I grew up in the 60s, and was a big fan of "The Prisoner" TV series. I loved the sports car in that show, but thought it was unique to the series. After all, he even mentions that he "built it with his own 2 hands". A little later I learned it was a real car, but was a "Lotus" -- that meant that it would be extremely expensive (after all, James Bond drives Lotus's) and not made anymore. Then in 1981, I took a trip to England to visit London and to attend a convention at Portmerion (the place where the TV show was filmed). There I met Roger Langley and his Caterham Seven, and learned that the car was still made, and could be owned. The manufacturing of the car had been taken over from Lotus by a company called Caterham. In fact, the care was not outragously expensive either. After contacting Caterham, I learned that buying a used Seven was not likely, nor was importing one. I would have to go have one built for me within the USA.
The only pictures of my car being assembled
Typically, getting this car would only be a matter of 3-6 months, but I actually took delivery on the car about 2 years later. This was because of many factors. I was buying something I really couldn't afford at the time (I was in my 20's and regularly solving financial problems by living on Kraft macaroni & cheese dinners), a lot of my car was made of used or rebuilt parts to save money at the expense of time, I changed jobs, and (although I did not know it then) DSK was dealing with a lot of other customers and issues that kept them busy.
Although this seemed hard at the time, CT had a detailed composit car program that helped. The DMV gave me a 2 page list of standards I had to meet (ground clearance, taillight height from ground, rear exiting exhaust, etc.). The car had to go through a manual inspection, and get a vehicle ID assigned by the state and a title created. The nice thing is that the emissions testing for composite cars is that it must meet 1968 standards (no matter what the year of the car is). I often had to remind testing stations about this when I went for yearly testing.
When I took delivery of the car, I still had some various items to complete. Hood & nose alterations, painting it, getting insurance, passing inspection, etc. CT has a composite car program, but my inspection took 2 attempts because they do not allow the muffler along side of the car. They eventually agreed that if I attached a cover that ran from the front wing to the back fender, they would consider it beneath the fender well and pass the car. Of course, immediately after it passed I removed the cover :-). The ground clearance under the oil pan was below requirements, but I put oversized tires on the car and "lifted" it as I climbed out so that it would pass ;-). If I had installed a sump system (expensive), I would not have had to do that.
So in 1984, I finally completed registration and was on the road. The registration I managed to get was "KAR 120". "KAR120C" (the registration in the TV show), was not a valid plate to have in CT at the time because it had 7 characters. The car was registered as a "1984 Composite Lotus-7", vehicle ID "CT 32599"..
Here are some photos of my car with a younger, thinner me driving:
I estimate that the total cost of the car came to approximately $18k.
Twin webber carbs with side intake "socks".
I loved this car and drove it everywhere, even in bad weather! Driving a Seven is an experience filled with mixed emotions. The fans and conversations it generates are always fun, but leaving it in a parking lot while you go eat or something made me nervous sometimes. The best part is that the car is quicker than anything, including 'Vett's and Farrari's, and the feeling of that G force when you punch it can't be described. It did 0-60 in about 6 seconds, but because the car is so light (about 1200 pounds), it's top speed was about 95mph though.
During my ownership, I made several improvements to the car. I was always snapping throttle cables, so I had the linkage redone. I also snapped the clutch cable and had it replaced by an aircraft hydrolic system made by a race shop called Chassis Dynamics in Waterbury (they also worked on Paul Newman's race car). The nice thing about that place is that I could walk to it from my house. I also blew up the engine (apparently it had been rebuilt badly) and had to have it redone. I had a small cassette deck and equalizer mounted (via velcro) on the drive train tunnel for quick removal.
Also during this time, a new Caterham Dealer appeared in Mass. called Sevens & Elans. They are still in business, and are a productive builder of Sevens in the USA. They also hold an annual meet for Seven owners, and in 1987 I attended.
I also did an autocross event in the car, but it was my first and I went off course, so I didn't do well.
Since I'm writing this 10 years later, I can't remember all my stories. The one that stands out the most was when I was coming out of a 7-11 and saw 2 people near the car. One of them was lying down with his head under the chassis so he didn't see me. As I approached I heard him say to his buddy "This ain't no pinto chassis".
Finally, in late 1988, I planned to get married and sold the car in order to pay for everything. I sold it to a company in Straford called New England Classics, who in turn painted the rear fenders black and sold it the next day to a person in Woodbridge. I had to sell it quickly, so I lost about $7k on the deal. I have not seen it since. I turned in the registration plate and kept the "KAR120" letters, so if it was re-registered it likely would not have been as "KAR120". If you know anything about where this car is today please contact me. I'd love to see it even if it was wrecked. It can be recognized because it had a unique hydrolic clutch system, and the node & hood were modified to handle the engine being too tall for the car due to an oil pan.
It is 11 years later and I now live in Raleigh, NC.
My wife and I have decided that it is now time for me to buy a new one :-). Look at all the photos on the Sevens and Elans web site (especially on the tour of the U.K. Caterham factory) to see many colorful examples of what it looks like today. There are also much more resources in the USA to help.
UPDATE -- I am now the owner of a 1999 Caterham Seven. Details of my adventure are available online here. Now who owns that "KAR120C" vanity plate registered in NC?