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Caterham Cars is a British manufacturer of specialist lightweight sports cars established in
Caterham Caterham () is a town in the Tandridge District of Surrey, England. The town is administratively divided into two: Caterham on the Hill, and Caterham Valley, which includes the main town centre in the middle of a dry valley but rises to equal ...
, England, with their headquarters in
Dartford Dartford is the principal town in the Borough of Dartford, Kent, England. It is located south-east of Central London and is situated adjacent to the London Borough of Bexley to its west. To its north, across the Thames estuary, is Thurrock in ...
, England. Their current model, the
Caterham 7 The Caterham 7 (or Caterham Seven) is a super-lightweight sports car produced by Caterham Cars in the United Kingdom. It is based on the Lotus Seven, a lightweight sports car sold in kit and factory-built form by Lotus Cars, from 1957 to 1972. A ...
(or Seven), originally launched in 1973, is a direct evolution of the Series 3
Lotus Seven The Lotus Seven is a small, simple, lightweight, two-seater, open-top, open-wheel, sports car produced by the British manufacturer Lotus Cars (initially called Lotus Engineering) between 1957 and 1972. It was designed by Lotus founder Colin Cha ...
designed by
Colin Chapman Anthony Colin Bruce Chapman (19 May 1928 – 16 December 1982) was an English design engineer, inventor, and builder in the automotive industry, and founder of Lotus Cars. In 1952 he founded the sports car company Lotus Cars. Chapman ...
. In the 1990s the company made the
Caterham 21 The Caterham 21 is a two-seat roadster designed and hand built by Caterham Cars in the 1990s. It was based on the mechanicals of the Caterham 7 and was intended to be a more practical version of that car with more conventional sports car styli ...
, a two-seater soft top alternative to the MGF and
Lotus Elise The Lotus Elise is a two-seat, rear-wheel drive, mid-engined roadster conceived in early 1994 and released in September 1996 by the British manufacturer Lotus Cars. The Elise has a fibreglass body shell atop its bonded extruded aluminium chas ...
, (which both sold many more units). A track-only car, the SP/300.R, a joint project with
Lola Lola may refer to: Places * Lolá, a or subdistrict of Panama * Lola Township, Cherokee County, Kansas, United States * Lola Prefecture, Guinea * Lola, Guinea, a town in Lola Prefecture * Lola Island, in the Solomon Islands People * Lola (fo ...
was released for customer testing in 2010 and was scheduled for release in 2013. On 27 April 2011,
Team Lotus Team Lotus was the motorsport sister company of English sports car manufacturer Lotus Cars. The team ran cars in many motorsport categories including Formula One, Formula Two, Formula Ford, Formula Junior, IndyCar, and sports car racing. More ...
owner
Tony Fernandes Anthony Francis Fernandes (born 30 April 1964) is a Malaysian entrepreneur. He is the founder of Tune Air Sdn. Bhd., which took over the first Malaysian budget airline, AirAsia. Fernandes turned AirAsia, a failing government-linked commer ...
announced that he had purchased Caterham. On 2 April 2021, news was leaked that Caterham Cars was acquired outright on 31 March 2021 by VT Holdings, Japanese importer for the Caterham Seven since 2009. As well as being a Caterham importer, VT also imports Lotus cars and Royal Enfield motorcycles into Japan.


History


Lotus origins

Colin Chapman Anthony Colin Bruce Chapman (19 May 1928 – 16 December 1982) was an English design engineer, inventor, and builder in the automotive industry, and founder of Lotus Cars. In 1952 he founded the sports car company Lotus Cars. Chapman ...
's Lotus Cars launched the Series 1
Lotus Seven The Lotus Seven is a small, simple, lightweight, two-seater, open-top, open-wheel, sports car produced by the British manufacturer Lotus Cars (initially called Lotus Engineering) between 1957 and 1972. It was designed by Lotus founder Colin Cha ...
in 1957. The car was immediately embraced by enthusiasts as a low-cost, lightweight sports car and successful race car. Revised Series 2, Series 3 and Series 4 versions were subsequently launched in 1960, 1968 and 1970 respectively. Caterham Cars had been a major Lotus 7 dealer during the 1960s, and its founder, Graham Nearn, purchased the rights to continue manufacture of the Seven design from Chapman in 1973, after Lotus announced its intention to discontinue the model. Caterham initially restarted manufacture of the Lotus Seven Series 4; however, when this proved unpopular, production switched to a Series 3 model in 1974. In 1974, under the name of Seven Cars Limited, Caterham built 20 production cars with chassis numbers 1 to 20 and one prototype, with chassis number 0 (CS3 3550 – CS3 3570). Of the 21 cars produced in the first year, all were fitted with the Ford Lotus Twin Cam 1557cc engine, with the exception of chassis number 7 which, intended for racing, was fitted with a 1962cc twin cam engine sourced from Alfa Romeo. The Lotus/
Caterham 7 The Caterham 7 (or Caterham Seven) is a super-lightweight sports car produced by Caterham Cars in the United Kingdom. It is based on the Lotus Seven, a lightweight sports car sold in kit and factory-built form by Lotus Cars, from 1957 to 1972. A ...
is widely regarded by car enthusiasts and the media as one of the signature sports cars of the 20th century. With 2007 marking the 50th year of continuous production, the Seven still enjoys strong support and success in clubman-style racing. Since 2006 Caterham Cars has been run by an ex-Lotus management team led by Ansar Ali (CEO) and Mark Edwards (COO). In June 2012 Ansar Ali announced he was to leave Caterham Cars and Graham Mcdonald (the company's former CFO) became the new CEO.


Construction

As with its Lotus Seven precursors, Caterhams are constructed of aluminium sheet attached to a tubular steel chassis. Nose cone and wings are either GRP or
carbon fibre Carbon fiber-reinforced polymers (American English), carbon-fibre-reinforced polymers (Commonwealth English), carbon-fiber-reinforced plastics, carbon-fiber reinforced-thermoplastic (CFRP, CRP, CFRTP), also known as carbon fiber, carbon compo ...
depending on specification. All Sevens are front-engined with rear-wheel drive and two seats. Their extremely high performance is achieved through light weight (less than on some versions) rather than particularly powerful engines. As well as a lightweight chassis and bodywork, Caterham Sevens achieve their very low mass through their lack of comfort and safety oriented features such as a fixed roof, doors, radio, air-conditioning, airbags, traction/stability control, ABS, satellite navigation or cruise control. As a result, the Seven is somewhat limited in its practicality for everyday usage and is instead recognised by driving enthusiasts for its focus on driving enjoyment, making it an ideal track/race car or 'Sunday' car.


Kit format

Chapman and Lotus helped to pioneer the British
kit car A kit car is an automobile available as a set of parts that a manufacturer sells and the buyer then assembles into a functioning car. Usually, many of the major mechanical systems such as the engine and transmission are sourced from donor ve ...
industry. The Lotus Seven was offered in kit form to allow buyers to avoid new car tax in the UK. Subsequently, Caterham continued offering cars in 'complete knock down' (CKD) kit form as the tradition of hand building your own Seven was well established amongst enthusiasts. Today, all Caterham Sevens are still offered in kit form in the UK except the CSR (Series 6) model. Modern Caterham kits differ from the majority of
kit car A kit car is an automobile available as a set of parts that a manufacturer sells and the buyer then assembles into a functioning car. Usually, many of the major mechanical systems such as the engine and transmission are sourced from donor ve ...
s as all parts are supplied ready to assemble, not requiring a donor car, fabrication or any special skills.


International

Although the Seven has always been popular with enthusiasts outside of the UK marketplace, export of the Seven to other markets has increasingly been limited by homologation, safety and emissions regulations in the modern era. As a result, the chassis/engine combinations, specifications, pricing and kit-form availability vary widely between countries. In the past in the United States Caterhams were sold as kits only, lacking some modern safety features required of manufacturers, but which are not required for individually assembled vehicles. Buyers could either choose to construct the cars themselves or pay their regional dealers or local builders to assemble them. Typically the engine and transmission are sourced separately as a unit – often from Caterham – but all other components (including frame, suspension, differential, driveshaft, interior, wiring and instruments) were provided in kit form. In the UK, the vehicles can be obtained as kits or entirely assembled by Caterham and registered for the road under IVA (Individual Vehicle Approval) regulations. In the '60s, the original
Lotus Seven The Lotus Seven is a small, simple, lightweight, two-seater, open-top, open-wheel, sports car produced by the British manufacturer Lotus Cars (initially called Lotus Engineering) between 1957 and 1972. It was designed by Lotus founder Colin Cha ...
was sold only in kit form in both the UK and the US, in order to evade the very high taxes on complete new cars that were not assessed on automobile parts.


United States

As of 2014, however, Caterham has named
Superformance Superformance LLC (Superformance Replicars) is an American automobile company that builds, designs, develops, engineers and markets sports cars, related performance components and full replicars. The company was founded as "Superformance Internati ...
their official distributor in the United States. International demand has increased dramatically in part due to the addition of a F1 Race team and the changes in Caterham's structure focusing on the distribution of the Seven worldwide. Caterham has since introduced a new model line up and focused on their production and production times to better suit their new international market, making their partnership with
Superformance Superformance LLC (Superformance Replicars) is an American automobile company that builds, designs, develops, engineers and markets sports cars, related performance components and full replicars. The company was founded as "Superformance Internati ...
possible. Sevens will be shipped to the US in part-built form and sold as rolling chassis via Superformance's nationwide dealer network for customers to then complete the build personally or through the Superformance dealership. The initial US line-up includes several Caterham Sevens: 280, 360, 480, and the 620R.


Location

Until 1987 the offices, factory and showroom of Caterham Cars were located in the town of Caterham, Surrey. In 1987, the production and administration of the company moved to a new factory in
Dartford, Kent Dartford is the principal town in the Borough of Dartford, Kent, England. It is located south-east of Central London and is situated adjacent to the London Borough of Bexley to its west. To its north, across the Thames estuary, is Thurrock in E ...
. Caterham Cars retained a ''Caterham South'' showroom and servicing facility in the town of
Caterham Caterham () is a town in the Tandridge District of Surrey, England. The town is administratively divided into two: Caterham on the Hill, and Caterham Valley, which includes the main town centre in the middle of a dry valley but rises to equal ...
adjacent to the railway station until February 2013. The Caterham dealership closed after the premises were sold for development and the showroom relocated to temporary facilities in Crawley. Additionally the ''Caterham Midlands'' showroom operates outside
Leicester Leicester ( ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, city, Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority and the county town of Leicestershire in the East Midlands of England. It is the largest settlement in the East Midlands. The city l ...
. In 2012 elements of Caterham Cars moved into a new facility in
Leafield Leafield is a village and civil parish about northwest of Witney in West Oxfordshire. The parish includes the hamlet of Langley, west of Leafield village. The 2011 Census recorded the parish's population as 945. The village is above sea lev ...
, Oxfordshire, where it is expected the new models of cars to be produced in the future will be developed and built. This new facility was formerly used by the Arrows F1 team and the
Super Aguri F1 Super Aguri F1 was a Formula One team that competed from to . The team, founded by former F1 driver Aguri Suzuki, was based in Tokyo, Japan, but operated from the former Arrows Grand Prix International, Arrows factory at the Leafield Technical ...
team. The Leafield site also accommodated the
Caterham F1 The Caterham F1 Team was a Malaysian, later British owned Formula One team based in the United Kingdom which raced under a Malaysian licence. The Caterham brand competed in the Formula One World Championship from to , following the acquisiti ...
team, which moved from its original base in
Hingham, Norfolk Hingham is a market town and civil parish in mid-Norfolk, England. The civil parish covers an area of and had a population of 2,078 in 944 households at the time of the 2001 Census, increasing to 2,367 at the 2011 Census. Grand architecture su ...
and competed in Formula One between the
2012 File:2012 Events Collage V3.png, From left, clockwise: The passenger cruise ship Costa Concordia lies capsized after the Costa Concordia disaster; Damage to Casino Pier in Seaside Heights, New Jersey as a result of Hurricane Sandy; People gather ...
and 2014 seasons.


Caterham 21

In 1994 Caterham also produced a model called the '21'. Mechanically the 21 was very similar to the 7, using a modified 7 spaceframe chassis with a new GRP roadster-style body, including a wrap-around windscreen and fold-away fabric hood (convertible top) manufactured by Oxted Trimming Company. The 21 benefited from a considerably stiffer setup than a 7, due to the work on the chassis and having a full body. Comfort was introduced in the same minimalist style as the 7, adding just enough to make it a proper roadster without adding too much weight. Caterham, however, underestimated the effort involved in creating a completely new car and took far too long from its inception to deliver the first customer cars, seeing many people who had placed deposits defect to the Lotus Elise and other vehicles. Early ones were used as "prototypes", leaving customers to help iron out some of the foibles of the new car. The 21 never sold particularly well, with only 48 ever made. It had moderate racing success in the Belcar 24-hour series in Europe and is credited with helping Caterham develop the widetrack setup used in SVs (amongst other developments) and the CSR's sweeping interior is reminiscent of the original 21 design.


Caterham SP/300.R

The SP/300.R is a new track-only model designed by Caterham alongside
Lola Cars Lola Cars International Ltd. was a British race car engineering company in operation from 1958 to 2012. The company was founded by Eric Broadley in Bromley, England (then in Kent, now part of Greater London), before moving to new premises in S ...
. The SP/300.R is a limited edition with limited production to 25 per annum.


Caterham 7 model line-up


Chassis variants

In 2010 Caterham offers three different chassis variants in the UK.


Series 3 (S3)

The most popular variant retains the same dimensions and layout of the Lotus 7 Series 3.


Series 5 (SV)

Caterham introduced this variant in 2000 to accommodate larger drivers (space is restricted in the S3 for drivers over tall.) Although visually very similar to the S3, the SV is longer, taller and wider and has significantly more space for taller and broader drivers with the added benefits of more luggage space, a larger fuel tank and more stability. The SV chassis is heavier than the S3.


CSR (Series 6)

The CSR was launched in 2005 following extensive research and development by Caterham with the objective of creating an improved Seven. The CSR is based on the larger dimensions of the SV but with a substantially revised and stiffer chassis, inboard 'pushrod' front suspensions, fully independent rear suspension, improved aerodynamics, potent
Cosworth Cosworth is a British automotive engineering company founded in London in 1958, specialising in high-performance internal combustion engines, powertrain, and electronics for automobile racing (motorsport) and mainstream automotive industrie ...
engines and a new 'integrated' dashboard layout.


Model/trim variants


Classic

The most basic version of the 7 was traditionally offered with a 'live' rear axle but now comes with
De Dion tube De Dion rear axle A de Dion tube is a form of non-independent automobile suspension. It is a considerable improvement over the swing axle, Hotchkiss drive, or live axle. Because it plays no part in transmitting power to the drive wheels, it is ...
rear suspension found in other models of the same range. This trim level strips away all non-essential equipment and comforts. * Classic trim is available on S3/SV chassis * Engines: 1.4-litre K-Series (105 bhp) or 1.6-litre K-Series (120 bhp).


Roadsport

Roadsport is the trim level intended for general usage, different weather conditions and touring. The spec includes a full windscreen and weather equipment to increase practicality. A large range of performance options are available. The Roadsport dates back to 1996 when it was called the Superlight R, in 1998 a much softer version came out called the Seven Clubsport 1.8. The range continued to be developed in the years as a great alternative to someone who wanted a little bit more than a Classic, but less than a Superlight. * Classic trim is available on S3/SV chassis * Engines: 1.6-litre Ford Sigma (120,125 or 150 bhp) or 2.0-litre Ford Duratec (175 bhp).


= Roadsport A

= Roadsport A cars are ex-Academy cars, with no engine upgrades. However a number of performance upgrades such removing the windscreens and lights, widetrack front suspension and uprated dampers are allowed, as is professional team support. RSA races at the same events as RSB, but has longer 30-minute races.


= Roadsport B

= Roadsport B is largely for drivers that have come through the previous season's Academy. Some minor modifications are permitted to the car, including fitting a rear anti-roll bar and sticky Avon CR500 tyres. Technical support is still provided by the factory, and professional team support is not permitted. RSB has 20-minute races at 7 or 8 'double-header' meetings over the course of the season, usually all in the UK.


Superlight

The Superlight is intended for track and fast road usage. Superlight spec includes performance options such as carbon bodywork and a close ratio 6-speed gearbox. A wind deflector in place of the windscreen makes a helmet more or less mandatory. The Superlight R400 uses a 2.0 litre Ford Duratec engine tuned to . The R400 name indicates the car's 400 bhp-per-tonne power-to-weight ratio. * Superlight trim is available on S3/SV chassis * Engines: 1.6-litre Ford Sigma (150 bhp) or 2.0-litre Ford Duratec (175 bhp, 210 bhp or 263 bhp).


= Superlight R300

= The Superlight R300 was introduced for 2009, designed to bridge the gap between RSA and the existing Superlight R400 class. It is expected to be popular with experienced RSA racers wanting to move on to the next level in speed.


= Superlight R400

= The Superlight R400 series is Caterham Motorsport's premier British championship. The R400 is a 220 bhp Cosworth powered dedicated race car with a Quaife six-speed sequential gearbox replacing the standard Caterham unit used in the R300. As with all series above Academy, it runs on Avon CR500 tyres. 2009 Champion Dan Denis, Matt Blyth Racing


= Superlight R500

= The Superlight R500 series is the latest of Caterham Motorsport's Superlight series of RSA Racing cars. Powered by a 2.0-litre
Ford Duratec Duratec is a brand name of the Ford Motor Company used for the company's range of gasoline-powered four-cylinder, five-cylinder and six-cylinder passenger car engines. The original 1993 Duratec V6 engine was designed by Ford and Porsche. Ford ...
engine producing maximum horsepower (bhp/rpm) of 263 bhp @ 8500rpm and maximum torque (lb.ft/rpm) of 177 lb.ft @ 7200rpm. With a weight of 506 kg (516 kg) and a sequential gearbox, it is capable of 0–60 mph in 2.88 seconds and a
power-to-weight ratio Power-to-weight ratio (PWR, also called specific power, or power-to-mass ratio) is a calculation commonly applied to engines and mobile power sources to enable the comparison of one unit or design to another. Power-to-weight ratio is a measuremen ...
of 520 bhp-per-tonne. Advertised top speed 150 mph. The R500 has been made ''
Top Gear Top Gear may refer to: * "Top gear", the highest gear available in a vehicle's manual transmission Television * ''Top Gear'' (1977 TV series), a British motoring magazine programme * ''Top Gear'' (2002 TV series), a relaunched version of the or ...
'' car of the year 2008. In another appearance earlier in the series, it placed fifth on the Power Lap board with a 1:17.9. This time beat the €1,100,000 (£899,000/$1,550,000), 1001 hp
Bugatti Veyron The Bugatti Veyron EB 16.4 is a mid-engine sports car, designed and developed in Germany by the Volkswagen Group and Bugatti and manufactured in Molsheim, France, by French automobile manufacturer Bugatti. It was named after the racing driver Pie ...
.


= Superlight R600

= In October 2012 a supercharged model for a race-series above the R300-class was released, including slick tyres and a sequential gearbox.


= Superlight 620R

= In September 2013 Caterham made a car called the 620R. It was based on the R500, but was
supercharged In an internal combustion engine, a supercharger compresses the intake gas, forcing more air into the engine in order to produce more power for a given displacement. The current categorisation is that a supercharger is a form of forced induct ...
. This increased the power output to at 7,700 rpm and the
torque In physics and mechanics, torque is the rotational equivalent of linear force. It is also referred to as the moment of force (also abbreviated to moment). It represents the capability of a force to produce change in the rotational motion of th ...
to at 7,350 rpm. It also reduced the 0– time to 2.79 seconds. It has a power-weight ratio of 568 bhp-per-tonne and a top speed of 155 mph.


CSR

The CSR chassis comes in two basic trims which mirror those of the S3/SV cars. The 'basic' CSR has a road and touring oriented spec with full windscreen and weather equipment. This is available as the CSR200 (200 bhp) or CSR260 (260 bhp). The CSR Superlight (also 260 bhp) is the current Caterham performance flagship strips away the windscreen, integrated dash and other comfort-oriented components for maximum performance, with specialist 'Dynamic dampers' added to improve its already phenomenal grip. The 'basic' CSR set an unofficial time of 1.17.4 on the BBC Top Gear test track at Dunsfold, placing it ahead of many of the world's most expensive performance cars. * Engines: 2.3-litre Ford Duratec tuned by Cosworth (200 bhp or 260 bhp)


RS Performance RST-V8 engine

The 'Caterham Levante', built by RS Performance Engine Developments Ltd. (RS=Russell Savory), is a mostly-carbon-fibre bodied Caterham, with Kevlar seats, combined with an "over 500bhp" 2.4-litre, 40-valve supercharged V8 and a reduced body weight of , boasts almost per tonne (initial announced specifications were and , but the RS website specifies "in excess of 500bhp," and or ; the math may or may not achieve "over per tonne"). The eight cars, costing £115,000, sold out and only eight will be produced to celebrate more than 50 years in production. Two days' of mandatory "driver training" are included in the price of the car.


Kit build

All of the 2008 model line-up is available as a 'CKD' complete kit for build by the owner, with the exception of CSR models.


Engines

Historically, engines have been supplied by Ford, specifically
Ford Kent engine The Ford Kent is an internal combustion engine from Ford of Europe. Originally developed in 1959 for the Ford Anglia, it is an in-line four-cylinder pushrod engine with a cast-iron cylinder head and block. The Kent family can be divided into th ...
s or
Cosworth Cosworth is a British automotive engineering company founded in London in 1958, specialising in high-performance internal combustion engines, powertrain, and electronics for automobile racing (motorsport) and mainstream automotive industrie ...
-derived race-prepared BDA/R units, enlarged to 1.7 litres and generating 150–170 bhp. In the early '90s, Caterham started using powerplants from other sources, with the least expensive models using 1.4-litre
K series K series may refer to: * Lincoln K series, a line of luxury vehicle *Scania K series, a series of bus chassis with longitudinal rear-mounted engines *Skoda K series, a heavy howitzer *K series engine (disambiguation) *International Harvester K and ...
engines from
MG Rover MG Rover Group was the last domestically owned mass-production car manufacturer in the British motor industry. The company was formed when BMW sold the car-making and engine manufacturing assets of the original Rover Group to the Phoenix Cons ...
for the base model, and
Vauxhall Vauxhall ( ) is a district in South West London, part of the London Borough of Lambeth, England. Vauxhall was part of Surrey until 1889 when the County of London was created. Named after a medieval manor, "Fox Hall", it became well known for ...
engines including full race versions of the 16 valve 2.0XE "red top" as fitted to 1990 Vauxhall Works Touring Cars. Rover engines span a power output of 110–250 bhp in the R500 Evolution, Vauxhall engines to in some factory built versions of the car. A Caterham JPE (Jonathan Palmer Evolution) briefly held the world record for production car 0–60 mph times (at 3.4 seconds) until it was bettered by the $1.2M
McLaren F1 The McLaren F1 is a sports car designed and manufactured by British automobile manufacturer McLaren Cars, and powered by the BMW S70/2 V12 engine. The original concept was conceived by Gordon Murray. Murray was able to convince Ron Dennis to ...
(Nowadays, you can buy one for about 18-20 million dollars). The many aftermarket tuning companies for these cars have also offered the
Ford Zetec Ford Motor Company used the Zetec name on a variety of inline 4-cylinder automobile engines. It was coined to replace "Zeta" on a range of 1.6 L to 2.0 L multi-valve engines introduced in 1991 because Ford was threatened with legal acti ...
, Honda Fireblade, Honda Blackbird, Suzuki Hayabusa and even the Mazda Rotary engine. Since 2017, several cars have been built with the direct injection turbo Ford Ecoboost 1.6.litre version of this engine which with a hybrid turbo provides more horsepower than Caterham's own supercharged Duratec, and more torque than any factory car including the V8 Levante. In 2001, Caterham designated
MG Rover MG Rover Group was the last domestically owned mass-production car manufacturer in the British motor industry. The company was formed when BMW sold the car-making and engine manufacturing assets of the original Rover Group to the Phoenix Cons ...
the sole engine supplier for factory-built Sevens, with Ford Zetec, Honda Fireblade, Yamaha R1 and Suzuki Hayabusa engines still available for kit assembly. The Rover engines were based on the
K series K series may refer to: * Lincoln K series, a line of luxury vehicle *Scania K series, a series of bus chassis with longitudinal rear-mounted engines *Skoda K series, a heavy howitzer *K series engine (disambiguation) *International Harvester K and ...
and carried the 'Xpower' branding. However, the partnership evidently came to an end with the collapse of MG Rover, with the 2005 model introducing a
Ford Duratec Duratec is a brand name of the Ford Motor Company used for the company's range of gasoline-powered four-cylinder, five-cylinder and six-cylinder passenger car engines. The original 1993 Duratec V6 engine was designed by Ford and Porsche. Ford ...
engine. Typical powerplant output ranges from to over , depending on specifications and modifications. The gearbox is either the classic
Ford T9 Type 9 (also, Type N, T9, or T-9) is a gearbox from Ford that was used in Ford Capri 1.6, 2.0 1984 onwards, Capri 2.8 1983 onwards, Ford Sierra 1.6, 1.8, 2.0, Sierra XR4i, Sierra XR4x4 2.8 and the Scorpio 4x4 as well as the US market Merkur XR4Ti a ...
five-speed or Caterham's own six-speed box. The T9 is cheap and durable, but has gear ratios meant for a much heavier car. The six-speed gearbox is expensive and had early 'teething' problems, but its ratios are considered the perfect match for the Seven. Independent companies such as
Quaife R.T. Quaife Engineering, Ltd. is a British manufacturer of automotive drivetrain products. It designs and manufactures motorsport and performance orientated gearboxes, gearkits, differentials, steering racks and axle kits, along with many other as ...
do offer replacement gearkits for the T9 as well as sequential boxes for those with a racing fever and the need for a more robust transmission. The most extreme engine/chassis combination available from the factory as of 2013 was the 620r with the 310bhp / 297Nm engine, bringing the car's from zero to in 2.79 seconds. The previous model also held a production car world record for zero to back to zero at 10.73 seconds (faster than many modern family saloons can reach 60), set on 27 April 2004.


Motor racing


Formula One

For the 2012 season,
Team Lotus Team Lotus was the motorsport sister company of English sports car manufacturer Lotus Cars. The team ran cars in many motorsport categories including Formula One, Formula Two, Formula Ford, Formula Junior, IndyCar, and sports car racing. More ...
was officially renamed
Caterham F1 Team The Caterham F1 Team was a Malaysian, later British owned Formula One team based in the United Kingdom which raced under a Malaysian licence. The Caterham brand competed in the Formula One World Championship from to , following the acquisiti ...
. The team continued to compete under this name in the
2013 File:2013 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: Edward Snowden becomes internationally famous for leaking classified NSA wiretapping information; Typhoon Haiyan kills over 6,000 in the Philippines and Southeast Asia; The Dhaka garment fact ...
and 2014 seasons, before financial problems caused it to fold.


GP2 Series

Between 2012 and 2014, Caterham raced in the GP2 series, under the guise
Caterham Racing Caterham Racing is the practice of racing Caterham Seven-type sportscars. History The Caterham Seven (or Caterham 7) is a small sports car produced by Caterham Cars in the United Kingdom. It is based on the Lotus Seven, a lightweight sports ca ...
, which was rebranded from the Caterham Air Asia team that raced in the 2011 season. The team raced under the same Green and Yellow livery as the Formula 1 team. Caterham Racing was used by the company to act as a feeder team towards developing racing drivers for the
Caterham F1 Team The Caterham F1 Team was a Malaysian, later British owned Formula One team based in the United Kingdom which raced under a Malaysian licence. The Caterham brand competed in the Formula One World Championship from to , following the acquisiti ...
, until the company had to cease operations in both series. Initially based in Hingham, the team had moved to the Leafield Technical Centre alongside the Caterham F1 team in August 2012, where they remained until both teams were terminated in 2014.


Caterham Motorsport Ladder

The Caterham Motorsport Ladder is a progression through the various Caterham Cars championships, starting with the Caterham Academy, and moving through ultimately to their most prestigious European events. The championships which form the ladder are:


Caterham Academy

In 1995 the Caterham Academy, a novices-only format, was introduced in the UK as the Caterham Scholarship. For a starting price of £24,995 (2017), entrants get a modified Roadsport kit (a factory-built option is available for extra cost) with a sealed Ford Sigma engine and 5-speed gearbox. Having completed the ARDS (racing) licence qualification, the season then consists of a car-control day, a test day, and the season starts with two sprints, and five circuit races. Since 2000, the popularity of the Academy has led to Caterham providing two parallel Academy championships (Group 1 & Group 2), each resulting in an Academy champion at the end of the year. Approximately 1000 racing drivers have been created through the Caterham Academy.


Karting

At the Autosport International 2012 Caterham announced that it would be creating a karting series starting in 2013. It was stated that the aim of this karting series was to make it easier for people to enter motorsports by providing a cheap karting series in which they could start off.


See also

*
List of car manufacturers of the United Kingdom :''This list is incomplete. You can help by adding correctly sourced information about other manufacturers.'' As of 2018 there are approximately 35 active British car manufacturers and over 500 defunct British car manufacturers. This page lists ...


References


External links


Caterham official website (UK)

Caterham Racing.com

Caterham USA website
{{coord, 51, 16, 55.44, N, 0, 4, 43.15, W, display=title Vehicle manufacturing companies established in 1973 Car manufacturers of the United Kingdom Companies based in Kent
Cars A car or automobile is a motor vehicle with wheels. Most definitions of ''cars'' say that they run primarily on roads, seat one to eight people, have four wheels, and mainly transport people instead of goods. The year 1886 is regarded as t ...
British racecar constructors Sports car manufacturers Kit car manufacturers Lotus Seven replicas 1973 establishments in England