Caterham 170 experience

TL;DR : not the best afternoon Really happy with the MFD15 installed in October , it didn't take long to imagine a next step where the fuel gauge would also be replaced by a CAN one, and a final step that would see a custom base for my mobile phone holder take the space occupied by the coolant temperature dial. Since the last failure of the oxygen sensor, I came to like having the lambda value displayed at all times. That also helped justify getting a second MFD15. With all the discounts the end of year was likely to bring, I didn't rush the purchase. But as nothing came by mid-December, I placed an order from Sandtler24 before any hypothetical price increase in January. First things first, I prepared an image for the boot screen. This time with the House of Speed and Quaife logos. The new device was powered from its USB port, the boot image loaded, the firmware upgraded to the latest version, the TRI file (CAN messages definitions) uploaded as well as a backup of ...

TL;DR  stealth on a shelf My Ultralite wheels were actually configured with another car in mind. More precisely, they were supposed to be chef's kiss 👌 on a carbon fiber-clad Caterham 170R with a Nardo grey body. A real thing of beauty; a bit radical. The black perimeter bolts (20 per wheel) worked really well with that livery. On Firecracker yellow with black stripes, I did intent on having silver assembly hardware. It's a bit more subdued on a car that is already attracting a lot of attention. That to say those black bolts are bit much on my 170S. A good thing with split rims is that the fasteners can be replaced at will. A better thing yet is that the bolts aren't screwed in the wheels centers themselves, but rather on nuts behind the rim sections. Those allow for a visual inspection and can be re-torqued if needed. This is also way safer than threading straight in aluminium : failing threads can lead to wheels that split while driving or even explode when mo...

TL;DR a chunky boy  With my previous portable air compressor lost in action trying to get the Kia up to spec', I was is need of a decent replacement. For sure I tried the courtesy hose at the local gas station. It was either blocked by a car parked in that spot, or the compressor was turned off and I ended removing air from the car. After 18 months, the convenience of a battery-powered portable option would have been missed. My use ranged from regular re-inflation of our daily cars; dealing with the bicycles including fixing punctures; inflating a basketball or two... to dealing with an unexpected warning light on the road to Summer vacations. Related to the Caterham, I took the compressor along each time we ventured a bit further away than usual. For instance, I used it to lower the pressure once in the Vosges and Black Forest for maximum grip, then got the Seven back to prescribed pressure before the 500km trip back, for maximum efficiency on the motorway. In line w...

TL;DR  Sisyphus's Caterham Staring at the cover picture for the Lamba sensor blog post from the other day, I was surprised to discover that my turbo is missing a bolt that's supposed to keep it strongly attached to the cylinder head. Browsing my photo gallery, I could confirm it was in place and partially visible with the turbo fresh from its upgrade in January. I could also spot a closeup of the turbo from the blue factory demonstrator that showed there's a bolt where mine seems to be missing  (see below) .  Videos of of the R06A teardown mentioned here show that the Alto Works uses 2 bolts and 2 studs. I really lost one bolt then. The good thing is that I have no exhaust leak, no noise or traces of soot. Overall it's not a big deal : I'd rather lose a bolt than risk ripping the thread in the aluminium cylinder head. Looking for a spare, I mostly found M8 and M10 studs and nuts kits. I confirmed the size with an M8 nut I have in my drawer. As it threaded fine on ...

  TL;DR Fear not. Very interested and curious about the intricacies of the R06A engine that powers the Caterham 170, I stumbled upon a series of YouTube videos by 赤シルの休日 @akasil . In that series, our man Akashiru shows a complete engine rebuild  of the Suzuki Alto HA36S he plans to race. Beside those videos, he also got an interview with Izumori-san , president of OS Giken. Wondering about the differences between the K6A engine (the one from the Caterham 160/165 as far as we are concerned) and the newer R06A (in the 170), they inform us that emissions compliance and fuel economy were driving most of Suzuki's engineering decisions.  While the K6A is 'square' (bore=stroke), the R06A is a long stroke engine (smaller bore, longer stroke for the same displacement), giving more torque and helping with emissions and efficiency. This a overall better suited to use with a turbo.  Side note, the "longer" engine also explains the lower rev limit : 7000 RPM vs  8000 RPM fo...

TL;DR Yet another consumable With the engine upgrade also came the upgrade to a wideband oxygen sensor. What's the difference you may ask. In simple terms, a narrowband sensor is only able to tell if the combustion is rich or lean, not really measuring how rich or lean it is. Its output will oscillate between two extreme voltage values close to 0 and 1 volt or so. With maybe a narrow band (hence the name) around 0.5 volt where it's able to work out a value when it's close to stoichiometric. A wide band one, on the other hand, is able to provide a reliable signal from 0.65 (lambda; rich) to over 10 (super lean). This allows for a finer tuning of the combustion by the ECU; that might aim at say 0.90 rather than 1.00 for high rpm and boost pressure. That strategy in itself limits the risk of knock and keeps the engine cool(er-ish). The first installed wideband sensor failed after maybe 2 or 3 weeks, leaving us stranded 100km from home . An extra month of erratic engine cut-of...

TL;DR winter wheels, part IV, or so Yay, this is the time of the year when Mariah Carey is gently thawing, soon ready to jingle all our day. Anyway, starting next week-end, it's going to be 4°C or less in the morning. It seems like a good time to put the snow wheels back on the car. For this third winter with the Caterham in only 18 months, I think I finally reach a proper clean look. It began with the immediate realization that the Avon ZT7 wouldn't cut it , followed by the stainless steel trims and  3D-printed caps before this stage of new additions. On the menu today : new(er) pair of steelies for the back, that I got last year I think new pair of Vredestein Snowtrac5 mounted on those metallic adhesive 45mm centre badges for the hub caps new set of M12x1.5 lug nuts from Amazon ( all about lug nuts here ) All four wheels are cleaned and brushed with dish soap, rinsed with the garden hose, let to dry under the afternoon sun.  They're made shiny with a good layer or carna...

  TL;DR Pumping the oil out from the top   With the car reaching 5000km since the last service, I was contemplating options for an impromptu oil change during our family holidays in Normandy.    The first thing that came to mind was to stop by some of those 'no-appointment-required' service stations like Midas or Speedy. I'm pretty sure I wouldn't have liked the flat fee they would most likely have asked. Not unlike the disappointment about the 1 hour flat rate that was charged by House of Speed last time, to be honest. Come on, we're talking 2 liters of 5w30 oil.    I could also have gone to any local car dealership for an appointment. Where would the fun have been?    On the other hand, accessing the oil plug is a pain. It's rather close to the ground and I have to lift the whole car to drain the oil. That's just about OK at home, a chore really.   Wandering around the automotive aisle of a local grocery store gave me a better ...

TL;DR "Everything is computer" Now that the dashboard minor gauges are fully calibrated , how about getting rid of them ? 🤡 The rationale is that my phone holder hides the coolant temperature gauge, and that space is better used with Waze that shows me what the road looks like ahead, rather than having the sad old needle telling me all is fine. When in doubt about any engine parameter, I use a mini ELM27 dongle to display real time data on the phone ( read all about that here ). With the current technology, nothing should prevent the build of a OBD display with a 52mm gauge form factor. I was obviously not the first to have that kind of idea. 👨‍💻  BTI gauges and  gaugeART products were identified as the most likely candidates. Both of those were not available in continental EU and required some PC software or phone app (which is even worse) of unknown lifetime and compatibility. Moreover, BTI didn't answer my e-mail about the durability in an open cockpit. Weeks lat...

TL;DR Mixed feelings Pictures courtesy of Deba Fotografie  After some minimal preparation, I reached Mettet around 8:20. Staff at the welcome table provided me with my car number and a ticket to get a driver wrist band after the briefing, they also guided me to the coffee corner with an assortment of breakfast pastries. I met a few friends and talked to a few other Seven enjoyers as well. House of Speed came up with trucks and trailers loaded with their pair of 420 race cars, a track-focused Lotus Elise and the raw carbon-fiber-finished Agile. When time came to go on track for the discovery laps, it appeared that my crash helmet was in way worse condition than I thought. Foam padding was turning into dust all around my face, jacket, in the car and in my eyes. Not a good start. Luckily, there's a motorcycle shop just at the entrance of the Mettet XP complex. I got there and got a new helmet. Not the cheapest I could get, but close to that. With my new gear, I finally reached the pi...

TL;DR  : Buckle up Yeah I know that I previously told that I wouldn't partake in any racing with my 170S, afraid of breaking the engine after the upgrades and all. We're 9000km later, and it proves to be as reliable as it has always been, with the engine temperature really kept under control and no sign of anything to worry about. So here we are. As I was hinting my friends at House of Speed yesterday that they didn't really have had a proper try with my car yet, they told me there would be a track day next week, and that it would be the best place to have a go. I knew there's usually one in October, but I hadn't seen or heard anything about that recently. The HoS newsletter was actually written already, and was sent soon after that talk . Twice a year, Belgians On Track  do schedule a track day at the Mettet circuit . It's not their only gig but the other one is in France, thus a bit further away. I've met one of the organizers a bunch of times already, an...

  TL;DR No corrosion allowed This story is some kind of follow-up to this one from last year.  In summary, I will always aim at getting rid of any sign of rust on my car. It has to look like it's fresh out of the factory. On the menu today : tail lights washers under the wheel arches : a pair of crusty flat washers and spring washer on each side.  I got myself a set of 260 stainless steel washers from China for 5€ or so. poppers screws on the boot cover : a strip of 4 rusty screws in plain sight. I got a bag of 50 screws for 2€. I've also replaced the stainless steel M5 allen bolts of the SPA mirrors with black ones, also in stainless steel. I should definitely share my 3D models for the custom base. As I got 52mm rubber o-rings in the same parcel as all those screws, I did fit one to the oil catch can , that showed signs of oil at the junction between the body and tank. At some point that week I also did replace the b lack nylon nut on the left sidescreen by a ge...

TL;DR Some like it hot I think I didn't cover the week-end in the Vosges and Black Forest at all but might have explained the cooling issue already.  Anyway, I got the car back on a Friday, and it was overheating a bit and dripping coolant from under the nose cone on the next day. What happened is that the cooling fan fuse had blown with the crash and was duly replaced and tested before I got the car back. That new fuse died rather quickly, which led the engine getting up to 105°C in some queues due to roadworks at the highest point of the Black Forest. Weather was not even great or remotely warm. The blown fuse resulted in some pressure buildup in the cooling system. Which should have been released by the 1.1 bar valve in the expansion tank cap. But is wasn't.  Instead, it was released from the hose connected to the top of the radiator, due to a faulty hose clamp. So here I was with a pair of commercial jetliner mechanics, a classic Mini specialist and a hot and ...