Shaun_E

205/60R13 info please . Yellow SL #32

I have 250lb front springs and 150lb rears which seems to work well although it took a while to get the understeer dialled out. I could be tempted with 225lb fronts. The 250/215 setup is typical of a race/track car but does not work so well on road or on many sprints/hillclimbs where the surface is far bumpier than a race circuit. The good thing about adjustable dampers is that you can run a nice soft setup for the road and then when you get to the track or sprint venue adjust the damping to suit the course. I have started to keep a record of the settings I use at each venue so my starting point when I arrive is to set the damping to what worked well last time. I can then adjust to suit conditions. Yellow SL #32

Read this thread here where I asked the same question. Yellow SL #32

Don't bother with 8" rears unless you have over 200bhp to deploy - it'll understeer for England unless you make major setup changes Yellow SL #32

I've never driven a 7 on 16" wheels so can't comment on that but if you do decide to change to 13" rims then I would go for the Caterham 8 spokes. They are pretty light and don't cost much more than Minators (Minilight style). For appropriate tyres just search for and read a few of the many threads on that subject. For sticky(ish) tyres you can choose between Avon CR500 (my favourite road tyre), Yokohama A048R or A021R, or Toyo R888. It would probably be sensible to fit adjustable platforms if moving to 13" wheels as you could end up with your sump uncomfortably close to the ground. You don't say what engine you have but, if its a K-series and you want to do track days, then I would suggest that an Apollo tank is the minimum protection you should fit, especially if you get stickier tyres. Don't be in a huge rush for upgrades though - drive the car for a while until you decide what the real limiting factors are for you - and then go for it 😬 Yellow SL #32

Mine will be in the post as soon as Gill has filled hers out - 2 more for class 5. Yellow SL #32

Bizarrely, although the MOT does have a check for number plates, it doesn't include the size . Details here Yellow SL #32

When I finally get around to fitting the new dash I have in the garage, I have some double sided sticky foam from Halfords. My plan was to use this and a couple of bolts/screws so that I can easily remove it if required. The bolts will locate it and the sticky foam will damp any vibrations yet still be fairly easily removed. I even toyed with the idea of using velcro which is I think what Norman (can I say that name here ) used for his. Yellow SL #32

Search on here for Power Vamp or Odyssey and you'll find several threads with the details. They can be posted to you so no need for a local supplier. They are actually absorbed acid batteries not gelmode> Yellow SL #32

Just for comparison here are my Caterham c/f 13" wings with race stays. Looking at this picture is the first time I've thought that they don't look great. Tyres are CR500s 175/55R13. Yellow SL #32 Edited by - Shaun_E on 31 Jan 2007 22:27:55

Download gearcalc - it has the gear ratios for type 9 boxes in it as and the Caterham 6 speed. Yellow SL #32

Simon - thanks for thinking of me. I'm still debating whether to get an additional set of wheels and tyres or run the same as I did last year. I obviously don't want to run soft Kumhos as my every day tyre. I'll be driving to events but believe I could get away with a set of Kumhos to drive to events/compete and my CR500s for all other times. I'll get back to you one way or the other on Friday. Switching between Kumhos and CR500s would result in a different rake requirement - that might be an issue for me. Terry - grip will almost certainly be significantly higher with the soft compound Kumhos than with the CR500s. Yellow SL #32

Measure the distance from the centre (where it mounts on the hub) to the top surface of where the wing is glued/bolted. The 13"/14" stays should be about 325mm. Yellow SL #32

Even with the ARB drop link reversed, under very hard cornering (on track days) I still find the link touches the tyre . For most driving though that is the solution. Yellow SL #32

Regarding water to use for dilution I normally get the deionised stuff from Halfords as it doesn't cost much. You could filter your own I guess. I don't know if it matters but having seen what Thames Valley water does to our taps and kettle I didn't think it would be great in an engine! Yellow SL #32

Rob, Some of the water companies lifted the ban this week. See here. Shaun Yellow SL #32

Rob - I've been using that for the last few years including in my new engine. I used to use propelyene glycol as it's less hazardous but when my local supplier of that disappeared I switched to the Halfords one (after flushing the old stuff out). I would flush as much of the old stuff out as you can with water, drain and then fill up with this stuff. I use a 50:50 mix. Yellow SL #32

And get it made in the lightweight fabric - takes up less than half the space of a vinyl one. Yellow SL #32

Not available at Halfords but some places sell them (e.g. Demon Tweeks) but I doubt you'll get cheaper than ordering direct. Do a Blatchat search as someone was organising bulk buys recently. I'm using the Optimate III which is fine on my 14Ah Red Top 15 but for the standard Banner battery (30Ah I think) you might want to get the Accumate as that is designed for batteries up to 75Ah (the Optimate is only rated for batteries up to 28Ah). In my opinion its a good piece of kit which "does what it says on the tin". Yellow SL #32

You can get 5 3/4" lights from SVC. Yellow SL #32

I haven't had to "persuade" mine but perhaps the original owner did. The tyres do catch on the wings when fitting but once on they clear everything OK. Yellow SL #32

CR500's in 175/55 13" should fit under the race stays. In fact I have also used A021R in 185/60 and A048R in 185/60 as well. It's a tight squeeze but they all fitted OK. Yellow SL #32

Like David I just haven't got round to it. The aggravation factor of removing them, sending them back, waiting for replacements and refitting just isn't worth it. No I haven't contacted SVC - sadly I have just come to accept that many suppliers in the Caterham world get it wrong from time to time and while many (most?) try to be helpful in sorting problems, in the main the problem just shouldn't have been there in the first place. I have no doubt SVC would replace the lights if I asked but that doesn't compensate for the hassle factor. It won't stop me buying from SVC again but I will be checking more carefully what I buy. Yellow SL #32

I bought a pair of black ones a couple of years ago The cables on mine were barely long enough with the result that my connectors are hard up against the headlight mounting bracket. Mine regularly mist up and leak to the extent that bulbs have blown due to contact with water. I had terrible problems adjusting one of them as the metal tab inside the bowl bent (the tab stops the bowl from rotating as you do up the large nut underneath). All in all, not a great experience for me. The powder coating is good though and in operation they are quite bright (especially with the "Xenon" upgrade). Yellow SL #32

Gulf colours seen dropping off/picking up by my wife. Yellow SL #32