The 40YOC Limited Edition was made in 2013 to celebrate 40 Years of Caterham Cars. Though the Seven has been in production in one form or other since 1957, it became the Caterham 7 in 1973 when Graham Nearn bought the rights to produce the car from Colin Chapman of Lotus. In that time, thousands of Sevens have hit the road, almost every one unique.
The Superlight R300 originally came to the market in 2003 with the Rover K-Series engine. At the time it marked a step change in Caterham’s Superlight range bringing together the lessons learnt from the original Superlight and Superlight R models to create the perfect Caterham. The result was arguably the most popular Caterham ever produced to this day.
The F225 is a specialist edition of the 2.0L Duratec engine used by Caterham, built by well known and highly regarded engine tuners Premier Power.
The Superlight R400 has long been one of Caterham’s most formidable models. Equivalent to a very highly rated 420R, the Superlight R400 offered blistering acceleration and cornering performance, with a power-to-weight ratio of circa 400bhp per tonne.
This interesting Seven was first built in 1994. At the time it came with a 1.4L K-Series engine, but since then it has been significantly modified.
The 1.6 VCT-i Sigma engine superseded the original Sigma in 2014. Offering variable cam timing these later engines produced a little extra torque and power, as well as a small additional improvement on fuel consumption. This meant that the entry level engine increased from 125bhp to 135bhp, and the uprated version of this engine increased from 140bhp to 152bhp. This soon led to the model names being changed from Roadsport and Supersport, to 270 and 310. Unfortunately, this incredibly reliable and diverse engine has now gone out of production and as such is no longer a part of the Caterham range.
The 420R is widely regarded as Caterham’s best overall model from their current range. Its naturally-aspirated 2.0L Duratec engine provides awesome power, sharp throttle response and excellent drivability to go with Caterham’s superb Seven chassis.
The 420 is widely regarded as Caterham’s best overall model from their current range. Its naturally-aspirated 2.0L Duratec engine provides awesome power, sharp throttle response and excellent drivability to go with Caterham’s superb Seven chassis.
The 420 is widely regarded as Caterham’s best overall model from their current range. Its naturally-aspirated 2.0L Duratec engine provides awesome power, sharp throttle response and excellent drivability to go with Caterham’s superb Seven chassis.
The K-Series Superlight R300 is widely regarded as the best model ever to be released by Caterham Cars. Its power, grip, balance, responsiveness and soundtrack all contribute to its overall perfection.
The 310 is Caterham’s beafed-up version of the 1.6l Ford Sigma VCTI engine, increasing the power from the 135bhp found in the 270, to 152bhp. Though it doesn’t sound like much, this extra horsepower really transforms the character and excitement factor when out on the open roads, providing that extra punch right across the rev range.
The Sigma 150 engine was an upgrade to the original Sigma 125. This included higher lift cams, bigger injectors and most importantly, throttle bodies. Not only did this engine produce an additional 25bhp to its stock variant, it transformed the driving experience. Throttle bodies add character in spades, transforming average engines in racing machines, with razor sharp responsiveness and a soundtrack that will send pulses soaring.