I work on a 3:1 basis for engine refresh stuff in my other cars. I do not over-rev it as I found you do not have to for lap times - there is just no advantage to going high in the rev range. Its too dangerous to use on roads around me anymore so it is now exclusively track usage. It is a standard spec CSR260 Superlight which was the-then label for what they would now brand today as a CSR260R. #19 Hi David - I still have the standard ECU. Yes it is locked but I know the password for it. I have never remapped it despite me knowing it to be "carp" as you rightly point out. As it was explained to me, the engine came from Cosworth, however, the tune was supposedly done by SBD and Caterham together with a rich "safe" tune being specified. This was all hearsay but I have heard it from enough people around the Caterham/SBD orbit that I believe it is likely true. Once my new CSR is finished (next year...hopefully), I plan to give my current CSR a full refresh including sorting out the tune. The new CSR is using an unlocked MBE ECU from SBD (gee it was expensive!) and will be tuned by a local engine builder specialist experienced in Duratecs. I met the Premier Power guys in November as they share the same building with TFL Racing - I am definitely considering their CSR ECU option for my refresh. They had a CSR in the workshop getting the full treatment while I was there - looked to be a club member based on the sticker on the back of the car. #17 Good luck with the shopping Ben! Drive a CSR back to back with a deDion car over the same roads - you will be impressed.

Thank you for the various responses. This is helping to clear my confusion greatly. To chime in on some of your observations: #2 Hi Jonathan. Yes it is UK. I keep a Caterham in the UK for my UK/European track days. It was supported by Bookatrack which then became Want2Race and then Ginetta but then I moved it in November to TFL Racing who support other club members. This change will allow me to attend C&L7C's track days for the first time (provided they accept a non-UK licence which the T&Cs require). I have read the Club's trackday T&Cs and, to the great credit of whoever drafted them, they are clear and understandable so I have no confusion. I know I can join the various CL7C events without issue. Its just that since I cannot always control my travel schedule, I look to other trackday operators to make the calendar of events work when I get to the UK. #6 Thank you Steve. Yes I emailed Paul too but got back an answer that left me confused. I could see it was a recent change from the history of T&Cs they have on their website. I had never heard of "ASN" and googling was not getting me any clarity. Even Caterham were confused as they work to FIA and MSUK standards. #7 and #8 Thank you Tim and James. You confirmed what I suspected - they want full FIA compliance or some other motorsport authority compliance. I guess they word it that way to cover all participants from all countries they go to. Like you Tim, I don't want to drill my car for the strut and prevent passengers or instructors so will look at other events and just avoid LOT. I still will attend W2R/Ginetta events. Salone Events have some options. RSR run great events at Spa and in Spain. Looking at MSV as well. Plus the big win I achieved last month is I can now attend C&L7C events which I have wanted to do for a very long time. Thank you all for your input to clarify my confusion!

I have a 2018 420R which is solely used on track days. It is equipped with the track day roll bar with duel diagonals. I was thinking of running with Lotus on Track next year and they require: "Caterham type vehicles must be fitted with an ASN approved Roll Over Protection system(ROPs)" What is this? Lotus On Track said I should talk to Caterham and have them provide the written documentation. I rang Caterham but they could not tell me. I know to be FIA compliant you need to add the petty strut to the track day roll bar but this may not be the same thing. Easiest solution may be just to avoid their events and stuck with the C&L7C track days but I thought I would pose this question to the brains trust in this club! Thanks mike

Long time owner of a CSR here with a LOT of track time on it plus building a new CSR currently. Its been a very reliable car for me. I do follow a rigorous maintenance schedule of my own design given its extensive track time. A lot of the problems I have faced would be seen on regular non-CSR Caterham models. My list of things that went wrong: 6 speed gearbox self destructed when layshaft popped out of place. Alternator fried suspension bushings have needed replacing a few times. I use the polybush ones now. Possibly this is from me mostly using 13 inch wheels (I converted from the regular 15 inch wheels) and slicks on track? wheel bearings. First set went at 1000 miles. Up to my 6th set now. Suspect this is my fault from clipping curbs (or is it kerbs?) on track plus one of the tracks I go to has a high speed 15 deg banking fuel pump replacement twice. The adhesive goo/sealant (recommended by Caterham) around the top of the tank where the fuel pump drops in has a tendency to be eroded by the fuel over time. I usually find that out when it leaks usual fun of getting used to finding the right oil level with catch tank overflows when you get it wrong clutch replacement along with the various O seals within the bellhousing watch for the diff mount bolts coming undone. I check these every year during winter and sometimes I have found 1 bolt that has untorqued itself. In moderate to heavy rain, I can get water down into the spark plug wells which manifests through the engine missing. Particularly number 1 cylinder for this. Dry it all out and its back to normal. Post #8 where David refers to the tyre change from CR500 to ZZS/ZZR was a bit of a faff for me but once done is fine. I think the ZZS is a better tyre than the CR500 in the wet and dry after much back to back driving. Given its usage I consider that pretty impressive. The engine has stayed strong through all. I don't over rev and have been always up on its maintenance. Feels as strong as day 1. Its not a stressed build and you will drive it off the torque curve as thats the fastest way. The only concern I have is the lack of Caterham support on parts for the CSR. I have bought some of the Titan produced bespoke components over the years to keep in the garage e.g. rear hubs, etc., but now I have the ability to remanufacture most bits locally if I really get stuck. Sensational car to drive. Fastest thing I have ever driven point to point on a road. Best ride of any car I have ever driven. Until you drive one you don't realize. Cheers mike

James - Not much to show other than a puddle of fluid underneath - casing is cracked. I was happily lapping, felt one "smooth but tight/short" change on downshift, no noises, no warnings, thought "that does not feel quite right", backed off slightly and 3 seconds later it locked up solid to the point of spinning me around with the rear end hopping and ended up neatly parked on an apex unable to move without many nasty noises. Fortunately it was the slowest corner on track (55mph) which is a relief as 3 corners earlier was a 110mph sweeper corner. It let go on a corner just where you have to lift throttle to transition from right to left. I think that throttle lift and unloading the gearbox was just the excuse for the transmission to lock up. Never had a gearbox go without some warning before so that was a new one for me. I thought it was broken diff but investigation in the pits made it clear the nasty noises were from the gearbox. Problem is on the output side of the gearbox as I can select gears smoothly and even use the clutch and feel it take up. Not upset as it is 10,000 miles, nearly all track, so it had a good life. New 6 speed gearbox secured so I can keep blatting and I will try to salvage/rebuild the old gearbox. I have not tried to tear it down yet - car is sitting in the naughty corner of the garage awaiting arrival of new gearbox in mid-August. I suspect gearbox may be dead giving the casing leak of fluid.

Thank you James - that is a find I was not aware of. Its the most information I have seen online of what I am contending with. Mind you, David's gearbox photos look better than what I suspect is in mine after its catastropic fail and lock up last weekend on track! Thanks again mike

I know a manual exists - old threads on Techtalk refer to one that you used to be able to buy from Caterham. Sadly, thats no longer an option.

There used to be a technical manual available for the Caterham 6 speed gearbox. I believe it was prepared by Caterham for their dealers. Does anyone have a copy they can please send me? Happy to pay for copying/postage if its not scanned/emailable. Many Thanks! mike

Hi Roger - I assume this is a motorsports design where frequent pulling of the motor to replace a race clutch or make clutch adjustments is expected compared with the CSR as a road car? In a road environment, I would expect the heat issue would not be a factor like it is on track? All the race CSRs have gone for a separate dry sump tank plus added oil coolers and this concentric slave seal is less of a maintenance factor. The lesson I draw from all of this is the CSR is less suitable for regular/heavy track usage in its standard road guise than say a regular de Dion chassis car, unless the CSR is modified to address its extremely high oil temperatures which create various problems around the car in heavy track usage. Phenomenally competent car to drive on track though which is why I love it.

Hi David - while they were not the source of my failure, I will replace the O rings on the oil pipes between bellhousing and engine. Your dimensions close to what came out of mine. Caterham and Redline do not have them in stock. I have access to an infinite supply of rubber O rings at a local US supplier so will next hunt around opportunistically in their catalog. Most unknown pieces are usually off a Ford Mustang Fox body for some reason. Once I find something I will post on this thread for you in case you are still looking. Cheers mike

Problem is diagnosed and solved but posting for the next CSR owner who has this problem. Symptoms I have clutch action when the engine is cool. As it gets hot during a track session, I lose the ability to select gears via the clutch - at the half hour mark I have lost either 4 or 5 gears out of my 6. I can still rev match and get all gears so its not the gear box. Let it all cool off and the clutch comes back and all works normally again. Clearly a heat soak related issue. Resolution With kind thanks to Malcolm (MadMalc), he suggested it might be the clutch pipe unions onto the bellhousing being loose and the system requiring a bleed. Sadly it was not but it is an excellent suggestion for potentially saving to have to pull the engine. So I pulled the engine. For those not used to the CSR, the original build photo below, shows the dry sump tower on top of the oil tank integrated within the bellhousing. Clutch fluid fittings are the yellow and red plastic caps on the upper side of the bellhousing. Pulling the gearbox apart from the bellhousing shows: The dry sump tower is the extension to right. The black blanking plate is the side of the integrated oil tank. The metal ring is a concentric release. Flywheel side looks like this: While I did not have to, I removed the blanking plate to see the oil tank interior: Oil pick up is left curved tube on the floor of the tank. Oil return is the longer curved pipe on right heading up to tower. Clutch pipes to concentric release can be seen. While apart, I check that clutch pipe unions are tight inside this tank. My failure was the little rubber seals that reside within the concentric release. As the oil heated up, the seals were failing plus some air was present in the system. Once it cooled off the seal restored itself. Ultimately, it would have failed completely no matter what temperature the oil tank was at. Flywheel is off to get a smoothing and then all back together. Hope this saves someone some time in the future. Cheers mike

Thank you GJT! I do recall Road and Race from some past posts but did not think of them for sourcing parts. Had not heard of Steve Perks before so that is an excellent lead to follow up on. No apology needed - I like Grandmothers and eggs!

I am trying to source some of those little plastic Caterham 6 speed gearbox gear lever locator clips/bush but as usual Caterham Parts do not have anything in stock and so its another item on my lengthy parts backorder list. Who else is recommended as an alternative for sourcing Caterham gearbox parts (or Caterham parts generally)? Many thanks michael