How I HATED then LOVED the Caterham Seven 270S - Review

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Caterham road test review and buyer's guide.
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[@ThomasFMPayne]

Excellent Video. I am very close to owning a Caterham. It has been my dream car since 1965.

[@stefanilie3122]

I didn't know that there were Caterhams in the dinosaur's age. lol joke :D

[@MrSaemichlaus]

So, have you got one? :)

[@TRPGpilot]

Have you finally realised your dream? That would be awesome!

[@TRPGpilot]

Just checked your channel and it seems that you did get one after all.

[@MagicAyrtonforever]

Kenny Everett does all the best reviews! Thankyou Ken. Fantastic stuff XD

[@maddocmucmaddocmuc5341]

Everything you say is true! Everything in this car is raw, short, narrow, flat, loud, hot and very very fast. This is not a sports car. In a sports car, you can enjoy just taking it easy and just ride along smoothly. Smooth is not for the caterham. I mean, you try it and it will get the job done . somehow. But you hear that it is not happy. The Caterham wants to be driven like you stole it. It is a barely street legal racing car. This is a big difference. This is the only car that does not create social envy like if you drive a Porsche. Everybody loves it and falls for its rebellious charms. Grandmas give you a thumbs up (or a quick kiss on the cheek while you stand at a red light (if they get the chance and dare to bow down to you) Little boys stand with their eyes literally popping out. I mean, this is the only car you can look into as a 3 year old when standing next to it. A funny thing that you will experience if you go to seven meetings: If the drivers have to wait in line, e.g. if you wait to board a ferry with the other drivers, the drivers usually get out of the car and when stop changes to go, rather push their car with one hand forward than jump into the car and drive a few meters. I mean, isn't it the dream of every boy, that pushes his toy car around, to jump into the car and drive away? Another funny thing: They all have a big umbrella in the car and they often pop it up in the city at very low speed in summertime to get a quick protection from the sun because the interior of the car is very very hot. Fortunately I have one of these, a 1987 super sprint. Fell in love with the Caterham in 1975, had to wait to 2009 until I could afford to buy it.... I am a happy man...

[@BarryCatt]

Speaking as a sixtysomething and a long term every day Caterham user, I have to say that I find the ride comfortable, not luxurious, but very comfortable for journeys of even 3 to 400 miles. The problem with achy feet is easily solved by stretching out your leg and placing your left foot underneath the pedals. That's solved your negative comments, now go out and buy one and enjoy it! Keep up the good work.

[@RoadandRacetv]

Thanks Barry for the top tips!

[@petehuskins]

If you're used to riding big bikes all year round, they seem like a sensible and very practical option! People are too soft these days! ; ))

[@grahamlane7070]

Porsche tarmac rally

[@TheDonCucaracho]

I'm 26 and I've been daily driving a 64 VW bug for like 10 years now, city, highway, off road, in every conceivable mechanical condition. I think I'm more than ready to daily a Caterham and feel it like an improvement :p

[@PwnUrBadCock]

How tall are you? Im 191 and really afraid of that.

[@paulhope7298]

Really good video squire. Balanced view and you aren't trying to be something. Nice! Great verdict on the Caterham too - spot on.

[@RoadandRacetv]

+Paul Hope Thanks so much Paul. So nice to get a kind comment like this. Glad you enjoyed the video.

[@g4okt]

Great review, glad you like it, I converted mine to a 310 for £1500, best fun car I've ever had. The indicator is nice n loud so you can hear it through the ear plugs!!!!

[@RoadandRacetv]

Cheers mate. Good move with the upgrade - I bet it goes like a rocket now! Lol, yeah ear plugs a must!

[@g4okt]

You bet! Keep the reviews coming....good stuff.

[@ColinMill1]

Just a point about the heater: the valve is fully adjustable so you can get however much heat you need - like everything else on the car you need to learn how to use it - even the key - leave it in your pocket and do up the 5-point harness and there is no way you will be able to get it out without undoing the harness again. All part of the discipline!

[@StokeBass]

Nice. The look on your face when you take it on the track tells it all!

[@RoadandRacetv]

Yeah, it's a bit special this one alright. Have you driven a Caterham?

[@StokeBass]

Sadly not, but if a day ever comes where I get to take one on a track, I'll also be grinning like an idiot LOL!

[@StokeBass]

Sadly not, but if that day ever arrives, and I get the opportunity to get one on a track, I suspect I'll also be grinning like you were!

[@arricammarques1955]

Literally riding along with the motor!

[@MikeKleinsteuber]

You can get just as much fun with any 7 from the 90s, so you really don't need to buy a new one. The driving pleasure will be just as great. And you also don't need to track the car to generate that pleasure. Just driving it on country roads will give you as much joy. But you need to be a driver at heart not a numpty.

[@craigpennington1251]

You guys really need to widen your roadways. Taller rubber will help the pot hole situation a bit. You don't need a stereo anyway. It does however, need a bigger gas tank.

[@JimBob_1975]

You also get treat to dashboard switches from a 1980's Mini :-)

[@Gugguggug100]

Great video. 5:58: bird at the apex.

[@lewis72]

The power-to-ratio number for cars this light is misleading. If driven by an 80kg driver, the power-to-weight ratio takes a 14% hit. Two 80kg occupants and it's a 28% hit.

[@pajabezi6141]

Hey, how tall are you? I just bought 170 and i didn't sit in it yet

[@complexi8692]

You definitely deserve more subscribers why don't you make vid together with car throttle since you both are from England and both bmw drivers.

[@RoadandRacetv]

Thanks mate, glad you think so! Good idea about Car Throttle will contact them.

[@andyjohnson4767]

I’m sorry, you are wrong, the suspension ok fine on the roads and long journeys are fine, had 2 of them

[@ОлегВолодин-м3й]

Я ездил на 310ке оранжевого цвета. Опасно и классно. Нужно привыкнуть. Но потом не захочешь слезать

[@jr.fiebre3590]

If you want a comfortable riding go get yourself a Cadillac or something similar and leave the sport cars alone as Sport car you don't need radio you don't need a cup holder is to go fast and have fun even in the city

[@johnsweda2999]

Are the brake servo assisted

[@snev2]

No

[@bob98765]

The irritatingly loud indicator buzzer sound is an EU regulation?! Really? None of the cars with European Type Approval that I drive/have driven made/make loud indicator sounds. Sounds like another euromyth.

[@xxmountaindewxx7893]

It´s only for real men.

[@Scoobydcs]

Massively overpriced but great track toy

[@RoadandRacetv]

+eatthisvr6 Yeah, it is expensive. It is very good at what it does though! An 8 month wait list to buy one says it all!

[@BraddersCat7]

Stop making videos like this you are making me want my old Seven back!! Have a 911 now and the differences are night and day.

[@RoadandRacetv]

Will do! ;-) What Seven did you have?

[@BraddersCat7]

Road and Race An Academy car. It did two seasons, one in Roadsport so had the light R500 wheels with CR500 tyres. No heater, no paint, full roll cage, glass fibre buckets seats with harnesses. Very raw, but so much fun. Videos in my channel.

[@misobogdanov2422]

You lost me at 130hp

[@drew699]

This chap clearly knows nothing about Caterhams- daily driving is perfectly acceptable on normal roads, the suspension is brilliant & almost limousine like & clutch & brakes are excellent. He’s the sort of chap who would complain about a Ferrari being too sportscar like….

[@weedaviec]

A Caterham or a Westfield is definitely on my bucket list. Thanks for your video- it makes some very relevant points that other car channels don't- especially regarding the lack of power assistance for brakes or steering. Personally I'm after as raw an experience as possible. Having owned many cars including Escort Mk 2s, Minis etc I do not want my driving experience neutered by NVH engineers!

[@lewis72]

I drove to Germany a few times in my Lotus Elise. Horrible. Needed ear plugs when on the Autobahn. I've since done the same journey in an E60 530i. Bliss.

[@1spongeygit]

I loved mine on the road! Great brakes (without annoying abs) very comfortable seats, firm suspension, eye catching.... just lovely to drive but not in queues!... jerky clutch, doesn't like queues.. Just Great!

[@TomsTurboGarage]

Fantastic!

[@RoadandRacetv]

+Tom's Turbo Garage Big thanks sir!

[@michaelgoodwin593]

Really well produced as always. Enjoyed it! Im after a Westfield, just need to clear the garage.

[@RoadandRacetv]

Thanks Michael! You gonna build the Westfield yourself? What do you need to sell first?

[@LukeBeacon]

Cars are toys after all... This one looks like a real toy!

[@RoadandRacetv]

True.

[@E92M3Guy]

My dad used to own an original lotus seven that he built himself back in 1963 he sold it to marry my late mum, still regrets it to this day, I'm a huge fan of the TV series the prisoner , so I would own a special edition prisoner series model if I could afford one, incidentally that vehicles number plate was KAR 120C, which is now owned by Caterham themselves. The original car was sold to somebody in Hong Kong and subsequently written off, I was told all of this by a tour guide at portmerion a month ago. Great job as always , can't wait for the next one.

[@RoadandRacetv]

Wow, such a shame he sold it but I guess he had a good reason! Thanks for the kind words as usual.

[@WilliamParmley]

Wow, interesting to read about the current status of the KAR 120C plate.

[@davevernon4993]

I didn't know Kenny Everett was into Caterhams.

[@handbuiltinengland]

Dave Vernon - Hahahahaha, I was going to say the same thing but I'm a year late!

[@davidbates247]

Looks great. picture quality excellent great video.as for the car stupidly impractical for the road then why have i allways wanted one so badly fabulous car

[@RoadandRacetv]

+David Bates Thanks David, been trying hard to get the quality up so nice of you to mention.

[@sidewayssam]

Get yourself a westfield, had mine 20 years! And used it as a daily driver, steering is light! Certainly not heavy..@tomsgarage your welcome to drive if you come to the uk! , good vid, enjoyed it

[@LoveBystroem]

I think the gear box is an m-x 5 one

[@inox1ck]

I've seen some Lola F1R for sale, from 55k. R stands for road legal. Probably the only road legal F1 based car. But even if you get it at that price it would be a lot harder to maintain than a cat 620 Other options: ariel atom, westfield,

[@uniwerksdesign]

like

[@EGGZ1983]

What would this car be like for a 6ft7in driver. Im also over 100kg. I see you can get the bigger chassis and lower the cockpit as an extra. Will this be enough. I have been told caterham is a good roadster for proper tall people.. not 6ft.. Lol cheers

[@roggerfrogger2]

I thought ABS was a legal requirement these days?

[@RoadandRacetv]

Yeah, good point. They must have some kind of exception?

[@Jabber-ig3iw]

Low volume car makers are exempt. There’s a reason they only make 500.

[@johnwebber8392]

its a race car?

[@charlesevans1588]

I've always found that junction of the South Circular round Clapham Common problematical, too.

[@hughphillips1427]

It is like a motorcycle on four wheels, the respect that you are open to the elements. Sounds great.

[@onlinenews3039]

Car very nice i watching thanks you.

[@RoadandRacetv]

Thanks for watching!

[@augustvansuchtelen1723]

are these available in the USA ? If so how can I get one .. thank you

[@BillHiscock]

Fantastic video!!! I have lived with a Supersport race car for around 18 months now. Using it on the road and track. This video accurately sums up Caterham ownership in under 10 minutes. If you would be interested in taking my 1.6 150bhp Supersport out sometime, perhaps we could arrange something. Kind regards and keep up the videos, Bill

[@RoadandRacetv]

+Bill Hiscock Thanks Bill. So glad you liked it! Lucky you for having one yourself! Thanks for the offer, maybe next time I'm at the track you could bring yours along?

[@BillHiscock]

Sounds good to me!

[@fptuning]

ah bless... did you want some fluffy dice to make it more comfortable for commuting. owners dont drive them into cities, they blat B roads at weekends. Good video though. I started following you for your M3 videos but happen to own a Caterham also

[@RoadandRacetv]

Cool. What Caterham do you own?

[@anthonyfell77]

Loved the review although...the ride isn't that uncomfortable, one of the things that's most surprising about driving a Caterham for the first time is how forgiving the suspension is. I'd rather hit a pothole in a Caterham than in a 1 series BMW. If you don't have the indicator sounder you constantly forget to cancel the indicators.

[@RoadandRacetv]

+Anthony Fell Thanks Anthony. What one do you have?

[@BikerBloke600]

No thanks. Keep it lol

[@WalterBurton]

Great review/experience video. Really enjoyed it. Subscribing.

[@RoadandRacetv]

+Walter Burton Thanks for the sub Walter. Glad you liked the vid!

[@r129r16pfl]

My dream car

[@RoadandRacetv]

+Kr Dz Yeah, it's one for my garage if I could afford one. You ever got the chance to drive one?

[@ChrisMisMYhandle]

5:56 selfish bastard hogging the apex

[@ghenckel]

Loved the video, and agreed with much of your comments (off the flat windscreen, the buffeting without side curtains installed is abusive), but disagree totally on one key point: the ride quality is most certainly not "poor". The extreme light weight of the car allows it to actually carry much softer damping than other 'high performance' cars typically do, and it rides very well on moderate roads. My other high performance cars have worse ride quality on rough roads than the Caterham. And guys, the reported 'efforts' to drive the car are silly: this thing is a breeze to drive at any speed. It is so light that I push it in and out of the garage by hand (rolling it up and down the lightly sloped drive) when I wash it. The bump-steer, on the other hand, is pretty severe; be prepared for some 'surprise' steering corrections when cornering hard over bumps, but the power oversteer is super easy to control and predictable; the car has a natural understeer tendency until you're into the throttle hard and WANT the rear end to come around ;) this is a Formula Ford for the street! Get one and drive it hard, you won't forget Colin's lightness!

[@albertweedsteinthethuggeni7797]

Is it a manual?

[@davidaitchison1455]

Did you watch the video??

[@Snakebloke]

I hope you were joking when you were talking about cubby-holes and it being cramped... It's a race car, not a Lexus...

[@Just-chilling978]

If the women like that I get one then I’ll get that car so I might get some girlfriend

[@robertcmcnamara]

"Not so good as an everyday roadcar." No shit Sherlock, whatever gave you that impression?