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Another lowered floor question
Good afternoon and apologies if this has been asked already. I ordered a lowered floor for my metric chassis and it arrived today, the inside edge has a lip with holes already drilled but the outside edge is straight up with no lip and no holes. Does anyone know how to fit this, I'm sure it will become obvious when I come to remove the old one but I would like to know ahead of time. Thanks
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Throckmorton handling day
Torville and Dean, eat your heart out
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lean CSR swoopy dash with AIM MXL2
except fuel tank level sender all info comes from can+ and - from the MBE 9A4, thks to Phil Waters http://www.our-nest.co.uk/
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rcpojess
I have recently purchase a Duratec R300.It is running very rich( black and and wet sooty tail pipe).
I have changed the Lamda sensor but no change.
The car has only done 1800 miles any suggestions what to do.Apparently the ECU is locked by Caterham
Robert Jessop
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Can anyone suggest where I can get a set of replacement wiper blades for my SV Roadsport in Telford/Shropshire Area? I need them urgently and don't have time to wait on snail mail, preferably would like to pick some up tomorrow. Any thoughts/suggestions?
Thank you in advance
Sam
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Hi Guys
Is there any one out there who can advise me how to remove the steering rack from my caterham series 3 . I have disconected it from the chassis and disconected the ball joints . however theproblem i have is sliding the body / spline through the aluminium side panel of the body work , Ahhhh !!
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Latest Entry
Quieter exhaust
I have a sigma engined car and it really is a droney standard exhaust. I have no issue with 'good' exhaust noise, but the sigma with the standard exhaust is just a drone. Are there any aftermarket items that will improve this?
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Fuel in France
Is anyone who is going to The French track day this weekend planning on taking any extra fuel?
If so does anyone know if we are allowed to take jerry cans with extra fuel in the boot?
Steve
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Latest Entry
620R has arrived
http://i282.photobucket.com/albums/kk262/craighenry/Caterham/20160526_191456.jpghttp://i282.photobucket.com/albums/kk262/craighenry/Caterham/20160526_191426.jpghttp://i282.photobucket.com/albums/kk262/craighenry/Caterham/20160526_193307.jpgWell after all the waiting the car has finally made it, what a great feeling having a 7 after lusting after one for so long
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Latest Entry
420R New Build.
Evening All,
Just getting to the interesting bit of building a new Cat. Done all the checks in the book, filled with water and Oil etc, connected the battery and....... nothing...!
Given the quality of the build manual and my ability, I am sure I have just missed something off or not RFTM properly. Right now however, I have a fully charged battery and a dead car.
I have tried the inertia switch - resetting a few times. Checked general wiring and it all looks OK.
Battery connected, no lights, no ignition, nothing.
Suggestions gratefully received.
In other news, both big brake front calipers leaking where the adaptor goes in. just how tight do they have to be?
Thanks,
Graham
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Latest Entry
Caterham 270S Build
My build blog can be found through the link below. All comments are welcome. I hope it can be useful for someone, just as many blogs aided my build!
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Latest Entry
3D Printed High level Brake Light
One problem with flying low is that other drivers may not see your brake lights, or only be looking for a brake light in the center of the vehicle. Not wanting to get rear ended by a truck or SUV on my recent trip to Spa Francochamps I headed off to the workshop to have a think.
There are plenty of high level brake lights available, but none matched my requirements:
- As high as possible on the vehicle
- Lightweight
- Very bright when lit, but unobtrusive when not
- Looks like it was designed to be there
- Inexpensive
So I designed my own. My starting point was looking for LED motorcycle tail lamps. These typically have 19 or more bright LEDs, are low weight, inexpensive and available on eBay. There are various elliptical shaped lights, some with black or red lens, "E" marked or not. I paid £11 for a 108mm wide red lens "E" marked unit, but cheaper versions are available.
Next step was to design the casings. Fortunately I have access to a 3D printer in the US office and Onshape, a 3D CAD application, so I set to work creating a clamshell casing that fits on the underside of the rollbar. I wasn't sure if I wanted to use adhesive tape to attach the light or bolt through the petty-strut holes, so I designed variants for each.
This is the 'bolt on' version which has 'ears' that curl around the rollbar and recessed holes for the nuts (bar not shown):
The 'Tape on" variant just has the ears removed.
Both variants have 4mm Dia hole in the top casing for the wiring and the bottom casing attaches using 3 self-tapping cross heads.
Next up was the printing stage which was done on a Makerbot FDM printer by exporting an STL file out of Onshape. For those not experienced in 3D printing, its not like sending a document to your inkjet - it takes a many hours to get a decent quality 3D print. But as I needed to run to the airport for my return trip I used some coarse settings for a fast print within 2 hours.
The result wasn't as smooth as I'd like, but good enough for a first prototype, so I wired it up using the Caterham high level brake loom and some 1mm twin core black cable. For more details how to make this all neat and tidy see Daniel French's excellent blog post, besides his car is faster and cleaner than mine.
The result was light and bright! I did weigh it but I cannot remember exactly what it was now, something close to 100g IIRC.
So for a little over £20 I have a neat little unit that meets most of my requirements.Best still you can have one too.
You can take a look at the 3D model here, you just need Google Chrome or Firefox browser and an internet connection. No charge. Better still, in the spirit of the Open Source movement, grab a copy, refine it and share it with others.
As this was a prototype I have since made some changes. I have modified the strengthening webs inside the casings to give more space for the wires, moved the wire holes for a smoother transition out of the casings and reduced the wall thickness a little (another few grams saved). The next prototype will be on the finest settings, though I might also print one on the Formabs too.
I am also working on a variant for a 120mm wide LED unit which now appear to be more numerous and cheaper on eBay.
If you have any other suggestions or comments let me know.
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Sam's Blog - May 2016 edition of Lowflying Magazine
On Saturday 16th April I woke up very excited, as I was going on the famous Leg and Hairy Taffia Fish and Chip run, a 280 mile round trip from Chepstow (South Wales) to the promenade in Aberdyfi (West Wales coast) with the Lotus Seven Club.
As I pulled the curtain back, I stared in horror at the falling snowflakes that were the size of 2 pence pieces. My house, being situated at over 1,200 ft above sea level does have its own microclimate (cold and wet usually) and so my panic subsided, I was sure it would be glorious in Chepstow.
As I got my (many) layers on, it dawned on me that the A465 road closure had been rescheduled for today and it was published as part of the route! I pinged a quick message to Alan (the orgnaiser), along with a photo of the snowfall (for maximum effect) and advised that a last minute adjustment to the route would be required.
I left home with the snow still falling and now settling and headed 45 minutes down the mountain to Chepstow. On route, I found out that the member who had offered me a lift in his Seven had been in an accident in the snow (he was ok thankfully) and so I just hoped someone would offer me a lift when I got there. It was pretty chilly with patchy sleet and sunshine on arrival and I headed into the pub for a quick cuppa. I was warmly welcomed and member Julian Hart came up to me, introduced himself and offered me a ride in his Seven. I was very happy to accept (but made him confirm he had a screen on his Seven first!)
Julian had travelled up with 2 fellow Seveners from his local group in East Sussex and we left in convoy. We travelled up through the stunning Welsh mountains and valleys, stopping for a cuppa and cake at a garage along the way. We arrived in Aberdyfi and I couldn’t help but delight in the Sevens parked up on the seafront carpark, bonnets gleaming in the sunshine with the stunning back drop of the colourful seafront buildings behind and in front, the golden sand, estuary and ocean beyond. There was a lot of chatting and laughing in the chip shop and I had the pleasure of meeting some more club members, some travelling from as far as Europe to join this fantastic day out.
The journey home was just as beautiful with every kind of weather the Wales has to offer: sunshine, wind, rain, hail and snow! Due to the A465 being shut, the diverted route excluded the amazing EVO route over Llangynidr moor. Having great knowledge of the local area because I travel these marvellous roads both on my commute to work and for pleasure on my motorbike, I thought I would treat my new friends and navigate them back to Abergavenny via this route, to which they were delighted.
We got back to Abergavenny early evening and I was left happily exhausted by the adrenaline of the day. Many thanks go to Alan and the ‘Taffia’ for orgnaising the run and to Julian and his group for welcoming me and giving me a truly wonderful day!
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For Sale £2,000
Lotus 7 S4 now for sale.
As shown on blog plus parts from the part few years of collecting:
chassis
body
front upright assembly from Lotus Europa (the same as 7S4)
Lotus 7 S4 girling brakes
new antiroll bar
new steering rack
Harnesses
Lotus 7 s4 manual
40,000 mile twin cam engine and gearbox also posted on market place with gearbox, with the 7s4 I#ll sell all for £8,000
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1600 Crossflow knocking noise from engine/clutch ?
My Crossflow has a loud knocking noise from the Engine/ clutch , the noise stops when the clutch pedal is depressed, the engine has done 20,000 mls & i have just replaced the clutch, any ideas ?
Adrian Holmes
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wheel and tyre changes 14" to 13"
I am sur ethis has been discussed before but still would be glad of you advice.
Seven SV 2002
Currently on Yokohama A021 185/60 R14 , there seems to be a dearth of replacement tyres on 14"
Therefore I am thinking to buy some 13" wheels for track days and road use can you please advise how to proceed on the necessary tyre size and to keep the same ride height, I am not necessarily looking for more grip
Gavin
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lotus twin cam cylinder head
Hi, I've given up trying to find a decent used lotus twin cam cylinder head and have acknowledged the best and therefore most expensive way is to buy a new casting. There are several retailers with varying price tags attached to their heads. Does anyone have experience of this approach? Clearly post purchase machine work on guides and seats is expected but to discover a need to correct casting faults is something I really wouldn't want to tackle. Kind regards and my thanks.
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Steering vibration under braking
Could anyone help me with my problem of steering vibration under braking ?
The car is an r300d with the original tyres and plenty of tread left on the fronts with 4000 miles on the clock.
It seemed to all start after the car went to c Midlands for a service last year ....the car came back with wheels incorrectly balanced ,car returned and rebalance better but not right then took it to another garage finally got the wheels balanced correctly !!!
But now I'm getting vibration when braking ???
what could this be ?and how to fix it ?
Many thanks David
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Norwegian road trip 2016?
Hi, I am a new member of Lotus7 club. I have a 1999 Supersport K-serie. Me and my wife are going to UK in late June early July on vacation. We wonder if any are interested in swapping cars this summer for a few days. It does not have to happen at the same time, but our Seven is available from April to October ( if we avoid too much snow) Regards Mr & Mrs Jensen. Feel free to contact us.
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Charlie Beaton
I'm lookin for a drivers seat for my 2002 roadsport,(heavy last owner).Standard black leather,i've got the runners.Anyone out there?
Also i've got a knock from the diff especially when the car/oil is hot,which would make sense I suppose.The car has only done 12.000mls,which is dissappointing,or is it normal to hear this as the diff is bolted directly to the chassis.Any info gratefully received.Charlie.
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Latest Entry
Lord Sutch
A place to store some pictures of the project...
(actually I have a Facebook Page for this project
"Lord Sutch SB1488" )
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Regulations & bated breath
Seems a long time since the last blog post, so I wonder where the month has gone.
the Curborough regulations and championship regulations have been submitted, with the permits for both Curborough rounds coming through quite quickly, but still chasing the championship permit.
Championship entries are steadily coming in but looks like I'll be digging up some incriminating photo's for those who have not sent one in. Over 30 signed up already in the first week, and tonight the online payment system has gone live.
the event regulations have started coming out and notices being pushed out to competitors using the new mailing list system, it's surprising how many members change there email address but don't let Sam the members Secretary know, so there emails bounce.
like many, I used to assume that changing the forum email address changes the membership details the club uses to keep in contact, but that's not the case.
last weekend saw us taking advantage of the free MSA training, each year they focus on different focus groups, this year was based around unlicenced officials, nothing wrong with not being licenced , but these are volunteers fulfill everything from Secretary of the meeting, comp Sec and every other volunteer role you can think of which does not require a licence.
some good thought provoking challenges from both the participants and the MSA trainers.
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Fatman in Black and his Seven go Sprinting
So this will be a very irregular and self deprecating look at the 2016 Speed Championship from an aged Fatman and his new Black race suit !!!
Over the years my Seven has been either an SV ( Zena) roaming Glen,Mountain Pass or B road anywhere and everywhere ,and then after a brief break I gained a more Track focused version (FiFi)
And after a dalliance with Classic car racing I wanted to spend more than the odd weekend on a trackday
When the regulations in Class 5 opened up a bit this year and FiFi was not over powered all the signs pointed to a campaign to make the likes of Simon Rogers , Mark Durrant and Shaun Elwell realise what true driving potential was - I can hear them quaking in their little piixe boots now ( guess you do quake when you laugh too much)
So Up to this point I have taken a bank balance and reduced it by having a bright yellow cage fitted down at Caged Laser and I am trying to purchase a trailer shower cap from SBFS - 5 days and waiting for a return e mail to let me know if they want my money
GP Racewear did me a great deal on the only size 66 suit they had and this means I am all in black
Granted since buying I have lost weight and the 64 would have got around my belly after all
The MSA sent my license out after the online application and that was in my sweaty mits within 3 days and I have just handed over the £25 for a tee shirt and a the series entry
And whilst I never thought it would happen I have bought a tent ( as the last one ended up in a bin in the car park at Trac Mon
I am booked on the Intro to sprinting day ( I will be sandbagging my times so that I can hide my light under a bushell) and I am testing at Blyton on the First of April ( yes Ironic )
So that's where we are up to . Hopefully I will remember to post and encourage other novices to follow through in the future
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IGGY - Replacement radiator grille
Having suffered stone damage to the radiator last year, I decided to have the original radiator re-cored. In order to prevent further damage in the future I decided to replace the radiator grille as well. The original grille consisted of the '7' symbol and a few horizontal bars, and wasn't particularly stone proof!
The new one has a '7' symbol but with a metal mesh which completely fills the nose opening.
Unfortunately the locating prongs on the new grille didn't all coincide with the positions of the existing securing holes in the nose cone. This was soon resolved by slightly elongating two of the locating holes with a small needle file, especially bought for the purpose. I'm beginning the amass quite a collection of tools now, all as a result of 'fettling' IGGY!
The new 'all black' grille in place. I think the '7' and its surround needs to be painted yellow to match the nose-cone band.
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Latest Entry
Front off side wheel overheating 1988 crossflow
Hi my front off side wheel overheating could it be the caliper?, i have jacked it up the wheel spins ok there isn't any play, if i have to change the bearings do i need special tools or can i re grease them, thanks in advance.
