Slipper man

Yes - to be clear I was talking about the R500 Barnby wheels, which have a completely different seating system than the standard nuts with the tapers. What do you mean Steve about the dodgy stud length?

No - 45 lbs ft will be fine. I have also seen a stud break (in Alex Wong's hands!) at 75 lb ft, so I personally use 55 all the time but check them frequently on a circuit

As far as cambers are concerned, set the car up for track use and you won't notice the difference on the road. The camber setup for ACB10 and slicks is the same (0.5 deg on the rear, can't remember the front, but I am sure you have the correct setting for ACB10's). Yoko 048 are both cheap and excellent - I use them on road and track with the low camber settings that are not theoretically correct and they are fine. Personally I prefer same size tyres all round for practical reasons as well as the fact that they don't create understeer such as you would suffer if you were to put 205's on the rear. For the brakes, the advice above is sound, but bias them to the front - it is safer that way as a start point. For the springs, my preference is for the softer standard road setup which work well enough on circuits as well, but if you have the race setup to start with, I am not sure I would change. Don't forget that you are likely to have to change roll bar settings too it you change spring - you probably have a pretty stiff front one at the moment.

They did to the r500 owners after a wheel dropped off one!

For circuit use, 75 lb ft is recommended by Caterham

I had a BDG Caterham which had that solution - I am told it was quite common for BD's, to get the standard starter to give a decent kick. It didn't seem to kill the starters either. I don't know how the charging worked, but James Whiting did my car so I am sure he can help

I used to have that problem when mr R500 was new. Be thankful that yours doesn't have the catch tank where they originally placed it - in front of the engine. When any oil came out, it went all over the drive belts, sometimes causing them (e.g. the scavenge pump belt) to come off the pulleys. Not a good idea! My solution was to get a larger catch tank (Caterham sell the part), to fix a permanent union to it from the conning tower, and then afurther breather pipe from the catch tank to run out underneath the car. Don't get oil all over the bulkhead every time I go on a circuit now. If you want a picture, let me know and I will see if i can figure out how to do one. You do still get oil into the tank - in fact, that is how Caterham recommended setting the level. Start at a level 9 3/4 inches above the tank floor and put a bit more in until you get some oil in the catch tank. If you make sure the tank is clean, just pour the excess back into the engine when you come off the circuit. It makes Alex Wong go pale to see me do that, which almost makes it worth it on its own 😬

Alex - have got more trouble?

I have three only TSW 17 inch wheels which I bought for track days with a 1996 BMW M5. Only used for 3 days and are as new. If anyone wants them, please let me know. They are free - my alternative is to dump them.

My experience of Minister has been similarly good

From what you describe, the third option you should price up is replacing the engine management system (unless the EU3 computer is programmable - the MEMs isn't IIRC) and getting throttle bodies. You will then have to have it mapped, but you will get a much better engine this way. Don't know about the lamda, but on mine (R500), although it had a lamda from new, when I got it mapped, I discovered it had never been enabled! Still passed the emissions test though

With a race engine (e.g. R500) this is a big issue and you should never put it under any load until it is showing 30 deg bulk oil temp, and full load until 50 deg. With your engine, which is basically a production engine with cam and engine management upgrade, you have less to worry about, because they are engineered to take a lot of abuse. Having said that, it is better to have the right temperatures, and my solution has always been to mask half the radiator in winter. The water and oil temps are related (e.g. with early R500's the solution to excessive oil temps was actually to fit a bigger radiator), and this way you will get all the temps up to where they should be in a shorter time frame - but don't overdo it, of course... On the oil pressure drop when fitting laminovas etc, I think it is just the reading that is lower, not the actual pressure delivered to the engine. On a K series, the oil pump is attached to the engine block and pumps directly to the crank through internal oil ways. The oil going to the appollo or laminova is fed with hot oil once it has done its work, so I am pretty sure that any difference in the pressure reading does not reflect a pressure drop at the bearings.

Another vote for the Brooklands screens. I cannot stand driving with screen and no doors because I find the buffetting intolerable. The wind deflectors make little difference in my experience. With the Brooklands screen, there is virtually no buffetting at all. They are also laminated and cover a greater part of the area where potential threats like stones come from. Because of the adjustability, if you are seated in the car you can arrange things so you are effectively sitting in still air - though I would never advise it, you can drive my car without any eye protection, there is so little wind hitting you. The full width deflector/screen looks good on the right car, but are not as effective

Hmm - sorry to confuse matters, but I swapped my flat for convex. Agree about the sides, but I consider the wider field of view to be more than enough compensation for the arguable distortion suffered (which doesn't bother me at all) in the center mirror. Oh - yes, and make sure you get the right pole height. They will make it to order, so measure the height you want and get it to that size. With the standard height, the mirror was directly in my field of view, so they did me an 8 inch version, which took it above my eye line Edited by - Slipper man on 22 Jan 2006 14:39:28

Exactly right. Some people go remove the pipes to empty them of old oil too, but i think that is a complete waste of time and effort. I just remove the plate and filter and let the oil drain. When re-fitting the plate, dont worry too much if you can't get the 'o' ring back on. A bit of silicone sealer (and i mean a very small amount - you don't want silicone in the oil, even if it will be collected by the filter before it can do any harm) will do the job perfectly well. Caterham don't even supply new o rings any more. Make sure you use oil with at least SAE 50 viscosity - Minister's favourite is Mobil 1 Motorsport 15W50, though if you are going to use the car in the Winter I prefer 5W50 oils, because they are thinner when cold (the 15W50 is like treacle when cold). Many people also change oil too often. I change oil twice a year generally, which covers 2,000 miles and 8 track days or so. Some (like ex Chairman ROger) think I am being extravagent in this - he only changes the oil when the engine comes out. Mind you, he has a Vx in JPE spec, so that is quite often... 😬

3 only TSW wheels - 7J x 17 originally used on an M5. As new.

It is very unlikely to be a catalyst failure. If you have the seperate cat, it would be obvious if there is a problem. My R500 failed the first time, and I assumed it was something like this. It turned out to be the throttle sensor and air temp sensors not functioning correctly. How far was it from passing? If it was close, a good thrash up the road before testing, and making sure the car is tested while very warm may do the trick. Otherwise you will need to go to someone with the diagnostics for the engine. I think it is basically quite standard Rover gear, so it shouldn't be hard to find someone.

I don't know what type of rack the SV has. On the non-competition type it is possible for the rack to slip sideways, causing all the symptoms described. Have a look at the rack itself. If it is one with cast in locators and cannot move, that is not the problem. If it is the earlier type that is located by grub screws, it should be obvious if it has moved

James whiting does it for £10 per length. For an FIA bar all you need is one length. He does it in a number of colours

Thanks Keith

I'll have them if they are still available

Oh yes - where are you as a matter of interest? I work for ABN AMRO and seem to be in Amsterdam most weeks

You should ideally get a post 1996 chassis (identifiable by the handbrake on the transmission tunnel). They were extensively re-engineered and were lighter and stiffer. If you can get a slightly later car than that all to the better, but if it has a center handbrake it will take all the latest upgrades

Whatever their fix, when building it I would put exhaust wrap on just to make certain. Caterham would not put that on because it is time consuming and their are warranty issues if it is not applied just right, but as a private owner, I think it is worth doing.

Not in a Caterham - I have done c. 20000 miles in K series sevens. In a Freelander: 1. Yes 2. 55,000 3. no probs in next 20,000 4. 1.8 litre 115 bhp