Kedlestone

iTrader: (9)

Has anyone made the move from Impreza ownership to Catherams? If so was there anything you wished you'd known after buying? Good/bad points?

Have been offered an ex academy car which has been well taken care of, long history and in great condition. Even comes with a trailer.

My plans for my Widetrack were to just use as a trackday/sprint car. I very rarely take it out on other times, only to keep the oil circulating and blow the cobwebs off.

The big pull to me with the caterham is its fully track ready and consumables and running costs are less than half than on the Impreza.

Being an academy car it's the basic 125hp engine which equates to roughly just over 200 bhp per ton without driver. People tell me even that little amount of power is enough to have fun, but having never driven one I can't say.

Any experiences?

Wingnuttzz

I keep having similar thoughts, also thinking about an Elise or VX220.

scoobiepaul

I had the same issues as you, but a T25 spec c tempted me to stay in the subaru fold, plus I am nearly 60 year's old and might have problems getting out of a Caterham.

Hatch WRX

iTrader: (1)

I went the other way and chopped my Se7en in for my first Subaru!
No regrets either.
A very different experience obviously.
I was not really using the Se7en enough whereas I jump into the Scoob at any time.
I find the Scoob faster overall but the Se7en was a different kind of rush!

domino46

I was tempted by one until I tried to get in and out and found it to hard

pacenote

Hodgy on here is your man as he has one

Mick Fletcher

I've a 2L Zetec 224 bhp powered 7 which i've owned for 18 years and only use on the road these days. I run 13" wheels with soft compound Yoko 48R's 185 front & 205 rear, have Alcon 4 pot calipers on the front, no heater, no doors and no screen. Still on the original suspension with adjustable platforms but changing to Nitrons soon.

Yours being an academy car it will be ready for the track as is. If it's got a screen get rid of it as you'll increase to top end a touch and they weigh loads compared to a plastic wind deflator. The Lotus 7 club is good with loads of advice and regular area meets.

Basically they are a big go kart with no creature comforts.

scoobiepaul

"Basically they are a big go kart with no creature comforts."


That similar to what I said about my car, but it is a lot heavier with
some creature comforts.

hodgy0_2

Lol not an actual 7, but a kit car equivalent - a Tiger Cat

But echo the sentiments of getting in an out - a challenge for the oldies

Mine has a few mode that make everyday driving easier - namely a wider footwell

The problem is, even with the most optimistic outlook they are a challenge to use all year round

In a way an Elise would be a better alternaive

Ian

iTrader: (10)

use to have a 450+ bhp classic, sold that and a little time later had a aries megablade (fireblade bike engine)

it was very good fun, topped out around 120mph, 0-60 was not as fast as my classic, but damm it felt 100x faster with your butt a couple of inches off the floor and the full on raw feeling etc

I sold that as it was just not getting used much at all, it had 888 all round and it took some driving to get good heat into them, and as soon as it was damp, the traction was gone and all most scary to drive in the wet.

sold that and came back to the scoobs, this time a jdm sti bug

edit to say..

the kit car was sooooooo cheap to keep and run, cheap tax, fuel, parts, very easy to work on etc.

Kedlestone

iTrader: (9)

Thanks for all the inputs guys.

Actually had a sit in a Sigma Engined Graduate car today at the Autosport show, turns out I don't actually need the SV model for my height

hodgy0_2

I will second this

they are so light they do not stress the suspension/braking components much

also because they have no electronic aids - ABS etc they have little to actually fail an MOT on

mine has sailed thru its MOT for the last 10 years, and I have spent literally nothing on it, apart from a new exhaust back box and an indicator bulb (and I keep cracking the rear number plate for some reason)

but again because everything is so easy to get to - working on them is actually a real pleasure

Fonzey

iTrader: (5)

Thread is quite relevant to me... I was at a turning point with my Sub, either go hardcore track car or move it on and try something else.

My "end destination" seems to be a "7" style car, but I wanted to head in that direction without going all the way...

I've just put a deposit down on a 2006 111R Elise. Less than half the BHP my Subaru had but is what I'd consider the "proper" formula for a track car. Can drive it to/home from circuit in any weather, it's light on consumables and a fairly quick car out of the box.

I've not even collected the car yet and so far the community is blowing me away. After joining an owners club or two I've unlocked mentally cheap insurance, cheap trackdays (20-30% cheaper than Javelin) and the most active "sunday" activity community I've seen for a while, such as sunday drives and meets.

Hopefully the car lives up to the community, but so far - so good

BenWRXSEI

Just get a tow-bar fitted to the Subaru. Job jobbed



Mine's another 7-style kit, an old narrow-body Westfield running a Fiat Lampredi twin-cam. 160bhp and 600kg is plenty fun. No seats, interior, carpets, windscreen, heater... in all honesty it's a bit of a handful on the road, but as I use it mainly for sprints I've gone for a more track-orientated setup. It's certainly about as raw a driving experience as you can get. I'd recommend getting a drive in one before you decide, it's such a different drive compared to pretty much anything that it's not for everyone. Can be fairly terrifying in the wet!

Kedlestone

iTrader: (9)

There's a fully caged track ready Westfield for sale not far from me which is tempting me to go and have a look. Priced nicely so leaves enough left for a decent towing car and trailer.

One thing that does worry me is I don't have a garage yet so any car will have to put up with a cover at the best. A garage build is on the cards but I'm waiting on funds being free which are tied up in property currently.

BenWRXSEI

Yeah worth a look. If you're anywhere near me I'll happily take you for a spin (at least, when I put it back together....)

A friend of mine is in the same boat as you, he's about to start building a large shed to house his MK Indy.

Kedlestone

iTrader: (9)

Just realised we've met before, or the PH forum

Kedlestone

iTrader: (9)

Well off to see a Tiger Avon Hayabusa tomorrow, looking forward to it.

steve05wrx

Hi,
Now that's an interesting car!
Had a Tiger Super Six with a blueprinted Ford 2l pinto engine - that was plenty fast enough.
The bike engined cars really interest me and once we leave Middle East and live back in the UK, I will buy a Tesla and a bike engined kit car!
Cheers
Steve

BenWRXSEI

Small virtual world

Good luck with the viewing. I've passengered in a Hayabusa 7 a couple of times, certainly a memorable experience!

Kedlestone

iTrader: (9)

Well it was a lovely car. Ticks many boxes. The only issue I had was space. The pedals were to close for my driving position. I think part of the issue was the seat was raised slightly and the back of it was more laid back than upright so it moved my legs forward when sitting in.

I sat in the passengers side well which had no seat to get an idea if there was enough space if I swapped out the seat, sure enough it was a much better fit.

As it was not road legal and happened to be blocked in the garage by a few other cars, I didn't take it out so still unknown to the driving experience, although to be honest with the seat the way it was I'm not sure I would of felt totally comfortable anyway.

So bit unsure where to go from here really...I could either go for another viewing and try and drive it around the car park and then take the gamble on re-engineering the seat position after buying or walk away I guess?

Just a little worried if there is the space with a change or seat, if not I'm left with something I can't drive!?

BenWRXSEI

When I first had mine on track I struggled massively with the positioning of the pedals. They felt too close together for comfort and I kept hitting the brake pedal by accident. After scratching my head and considering reconfiguring the pedal box I bought a pair of OMP karting boots. Best way I can describe them is like foot gloves (!) - they're so much more delicate and solved all my issues.

In terms of seating, get a single-layer GRP seat in there and just bolt it to the floor in your favoured position. You'll fit fine. Definitely get a drive before purchasing through - the bike engine vs car engine debate is very much down to personal preference and it may not be for you. I'd suggest joining the Locost Builders forum and bung a post up seeing if anyone local can take you for a spin - they're a friendly bunch

Kedlestone

iTrader: (9)

Thanks.

Yeah just joined them actually and posted the same questions.

It does have a GRP seat in it already, it's just bolted in where the previous driver sat. As long as there is the room then I'm fine with bolting the seat straight to the floor.

steve05wrx

Hi,
Funnily enough - I changed the seats on my Tiger - because my wife could not reach the pedals.
I bought adjustable seat rails, fitted them and then fitted really nice seats from a company in Telford.
This made it more comfortable for me to drive and also allowed seat to slide forward - so that wife could also drive it.
Cheers
Steve

Ian

iTrader: (10)

a good forum and lots of info on here

http://www.locostbuilders.co.uk/front.php