Celebrating 50 years of Caterham – Automotive Weblog

Feast your eyes on these 50 details to mark the fiftieth anniversary of British sports activities automotive producer, Caterham  From the model’s success in motorsport to greater than 100 variants of the enduring Seven.

Caterham will have fun its milestone yr with its fiftieth Anniversary Pageant at Donington Park on September 2-3.

The timeline begins in 1973 when Caterham was born after a handshake between Graham Nearn and Lotus founder Colin Chapman in Pub Lotus in Primrose Hill, London.

In Might that yr, Caterham Automotive Gross sales & Coachworks acquired the tooling, designs and unique rights to the Seven and commenced manufacturing in City Finish, Caterham, a month later.

Caterham has bought greater than 22,000 automobiles in its 50-year historical past. There have additionally been a number of celeb homeowners, together with Sir Chris Hoy, Rowan Atkinson, Simon Cowell, Eddie Irvine, Chris Rea, Nigel Mansell, Man Berryman, Jonathan Palmer, Theo Paphitis and Lee Dixon.

Caterham: 50 details for 50 years

1. Caterham acquired the tooling, designs and unique rights to the Seven from Lotus Vehicles in Might 1973. The handshake between Colin Chapman and Graham Nearn passed off in Pub Lotus in Primrose Hill, London.
2. Caterham began constructing automobiles in June 1973 in City Finish, Caterham, at a charge of circa one Sequence 4 automotive per week. Simply 38 Sequence 4 automobiles had been constructed earlier than manufacturing ceased lower than a yr later.
3. All the first 10 Caterham orders had been exported, with the primary 5 going to Germany. Three automobiles went to Luanda, Angola and chassis #10 went to Guatemala. Chassis #6 was bought by Jose Rebocho to compete within the Grande Prémio Café de Angola, a two-hour race held on the Autódromo Internacional de Luanda.
4. Caterham relaunched the Sequence 3 mannequin in 1974 that includes Lotus Twin Cam and Ford Crossflow engine choices. It obtained robust demand from export markets, with the primary 100 S3 automobiles constructed going to locations such because the US, Canada, Germany, France, Belgium, Sweden, Japan, Hong Kong, Qatar and Libya.
5. French actor Jean-Paul Belmondo drove a Tremendous Seven within the 1979 French motion film “Flic Ou Voyou” or “Cop or Hood”.
6. Caterham revealed the Silver Jubilee version Seven on the 1981 London Motorfair, restricted to simply eight examples, to mark 25 years of the Seven in 1982.
7. In 1984, Caterham launched the Cosworth-powered 1600 BDR mannequin. On the time it was the quickest manufacturing Seven constructed to this point and boasted a power-to-weight ratio of practically 300bhp per ton.
8. In 1986, an HPC mannequin launched with a Cosworth 1700 engine, and gross sales had been restricted to consumers who took Caterham’s two-day Excessive Efficiency Course. Simply 62 automobiles had been constructed and it was able to 0-60mph in 5.0 seconds.
9. Caterham launched Tremendous 7 Racing in 1986, the model’s one-make championship.
10. From the onset, automobiles had been constructed within the city of Caterham however in 1987, manufacturing moved to a bigger premises at Kennett Street, Dartford, the place automobiles are nonetheless constructed as we speak.
11. In 1989, the ‘Prisoner’ version was launched in homage to the 1966 TV Sequence, by which Patrick McGoohan drove a Lotus 7 in the beginning of each episode. The Prisoner version made its debut on the 1990 Birmingham Motorshow with Patrick McGoohan flying in from Hollywood for its launch. It featured a singular color scheme and alloy wheel design.
12. In 1990, Vauxhall grew to become a brand new engine provider with its engines used within the HPC VX and HPC VXI fashions.
13. Caterham switched from Ford engines to Rover Ok-Sequence engines in 1991 with the launch of the 1.4 Ok-Sequence taken from the then-new Rover Metro GTI.
14. The 35^th Anniversary version launched in 1992, marking 35 years of Seven manufacturing. The mannequin obtained extensive press protection when it was photographed being pushed by HRH Prince Edward and Lord Montagu of Beaulieu.
15. Caterham gained the ‘Longest Day of Nelson’ 24-hour endurance race at Nelson Ledges Street Course, Ohio in June 1992. The HPC Twin Cam automotive constructed specifically for the race gained by seven laps and coated 990 laps and 1,980 miles. The driving force workforce consisted of Jez Coates, Reg Worth, Robert Nearn and George Alderman. The dimensions of the trophy meant that on the flight dwelling, it had its personal seat on the aircraft.
16. The 1992 Jonathan Palmer Evolution (‘JPE’) mannequin featured a Swindon Racing Engines modified Vauxhall 2.0-litre 250bhp engine with a specification nearly equivalent to these used within the British Touring Automotive Championship. It achieved 0-60 mph in simply 3.4 seconds and set a brand new world report for the quickest accelerating, unmodified manufacturing automotive.
17. In 1994 Caterham launched the 21, a two-seat roadster which was based mostly on the Seven’s chassis however wrapped in a extra sensible physique type, with doorways, aspect home windows and a boot.
18. The Caterham Scholarship, now often known as the Caterham Academy, initially launched in 1995 and has since seen greater than 1,300 novices grow to be racing drivers.
19. The 1999 Superlight R500 mannequin launched with a power-to-weight ratio of 500bhp per tonne. It was powered by a Caterham-modified 1.8-litre Rover Ok-Sequence engine with curler barrel throttle our bodies to offer uninterrupted airflow into the engine on full throttle.
20. Caterham launched a motorbike-engined automotive in 1999, the Blackbird, utilizing a Honda Blackbird CBR1100 engine that delivered 170bhp and redlined at 11,750 rpm. In 2001, a specifically tailored Caterham which used a Honda Fireblade engine set a brand new world report for the quickest velocity pushed in reverse at 102.52 mph by the hands of Darren Manning.
21. The Seven’s chassis dimensions remained unchanged proper up till 2000 when the bigger ‘SV’ chassis was launched, rising the size by 3 inches and the width by 4.3 inches, permitting for extra inside house.
22. Constructing on the nice success of the R500, the R300 and R400 fashions had been launched in 2002. On the 2002 Nürburgring 24-hour race, the R400 gained its class by 10 laps, and got here 11^th total out of round 200 starters, by the hands of Chris Harris, Clive Richards, Chris Cooper and Peter Haynes.
23. The 2004 Superlight R500 Evolution used a Ok-Sequence engine elevated to 2.0-litres developed by Minister Racing Engines, and achieved a 0-60 mph in 3.2 seconds, 0-100 mph in 6.9 seconds and 0-100-0 mph in 10.7 seconds (sooner than the £425,000 Ferrari Enzo).
24. The Cosworth-powered CSR200 and CSR260 fashions of 2005 featured the primary use of absolutely unbiased rear suspension, reprofiled entrance wings and an all-new inside with a curved cockpit subframe.
25. In 2006, Ford Sigma engines changed Rover as the primary engines within the Seven, with the launch of the Roadsport fashions and the Superlight 120 / 150 fashions.
26. Caterham partnered with Axon Automotive in 2006 to create the Axon 2R/Eco-M prototype. It featured a carbon fibre spaceframe and enhanced aerodynamics, enabling the automotive to attain 131mpg within the 2007 Eco-Marathon.
27. The Superlight R500 badge was reborn in 2008 with the launch of a Duratec-engined mannequin. It had 263bhp with a power-to-weight ratio of 520 bhp per tonne. Choices obtainable for the primary time included a six-speed sequential gearbox and launch management. It was subsequently named ‘Automotive of the 12 months’ by High Gear and famously set a lap time of 1:17.9 round its Dunsfold check observe – sooner than the £1 million Bugatti Veyron.
28. In 2011, Terry Grant set a brand new world report for the best variety of continuous donuts, managing 566 in a 150 bhp Roadsport.
29. Caterham Vehicles was acquired from Corven Ventures by Crew Lotus Enterprises in 2011, a bunch led by Malaysian, Tony Fernandes. Crew Lotus Enterprises entered Components 1 that yr as Crew Lotus (although it was not associated to Lotus Vehicles). For the 2012 to 2014 seasons, the F1 workforce grew to become ‘Caterham F1’. A Crew Lotus version Seven was additionally launched, completed in an identical color scheme to the F1 automotive.
30. In November 2012, a deal was signed with Renault to collectively develop a brand new mid-engined two-seater sports activities automotive, the Caterham C120 / Alpine A110 – separate automobiles with shared structure and elements. Nonetheless, Caterham and Renault/Alpine parted firm in mid-2014.
31. Since 2013, Caterham has not been based mostly within the city of Caterham, after it relocated to a bigger, extra fashionable unit close to Gatwick Airport.
32. Caterham revealed a brand new idea for a low-cost karting championship in 2013, geared toward novice drivers aged 13 to 16, which might have used its personal newly designed kart, the CK-01.
33. The 620R was launched on the 2013 Goodwood Pageant of Velocity by F1 drivers Charles Pic and Alexander Rossi. It was powered by a supercharged 2.0-litre Duratec engine, featured an all-new six-speed straight-cut sequential gearbox, a LSD and race dampers.
34. Caterham launched a brand new entry-level mannequin, the Seven 160, in 2013. Weighing simply 490kg, it was powered by Suzuki’s 3-cylinder 660cc turbo engine delivering 80 bhp – an identical engine is utilized in as we speak’s 170 and Tremendous Seven 600. It featured a rear reside axle, quite than the conventional De Dion unit. In Japan, the mannequin was launched at an occasion on the British embassy in Tokyo.
35. For the reason that launch of the Seven 160 and 620R, Caterham has used a ‘double horsepower’ naming technique. This was continued in 2015 with the launch of the two.0-litre Duratec-powered 360 as a alternative for the Roadsport 175, together with the 270 and 420 fashions.
36. Caterham launched the Kamui Kobayashi Version for the Japanese market in 2014, designed by F1 driver Kobayashi, which was a single-seater and featured inexperienced lacquer carbon fibre entrance wings and rear wing protectors – Caterham’s first use of this end. All however one of many automobiles constructed had been bought in Japan.
37. Caterham partnered with LEGO in 2015 to supply a 620R LEGO set consisting of 770 items. Greater than ten LEGO Sevens have been bought for each full-size Caterham.
38. The limited-edition retro impressed Seven Dash launched in 2016 was created to commemorate 60 years because the launch of the Lotus Seven. It was based mostly on the Seven 160 with the identical Suzuki engine, however featured flared wings, crimson leather-based seats, crimson dashboard and a wood-rimmed steering wheel. It was solely obtainable in paint colors supplied by British producers in 1967. All 120 automobiles (60 in Europe and 60 in Japan) bought out inside days.
39. The Seven 310R launched in 2016, based mostly on the 1.6-litre Sigma engine used within the 270R however with reprofiled cams and a remap to ship 152 bhp (in comparison with 135 bhp for the 270R). It featured double-wishbone entrance suspension and a LSD.
40. Caterham launched its ‘Signature’ customisation programme in 2016 with a particular Harrods mannequin to exhibit the breadth of choices obtainable.
41. In 2017, Sir Chris Hoy – each a former Caterham proprietor and racer – set a brand new world report for the variety of donuts in 60 seconds, managing to do 19 in a 620R.
42. The limited-edition retro impressed SuperSprint of 2018 used an uprated 95 bhp model of the 660cc Suzuki engine, tan leather-based seats and race-inspired particulars similar to an LSD, spherical chrome mirrors and interval decals. It was obtainable in six color mixtures, every named after a historic racing circuit similar to Zandvoort. Restricted to simply 120 items, it bought out throughout the first day.
43. Caterham starred in The Grand Tour’s ‘A Large Hunt’, with James Might utilizing a 310R with off-road modifications to journey throughout Madagascar.
44. In 2021, a Seven 170 was inbuilt lower than six hours on the planet’s highest automotive dealership – the highest of Brighton’s 450ft British Airways i360 Tower.
45. At 440kg, the 170R (launched in 2021) is Caterham’s lightest mannequin but and one of many world’s lightest manufacturing automobiles.
46. Final yr the 420 Cup was launched, a highway authorized automotive constructed for the observe. It encompasses a 210 bhp 2.0-litre Duratec engine, 6-speed sequential gearbox, absolutely adjustable dampers and carbon seats.
47. Now owned by VT Holdings, Caterham has had three earlier homeowners through the years: the Nearn household till 2005, Corven Ventures till 2011 and Crew Lotus Enterprises till 2021.
48. There have been a number of celeb Caterham homeowners, together with Sir Chris Hoy, Rowan Atkinson, Simon Cowell, Eddie Irvine, Chris Rea, Nigel Mansell, Man Berryman, Jonathan Palmer, Theo Paphitis, Lee Dixon and Jeremy Clarkson who bought one for his ex-wife Frances Cain.
49. There have been over 100 variants of the Seven because it was launched in 1957.
50. Caterham has bought over 22,000 automobiles to this point, in each equipment and factory-built kind, and used over 35 engine variants. 2021 was a report gross sales yr for the model, with 670 items bought.