JonathanP

Hi, Out for quick run this evening and the speedo stops working, so I tried the old cordless drill on the cable and speedo works OK. Removed the angle adaptor which felt a bit manky when turning the short square section cable - output didn't always go round. So I attached speedo cable to the angle adapter and with cordless drill on the square section cable the speedo didn't work. I'll order a new angle adapter from CC in the morning, but could someone confirm what shape the end of the speedo cable should be that plugs into the angle adapter? Mines sort of oval. Just thought I'd check in case thats the point of failure... (although as the adapter didn't feel right I'll probably replace it anyway). Thanks, Jonathan '98S 1.8K SuperSport 6 across, 5 down

At 11am this morning, a yellow (SV?) (54 plate) heading north on the A11. We just about caught up with you as you turned off towards Newmarket. Jonathan '98S 1.8K SuperSport 6 across, 5 down

Hi - thanks for my first spotted! That'll be me doing the school run! Lots of street cred turning up at school in the 7 😬 We live just round the corner from the Dog & Duck. Jonathan '98S 1.8K SuperSport 6 across, 5 down

Jeremy, I've emailed you a scan of the wiring diagram from my '98 K series. Hope that helps. Jonathan '98S 1.8K SuperSport 6 across, 5 down

Redline can supply a chrome plated 7 grill - I mounted one in front of the black mesh protector and it looks the business! Jonathan

Paul, You don't need a pop-rivet gun, there's a 'tool' for flattening the copper colured bit over, but from all accounts its not very good. Various people have suggested improvising with centre punches etc in the past. Are you still in Linton? If you want to pop round, give me a call on 894430. Jonathan '98S 1.8K SuperSport

Chris, I've just scanned the diagram from my build manual for you. The wiring diagram is: here (500Kbytes) And the key: here (144K) The manual has a photocopy of the diagram, so its not the clearest in the world. Let me know if there's any part that you can't read. Jonathan '98S 1.8K SuperSport Edited by - JonathanP on 24 Mar 2004 21:41:39

I'm just popping up for the day next Monday to get the front suspension refreshed, and the wheels moved slightly further apart! I've done the rear myself over the winter, but didn't want to have the car off the road as the weather warmed up whilst I took ages fiddling with the front. Will try and get over to The Cornwallis before too long - see if we can get a Cambs convoy together! '98S 1.8K SuperSport

Stop it! How am I going to get Mark to do my widetrack if you lot keep getting him more work? '98S 1.8K SuperSport

David, The Cambs area meet is at the Red Lion in Grantchester, 3rd Tuesday in the Month. Map: here (turn right down the little dead-end road where it says "High Street" on the map, there's a reasonable sized car park just after the pub). Folks turn up from around 7.30 - its a big pub, but the steering wheels on the table are a bit of a give away! Look forward to meeting you, Jonathan '98S 1.8K SuperSport

David, I've just replaced the rear dampers and springs on my car - its primarily for road use - and went for the "M2" Bilsteins and progressive springs, which I guess you probably have as well. I wouldn't describe mine as a hard ride by any means. I don't have a rear ARB nor Watts linkage. If you want to go for a ride to see how it compares - if only to put your mind at rest - let me know. I should be at the Cambs area meet next Tuesday as well. Jonathan (nice car by the way ) '98S 1.8K SuperSport

Dave, If you've just fitted one of the new 'caged' FIA bars there is enough clearance to fit the harness bolts without removing the bar. Jonathan '98S 1.8K SuperSport

Phil, You can use the lowest circlip setting and add an extra washer (or two) between the damper and the DeDion tube in order that the adjustable platform collar clears the DeDion. In my assembly instructions ('98) it mentions the extra washer in the addendum. Jonathan '98S 1.8K SuperSport

You can clean your brushes with normal cellulose thinners - you only need the proper solvent if you want to thin it. A couple of quick tips: - make sure you follw the advice about using cling film between the lid and the tin, but use a couple of layers. The cling film may stick to the tin and lid, but not itself. - I agree with Nick, definitely use disposable gloves! Jonathan '98S 1.8K SuperSport

Guy, If your cover looks like this here, then they have supplied you with an old FIA boot cover. I've got one in my garage to send back to CC - the folks on the spares sales desk weren't aware that the new 'caged' FIA bar is designed to fit the standard boot cover. I had to talk to someone in the technical department to get to the bottom of this! Jonathan '98S 1.8K SuperSport

Hi Phil, It was £75 in total and that included a bit of extra work straightening my a-frame and new bushes all round. Jonathan

I'm just doing some of this to my car as well. Don't know where you live, but being not too far from Arch I took the rear A-frame, radius arms and DeDion to them to be shot blasted, zinc rust treated and powder coated. Bruce also welded the lower damper mount strengthening plates on, as fitted to the new DeDion's - see what it looks like now here Now I've just got to finish putting back together again! Jonathan '98S 1.8K SuperSport

I used a pair of heavy duty ratchet straps (the sort for tying big loads on trailers), one on each side, to compress my springs enough to slip off the top cap. That was the easy bit! Spent an hour in the cold last night getting one corroded lower platform off the damper, only to find I couldn't shift the nut at the top Is there a trick to getting the top undone? I trapped the top in a big vice (between a couple of bits of wood to prevent damaging it), but even a 2lb lump hammer on the spanner wouldn't shift it. Thanks, Jonathan '98S 1.8K SuperSport

Spoke to CC this morning - the answer is that since they switched to the 'caged' FIA bar, you no longer need to buy a new boot cover when upgrading from the standard bar. The new FIA bar is designed to work with the standard boot cover - it appears nobody told the spares sales guys though! The guy I spoke to wasn't sure whether the tolerances have been 'tweaked' on the standard cover, as my 98 boot cover is a little tight, but its good enough for now. I also thought of an extra brake light when I saw those holes in the top of the bar! Jonathan '98S 1.8K SuperSport

Thanks for all the comments, I'll speak to CC on monday and see what they say. Cheers, Jonathan '98S 1.8K SuperSport

Hi Fred, Here's a few quick photos: This is the new cover with a piece of paper behind the hole so you can see how big it is: here A couple of photos of the new bar: here and here And the new front mount: here For the moment I have left the old cover on from the standard rollbar - it fits fine at the front, but is a bit tight around the rear supports. This is the FIA bar you now get from CC instead of the old one with one diagonal. As you can see, they have redesigned the front mount (it no longer has the inboard fixing) and I wondered if they have moved the main uprights forward a bit, or did the old bars also have this hole in the cover? I'll give them a call on monday, but I just wondered if anyone else who has fitted one of these had the same problem? Jonathan Edited by - JonathanP on 13 Dec 2003 17:04:35

I've just replaced my old std rollover bar with a FIA one (one of the new 'Caged' ones) and was about to fit the new boot cover when I noticed that there's a big gap behind the main uprights. Looks like Caterham haven't told the boot cover manufacturers that they've changed the design of the bars.... Has anybody else noticed this, or did they just send me the wrong boot cover? On the plus side, the new FIA bar does give you enough access to the harness bolts (but it did foul the offside inertia real mounting point - nothing that a file and some paint couldn't fix however). '98S 1.8K SuperSport

Thanks for the suggestions - I'll try drilling the bottom one tonight and have another go at freeing the one I can get to (soaked it in penetrating oil just in case). Jonathan '98S 1.8K SuperSport

Hmmm, still stuck on novice. I hope Rachael was watching Top Gear tonight... '98S 1.8K SuperSport Edited by - JonathanP on 9 Nov 2003 21:43:58

Hi Steve, Thanks, thats a good idea. I've edited the photo now. Jonathan '98S 1.8K SuperSport