Alan Bowler

*thumbup* (nips out to garage to check earth connections again) AB

Tried disconnecting the shift light, fixed a leak in the exhaust, disconnected the TPS while engine running (revs climbed slowly - is this right?). Went for longer blat and thought it was sorted - but no, kangarood'd back thru village. As you say, foot to floor and its fine. Will spend a night in the airing cupboard with the ECU (standard rover EU3 SS) - good idea. Air filter has seen better days - fine black powder in the TB. Would this cause such a problem? Will replace it anyway. Many thanks for the suggestions. Good luck with Peter C. AB

Adjusted the verniers/cams back a bit, checked connections for sensors etc., but its still not right. Any other suggestions? Thanks AB

Theres always someone with a posh bulk-buy race jack to borrow on track days now AB

A cheapo normal height jack plus 2 (or 4) strategically placed planks of wood in the garage to drive onto works fine for me. Halfrauds often give you a couple of stands for free on special. AB

Simon, Very good point. I moved to a SS ECU and adjusted the cam timing to be slightly more agressive a few months back. I may have gone too far I guess. I used Oilys suggestion, but he did qualify it as a "you could try", rather than "use this". Seemed to work fine initially though. I had thought that I could rule out this change, as it does "feel" like an electrics problem. Engine just seems to die for a few fractions of a second. Its def. worse when cold on light throttle as you describe. Out comes the dial guage then. Worth checking the verniers haven't moved too AB

Steve, 😬 - Full throttle does seem to cure it. Maybe it needs a couple of track days to help clear its throat properly. I'll have to convince myself its a highly tuned and tempremental racing engine, and not a slightly upgraded metro shopper engine, as I kangaroo through the villages. AB

Thanks - checked these, and they looked OK to me - will have a closer look. The car did get a soaking before the problems started, so maybe some damp has got into one of the connections. Couldn't believe how bad the coil connections were though (and that cleaning them up didn't fix it ☹️). Also, I did manage to blow the ECU fuse on a hot start/click before the misfire started. I hope I didn't damage the ECU ☹️ Have noticed that the rev counter is erratic at high revs, but put this down to my piggybacked wiring for shift lights (which work fine and have been there a while), plus oil pressure guage erratic (have new sender, ready to fit). Could a bad earth somewhere cause this? Where would I look? Thanks for any advice! AB

Oily IS DVAPower! AB

Help! Getting cross with this now. 1.6K EU3 with verniers and SS ECU, intermittently missfiring under light load. Seems fine when it gets going and the revs are up. Very lumpy idle - always has been since I did the verniers, but now seems even lumpier. If it had a dizzy, I'd be taking it apart - thats what it feels like. Its got new Magnetron plug leads, & new plugs. I thought I'd found the problem when looking at the contacts in the coil packs. Very corroded. I cleaned them up but it didn't help. Am I right in that they just connect to the plug through a very spindly spring? Seems odd, but I guess its the path of least resistance. They don;t seem to quite meet the top of the plug so must be connected through the spring. I checked the camshaft pos sensor is away from the other leads too. And reset the ECU. Can't see any air leaks. Any other suggestions? Thanks AB

Far too cheap. Can we get this posting removed before anyone else sees it, and the 🙆🏻 falls out of the used 7 market completely! [good luck with the sale] AB

I think Egger Lawson would sell you one off cover. At a guess, I would think around 50% insure for track days, mainly because Egger Lawson/Caterham Insurance include 4 "free" days. AB

Bad news I'm afraid - you do need an FIA bar or cage for 7 club trackdays. Check with Geoff, but I don't think there are excpetions to this rule. I would think CC have them in stock, and they or one of the specialists could get it fitted if you don't fancy it yourself. Might be worth asking in "Wanted" too, as a few people change to cages. [FIA bars have one (old) or two (new) diagonal cross braces if you are not sure which you have, and are thicker] AB Edited by - Alan Bowler on 13 Apr 2007 22:25:26

Yes - windscreen + no doors = VERY windy above about 40mph. Nose goes numb. Unpleasant. Aeroscreen = (much LESS windy) but you do need at least goggles. If you wear glasses I think you can get some that fit over the top. Depending on your tolerance of risk (see other recent thread) you may want to wear a helmet. A popular choice is helmet for motorway, and Wiley goggles for other roads. Good idea to keep a lid in the boot as rain/hail hurt. If you bought an R500 as a first 7, I would think your risk tolerance is reasonably high And no, you didn't want an Exige Fit the aero, borrow some goggles, and 😬 like an idiot! AB

I could do with some too - anyone else got any spare/know where to get some? Thx AB

IMHO... I'd say 6spd to 5spd was an unusual "upgrade" for a K. I think you'd be disappointed if you drive on track, and regret it. Depends on what you use it for, but I find a set of earplugs/general avoidance of motorways resolves any small issues I have with "touring". If you are even considering an R300, or you aim is to move towards R300 spec, I'd say you really don't want a 5spd. Not many 5 speed Superlights around (if any!) In short, go for the R300 😬 What is the "fresher" 1.6K giving you? Less mileage (doubt that matters, unless your existing car is very high mileage), nicer paintjob/general cosmetics (go to TSK and get your OWN done). [with apologies to all those very happy 5speeders!] AB

Keep looking at it - you'll see it eventually. 10K.... hmmmm... tempting... AB

Do Westfield to a replica? If not, I'll have to trade in a few of my Veyrons. AB

Anyone upgraded? I'm looking for something FIA approved/nomex. 5' 11" Average build. AB

Yes Mark. Off for an exciting 1/2 lap of the M25. I've seen a couple of 7's around Hampton. Which one is yours? AB

2 spotted's in one trip! Are you often in Claygate Mark? AB

On my way to 7 Workshop for its annual checkover. Was a bit nippy, so I was trying to make some progress 😬 AB

I second Myles' advice, having just completed this myself (on a K). I tried to make a template from another car, but did it the long way in the end. Quite time consuming (I was fairly cautious), but its a smaller neater hole. Had no problems with paint chipping. Having a template is one thing, but getting in in the exact right position on your car with your pipes is another. Definitely use ALOT of masking tape around the hole. Obvious really, but that saved me a few big scratches! [Thanks for the other advice too Myles] AB

That would sort of make sense, it being a key and all... ! Looked sort of generic though. I'll add it to my pile of useless-stuff-I-can't-throw-away then. Cheers AB

My ex-Caterham owning neighbour had a clear out, and found a key for Prisoner wheels. Anyone lost theirs? AB