We haven’t seen anything new from Caterham recently as the British manufacturer seems to he content with just producing continuation models of their iconic Lotus Seven models.
All that, however, was bound to change and now Caterham has announced that it has plans of unveiling a completely new model at the start of 2011. Details are still sketchy at this point, but Caterham has made it known that their new model is going to signal “the beginning of a new dawn for the Company, but one that remains true to the lightweight, minimalist DNA of the legendary Seven."
According to Caterham, this new model is going to be powered by a new in-house engine - the next-generation Caterham Motorsport engine - and is going to be built alongside the Seven. There’s no telling what kind of car this is going to be because Caterham is keeping their cards close to their chests. Fortunately, we won’t have to wait too long before we see the cat make its debut at the Autosport International Show in Birmingham, England on January 13, 2011. That’s about a month away so the wait really isn’t that long.
Nonetheless, we’ve already circled the date on our calendars.
Note: The photo above is of the RST-V8 Levante and not of the new concept that Caterham is working on.
Considering Ben Collins has retired/been fired from his role as the Stig on Top Gear UK, it was only appropriate that the Caterham Superlight R500 would see its eventual end as well. Known for making its rounds at the hands of the Stig on Top Gear and as Top Gear’s 2008 Car of the Year, the R500 will be making its last public appearance at the Marks & Spencers store at the Bluewater Shopping Centre in Kent, UK between December 6th and 12th.
Caterham Cars’ marketing manager, James Drake said: “The white and orange R500 has already claimed its place in motoring history. It’s worked hard since the new R500 was launched in 2008 and we feel it’s now time to let it have a rest. It will still be available as a static display car, but its hard driving days are over."
Like a retired police officer volunteering as a DARE representative, the Caterham Superlight R500 will now fill its days with promotional work, including promoting the launch of the remote control versions of the real vehicle. Priced at £19.50, these remote controlled R500s will come in the Stig’s color scheme of white with orange stripes, as well as a red version with a white stripe. Do we smell a perfect Christmas present?
History will tell us that Seven sports cars would not be where it is today if not for the late Graham Nearn, the man who rescued the brand and later founded Caterham Cars.
To honor the man behind the founding of Caterham, 236 Caterham Seven owners gathered at the Stow Maries Aerodrome in Essex, England for the Graham Nearn Memorial Blat.
The event was organized by the Lotus Seven Club, the official club for Lotus and Caterham Seven owners, and was done to commemorate the life of Graham Nearn and his role in extending the “"life, and improving the recipe of one of Britain’s most famous motor vehicles.”
To celebrate the occasion, all 236 Lotus and Caterham Seven owners assembled themselves to form a giant “7” logo as a sign of respect to the late founder and undying devotion to the Caterham brand.
We gotta say, the entire event – and that giant “7” logo – was a cool way to pay tribute to a man that not only saved a dying brand, but reinvented it to become the Caterham brand that it is today.
The vehicles from Caterham Cars can all be traced back to the very first model created by Colin Chapman, the original 1957 Series 1 Lotus Seven. Such an iconic car, as a finished vehicle or as a result of a kit, is behind every quirky model that has arisen from Caterham in their little over 50 years of existence. And, as a tribute to the history behind Caterham, the automaker has brought forth a special edition Roadsport 125 Monaco that takes the original’s lightweight philosophy and its bespoke, retro styling to a modern level.
The Roadsport 125 Monaco will be distinguished by brushed aluminum bodywork that will also feature a black nose and wheel guards. A little more color is added with the red and white Monegasque flag that will run the length of the car. On the interior the car will get a hand-tailored black leather interior that is highlighted with red touches to bring out a casino-type feel. Specifically, these color choices were made to represent the roulette wheels found in Casino Square, but if you are not a gambler then you can always opt for the all black trim option. Other options for the vehicle include a wide SV chassis and a lowered floor.
Under the hood there is a 1.6-liter Ford engine mated to a 5-speed gearbox. The car sprints from 0 to 60 mph in less than six seconds and can hit a top speed of 112mph.
This special edition will be priced at £20,995, but the first 20 cars will be available for just £19,995.
There seems to be a trend developing that joins the forces of the automotive world and the fashion world. Last week, we brought you the Fiat 500 Cabrio by Diesel and this week we have the pleasure of introducing a much different auto/fashion collaboration. This particular project involves a car that evolved from the Series 3 Lotus Seven designed by Colin Chapman; the Caterham Seven.
The Caterham Special Edition Seven was revealed today and is the product of a collaboration between Caterham and Lambretta Clothing, a famous British fashion company. The price for this special edition is £26,995.
The Lambretta Caterham Seven sportscar features a unique body paint: a combination of red, white and blue, based on the Union Jack. The same combination is used on the decals and livery, leather seats, dash, carpets and boot allowing for a proper homage to the heritage of the U.K.
Under the hood there is a 1.6-litre Ford Sigma engine delivering a total of 125 HP and mated to a five-speed gearbox.
Lambretta’s managing director, Rob Harmer explained: “Designing the exterior and interior of a car is an entirely different challenge to our core business of fashion and accessories, but there are clearly some shared philosophies between the two companies, which made this collaboration so exciting.”
We absolutely agree that there are tons of differences between the car industry and the fashion industry, but together, we can clearly see that they make a dynamic duo.
If you are looking for a Christmas gift idea, here’s a very good one: a Caterham Superlight R500 scale model, priced at £19.99. Caterham Cars’ most rapid road-going vehicle has been recreated to scale and is completed with remote control and BBC Top Gear’s The Stig behind the wheel.
The scale models comes in two different colors: white with red stripes, and yellow with black combination and both are on separate radio frequencies, allowing owners to race each other.
This little toy is available at a 1:16 scale comes with with full function radio control.
Caterham Cars has been building ;lightweight sports cars based on th eclassic Lotus 7 model for many years now. Their latest creation, the CSR 300 has just made its world premiere at the 2009 Tokyo Motor Show. The CSR 300 is the latest evolution of the Seven design, which is equipped with the Ford Duratec 2.0 engine. The Road Sport 300 was released as its Japan premiere and it is the ideal lightweight sportscar for all conditions.
Pity the poor Ferrari or Aston Martin owner, his stock portfolio in ruins and his yacht repossessed. What can a man of former means ride around in now that the six figure exotic in his garage has to go? British sports car manufacturer humbly offers up itself to the downtrodden as a beacon of performance with an affordable price tag. These lightweight wonders posses time proven designs that still serve up healthy amounts of "Whee!" As evidence of its newly discovered market appeal, Caterham claims to have seen both a Ferrari 430 and a Porsche 911 Turbo traded-in by its customers last month.
What do you say TopSpeeders? Is the Caterham a suitable replacement for an Italian stallion?
It seems Top Gear the magazine and Top Gear the TV show have split their Car of the Year decisions. The magazine chose the the Dodge Challenger as its COTY (CORRECTION:Muscle Car of the Year), while the Clarkson, Hammond and May are sticking by the Caterham Superlight R500. The two cars are alike in that they are both retro fun, but accomplish it in two very different ways.
The Challenger is brute fun (you’ll see in our upcoming review.) Shortcomings that arise from a muscle car built on a full-size car chassis are made up for with a huge engine and badass personality.
The Caterham is the never-say-die spirit of the Lotus 7. Where the Challenger uses a big Hemi V8 to get its speed, the Superlight R500 stays true to its name and uses its svelte 1100 lbs weight (500kg) to give it speed. It also helps that its 2.0-liter Ford-sourced engine is rated at 263 hp. 0 to 60 times are in the sub-three second range.
Caterham released today details on the 2008 Superlight R300, an out-of-the-box racer. Because Caterham builds basically modern (not really) Lotus 7s, it’s no surprise that the R300 follows the maxim of Lotus founder Colin Chapman, "To add speed, add lightness." The basic Caterham doesn’t usually come with many creature comforts, but the Superlight series eliminates even more (such as wet weather equipment) to ’add lightness’.
The R300 is powered by a 2.0-liter Ford-sourced Caterham Powertrain (CPT) Duratec engine that delivers 175bhp @ 7000 and a peak torque of 139 lbs-ft @ 6000. It makes the 0 to 60 mph sprint in 4.5 seconds and can hit a top speed of 140mph.
The Superlight R300 will go on sale in the U.K. in the spring of 2009 at a price of £24,995. No word yet on if it will make it to the U.S., but hopefully Caterham is keeping a closer eye on its American cousin with the launch of its North American website. Then again, we already have its bigger brother, the 263 hp Superlight R500 available in the States.
